Bodybuilding Genetics
May 11th, 2007Among all the marketing gimmicks, magic supplements and the people pushing you books for the magic routine, I have to say point blank: bodybuilding results is mostly genetics. If you’re a bodybuilding “newbie” (or maybe even a veteran) your going to hate to read those words, but it’s the truth. It’s ingrained in our psychology that we hate to admit that anything is mostly genetics. It took me a while myself, before I finally came to terms with that.
If you are a “hardgainer” you will never acheive close to what a easygainer gets, at least not naturally. Just like some people are smarter then others, look better, some people are more nervous, some are introverted, genetics plays a role in everything so why not bodybuilding? Bodybuilding is an ego driven sport, so people are not going to want to admit that they can’t look like Arnold or the buff gym rat if the weigh 140 lbs soaking wet. They will convince themselves if they just try a little bit harder on their diet or routine, they will eventually be the biggest in their gym.
Even steroids are not a magical drug. They give you a boost and get you through plateaus, but watch what happens when you get off them after a year or two. You will drastically shrink, often back to your previous size before steroids. And you don’t want to be relying on them indefinitely because of the negative effects on your heart, liver, kidneys, prostate, and sexual health.
So what genetic factors are in place?
Fiber type and amount. The more gifted larger bodybuilders often have more fibers and more of them fast twitch on average. Myostatin is another one. When myostatin was manipulated in mice they grew muscle at unbelievable rates. Testosterone levels play a huge role also. People with large testosterone levels should have a easier time building more muscle and keeping lean /losing fat. Metabolism of course is another big one. If you have a fast metabolism you will have a hard time building muscle.
Did I give up? of course not I still train hard. I just realized I needed a more realistic perspective about my abilities. It is unhealthy to obsess and have unrealistic expectations. So if you have been following a strict diet and weight lifting routine for a few months and still don’t look that great, just accept that because of your genetics, the gains will be probably slow. You may have to accept you’ll never reach your ideal goal in your mind. However, you will look a heck of a lot better than if you did nothing! And that is all that matters in the end.
If you found this article interesting, you may want to read this other article I wrote: Does body type dictate muscle gains?
I have to admit, you’re 100% on the money with genetics. In high school when I was playing competitive sports no matter how much I tried to “bulk up” and gain weight, I was never successful. However, 20 years later in my late 30’s I now have the build I was trying to get at back then and all my friends who succcessfully “bulked up” back in high school are no mostly obese and out of shape.
My dad (and my doctor) always told me that it just wasn’t in the genes for me to get that body mass so young. Regardless, I still always made an effort to tone my muscles as much as possible and it’s paid off in the long run, although I’d never be a professional bodybuilder no matter what.
This is exactly what I expected to find out after reading the title uilding Genetics. Thanks for informative article
I have a body type if compared to an IFBB pro would look mostly like dennis wolf\’s(not saying i look like a pro), you know tall slim looking and long torso. I first tried body when i was almost 14, and i did get bigger arms but mostly i didnt put on much weight with just eating normal food together with adding protein powder after workouts. I actually stopped working out due to guitar addiction which was almost all day long.
alittle over 3 months ago i started lifting again and i my weight was 68 kilos(150 pounds) and around 178 cm tall(around 5.8). Now currently after 3 months of hard training and better nutrition than before i weight 30 pounds heavier, I look more defined and ofc feel much better.
I know that genetics play a great role in body building but im just saying just because you look more like an olympic runner doesnt prove that you cant be a great body builder or even build muscle, I know not many will be as freaky as markus ruhl but just look at Jay Cutler or Ronnie coleman they\’re not as freaky as him but still are considered better all in all, but hey winning most muscular alone wont make you a champion will it? just look at dexter jackson he was a lightweight before and even if he isnt the biggest out there compared to his height he definately has done well in bb. One last example is Dennis Wolf look how small and tiny his waist is, look how great shape his body has right, I\’d think he was some olympic contestant of some sort that suddenly went on roids….Anyway these are just my opponions and experiences So im not saying anyone can look like a pro since it infact is probably the opposite but for those of you who know Arnold Schwarzenegger did not look big before he started bb he had a more tall and skinny body type and ofc not saying anyone who\’s skinny and tall has arnold genes either but Why not TRY a couple of years of healthy diet and proper workouts and see then instead of just giving up when in high school when your dad tells you that you\’re a wuss because there are so many ignorant people who think just that they\’re naturally slim looking they will never have a change to build muscle or be big or look beef or whatever, you dont get big by the 3 meals a day diet, if you want to be a big boy you HAVE to eat like a big boy, ofc you main gain some extra fat aswell even if you play the game correctly but thats normal and you can strip that fat of later on. Mostly the people who deny that this will not work no matter what they do or how much protein they eat and so on how good their diet is etc…those people have most likely never tried it and are generally those who fail in other aspects of life. I dont think bodybuilding is about training the hardest but training the smartest. that was all I had to say and im not in anyway saying genetics dont play a big role in professional bodybuilding competition at all, nor am i denying it im simply pointing out that you are not going to see a difference unless you eat and train different.
Thomas thanks for your interesting comment. I actually agree with what you said. You could have great muscle building genetics when you don’t even look you may have them, before you start lifting weights. In this article I just wrote recently http://www.bodybuildingweb.net/blog/body-type-dictate-muscle-gains/ I mention that just cause you are an ectomorph, doesn’t mean you necessarily have bad muscle building genetics. It is only after you start getting into bodybuilding will you realize your bodybuilding genetics compared to others.