Chapter 2 : WHY DEVELOP YOUR MUSCLES ?

Most likely, you’re impressed by the physique of a bodybuilder when the idea of developing your muscles first hit you. Many people want big muscles just for sheer amusement. It’s awesome to see bulging muscles in other people, and it would be a thrill to have them too. With this in mind, they start with the new adventure. Some of them quit after a few workouts, but many of them go on to prevail.

So what makes others quit while others continue bodybuilding? A better question is, “Why start at all?”

A. IMAGE BUILDING

Most of the time when a muscular person comes by, the first thing that registers in people’s minds is, “Man! What a strong guy!” Big muscles spell strength to most people. Often, we feel inferior and weak when we’re beside an obvious bodybuilder. We usually bend down a little (a common reaction of physical insecurity) as if to say, “Okay, I admit. You’re the strong guy and I’m the weak one.”

Often, this gives birth to the idea that, “Wait a minute; why can’t I be just like him?” You may start to imagine yourself carrying those powerfully packed muscles and flexing them. You may also start visualizing how awesome fitting shirts and jeans would look on you if you possess those shapely muscles.

B. BUILDING CONFIDENCE

An image of strength naturally results in a confident and secure feeling. Who would be crazy enough to bully a Mr. Muscleman? Many people turn to bodybuilding for this effect. They believe muscles can protect them from harm. When you have this security system installed in your body, then you would be confident enough to start asserting yourself, feel equal with all men, and even start dating girls.

Many people consider a muscular body as a plus factor in romantic relationships. Being tall, dark, and handsome are not enough. You must also have enough muscles seen in the right places. Often, “tall” really means height and an athletic built. Tall and skinny won’t do.

It’s also very important that you make a good first impression when applying for a job. This means proper body carriage, which also means that your attire fits your body well. If you lack muscles that give shape to your clothes (especially your buttock muscles) and display confidence in your body movements, you might not make a good impression. A body frame that looks like a clothes hanger does not impress some people.

C. ALWAYS “IN”

Muscles are always in. Since the motion picture started rolling, leading men have often been those with shapely bodies. More so when action movies came into the scene, the era of the macho men began. Thus, when you are fit, you are hip. Most men want to be as shapely as their favorite movie actors are.

There are many more reasons why people would embark on a fitness journey. The three above are the most common. They get people easily motivated to pursue bodybuilding.

There are people who manage to stay enormously fit because they want a good image, to be confident, and to be in fashion. Yet you can see them stick to their bad vices, like smoking, drinking, and even womanizing — taboos in health maintenance.

D. LAUDABLE REASONS TO BUILD MUSCLES

Let us look at the more laudable reasons why some people decide to stay fit all their lives. We shall also see how the fitness concern started from a mere whim to a serious life task.

Health

As you continue to enjoy the macho image, confidence, and fashion, you may eventually realize the healthy feeling that bodybuilding gives you. You feel less tired and stressed out after office hours than most of your officemates. You seldom get the common cold and flu than the rest. You face every challenge with vigor and gusto, and never seem to run out of energy. As you enjoy all of these, you realize the health benefits of pumping iron, not to mention the youthful look that does not seem to fade even with age. Bodybuilders are known to have their skins stretched out tight and wrinkle-free - no sagging, flabby fat hanging anywhere. Soon, you do bodybuilding more out of health concerns rather than for trivial reasons. As you go through life and see how the ailing and bedridden suffer terribly due to failing health, you hang on to great physical condition as you keep up with your muscle sculpturing.

Discipline

Many bodybuilders get past the muscle sculpturing mania thing and go forward to a rigidly regulated life to get the most of it. Many serious bodybuilders are often heard saying, “It is useless to build muscles and destroy your internal organs.” However, many vain bodybuilding enthusiasts sculpture their muscles for the sake of external beauty, and ignore their inner health. They engage in incessant drinking, smoking, and other acts that abuse their health. Later, these cause serious diseases that slowly reverse whatever gains they have in their past workouts.

Security

Many say we live in a more hostile world today. Consequently, many bodybuilders today are not as interested in image or fashion as they are in defending themselves and their love ones in case of danger. A growing number of men and women take up gym lessons as a cross training for self-defense. Modern action and suspense movies even stress this need. Media can play powerfully on the imagination of people today. People have always thought that the stronger you are, the better your chances in a survival of the fittest. Armies of superpower nations include serious gym training for muscle build-up. They use the developed muscles not only for hand-to-hand combat, but also for carrying heavy arms and equipment.

Better Athletics

Many athletes today understand the role of muscle development in perfecting skills and performance. It’s not just having muscles for building the image anymore. They realize that muscles must be subjected to tough conditions in order to handle extreme demands during a performance or competition. In addition, strong and flexible muscles are easily commanded by the will and the mind to obedience. It is hard to tell your leg muscles to run faster when they get strained or tired easily.

Job Stability

The number of people who see the connection between their stable jobs and their health grows by the minute worldwide. Most companies seldom retain sickly people. In this light, more and more people are becoming health-conscious. They seriously incorporate in their daily rigor weight training, whether light or heavy. Physical conditioning also keeps them smart and alert to do their jobs accurately and satisfactorily. Physical conditioning gives you good blood and oxygen circulation. This gives the brain the substantial amount of blood and oxygen it needs to perform better.

Happiness for the Family

Many parents take up body building seriously to keep up with their growing kids. Kids have ample supplies of energy. Parents who want to enjoy the growing up years of their children stay fit to cope up with their kids’ energy. Kids can go biking, running, playing, swimming and laughing all day long. Then, before lights off, they still want their parents to tell them bedtime stories at night. These factors, plus keeping a stable job or business, make up for a happy family.

Productive Life

In both your youth and adulthood, you would want to get the best out of life. You are an accomplishment-oriented being. This is what keeps humans apart from animals. As you plan to reach this and that goal, chances are, you would realize that life is short. Then you would want to prolong it anyway you can. For sure, health would be a serious concern to you. Then bodybuilding would seriously come into mind. It is a rule that good health means you have to lift some weights to strengthen your body. From simple walking, running, and jumping, to the complications of lifting barbells, the principle is that you have to lift some weights in order to stay in shape.

In all the previously mentioned, you read the reasons why people resort to bodybuilding. You also learned how the reasons could evolve from vain to serious ones. If you take life seriously, you may also want to consider launching a discipline in muscle sculpturing.

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