bodybuilding = masculinity?

[hulkoutlvr]

I'm not sure if this topic has been broached before. I know I haven't seen it, but I haven't searched every thread carefully. Forgive me if I've beaten a dead horse.

To the guys in here who have gotten really big and strong, I'm curious to know. As you got bigger, did your feelings of masculinity get stronger? I've always heard that building muscle produces more testosterone, which affects sex drive, facial and body hair growth, and the masculine persona in general. Does anyone have any experience with that. Did anyone feel like "more of a man" after they began growing. Does anyone have any hot stories they'd care to share?

[suma]

Yes, what you described does in fact occur. lifting heavy weights and becoming more muscular produces feelings of wellbeing, sometimes the feeling is very intense. It would take too much typing to describe everything.

[Lionor_King]

its trie pumping iron growing bigger and strong dos make ou feel deffinitly more confident and i gueess more masculin. But i guess that can be inturpeted by each person for me i gained a crud load of confidence in myself and th feeling of power was great iwasnt afraid of anyone after i started liftin and growing in fact i felt better each day.

[Amazed]

I agree. I'm not even that big (yet!), especially compared to some of the musclebeasts that post here, but I started off as a 110 lb. soaking wet runt and have worked myself up to about 185 lb. when I'm bulking up. Lifting, pumping, sweating...makes me feel like a fucking unstoppable beast! Especially those days when I'm working out in my basement and I really allow myself to get into it. Love thinking how I can snap the old me into two. Love thinking how I can lift poundages that would cause the old me to develop a hernia. And in the normal world, I wouldn't say lifting has made me an alpha male by far, but I'm definitely far less effeminate that I used to be. Take care guys. -Matt

[charliepanayi]

Originally Posted by suma

Yes, what you described does in fact occur. lifting heavy weights and becoming more muscular produces feelings of wellbeing, sometimes the feeling is very intense. It would take too much typing to describe everything.

Don't stop on our account! I want to hear some of this stuff, it's one of the things I find so great about muscle growth

[hulkoutlvr]

Originally Posted by charliepanayi

Don't stop on our account! I want to hear some of this stuff, it's one of the things I find so great about muscle growth

I agree, don't stop! I thought maybe I was pissing into the wind starting this thread, but from the sound of things, there's probably more than a few on here who became "macho men" thanks to lifting and muscle growth. It's hot! Please continue!

[Uskathoth]

I think it has to do with confidence more than anything. I've met many guys who are more confident after they start working out and they seem more attractive and in some sense more masculine. But I've also met (pretty big) guys who are just loud and needy--they seem insecure.

I think body building (like a lot of "self-help" activities) does help many people better themselves but others just fixate on the activity (whether it is exercise, dieting or whatever) and don't translate that to actual confidence and better mental health. Just like a woman may diet and lose weight but then become neurotic about dieting and eventually develop an eating disorder there are guys who fixate on getting big but they don't ever seem to develop confidence or a better sense of self. I think brash and loud is usually a sign of insecurity, not confidence or masculinity.

[Mdlftr]

I would say that Uskathoth has hit it on the head -- the confidence you gain once you develop some noticeable muscle is very empowering. Bodybuilding is one of those self-improvement activities that can really change your self-image.

As a long time "tall, skinny drink of water" I can't tell you what a thrill it is to have people make comments like, "Wow, I had no idea you were so strong," or to have the trainers at my gym talk about me like a prize cow, "Yeah, he's really getting thick," (then they stop and point) "especially the upper body. Look at the cleavage he's developing." Meantime, I'm standing right there! The trainers like to talk to each other about how their respective clients are doing, particularly while the client they are talking about is standing right there! Then they go into a quick double bicep flex, which I am not shy about joining in! My peaks might not be as high as theirs, but my arms are a lot closer in size to theirs than when I started up a year ago!

It's a great feeling!

WROOOAAR! [Pounds chest, stomps through jungle underbrush while gazelles and wildebeest flee in terror...]

[Eager Muscle]

I guess it depends on your taste and definition of masculinity.

When I'm training balls-to-the-wall I feel more masculine because I'm scrappier, more verbal and competitive, setting and achieving goals, more attuned to my muscle.

But after a hardcore workout I'm spent and become much steadier, the strong silent type with less use for drama because of that very same attunement and awareness; I feel safer in my own skin.

Of course why I (or we) feel the need to encase ourselves in increasingly muscular armor deserves its own thread!

[nj.]

From what I've seen around me, it really varies. Some guys get themselves a ridiculously over-the-top swagger (others can't help but walk that way, though ), others remain the insecure loud-mouths they were, and others don't change much save for the fact that they walk around shirtless more often, haha.

Really, self-confidence has to come from somewhere else. But being happy with your body certainly helps. There's no need to grow into your personal utopia to be able to happy with your body, mind!

[arpeejay]

It completely varies. Among other things, I don't think female bodybuilders would equate bodybuilding with masculinity (or femininity, for that matter.) There are plenty of bodybuilders who are big ol' girls and plenty of bodybuilders who are manly men (and plenty of bodybuilders who are manly men on the outside and scared little girls on the inside.)

From as early as I can remember (i.e., at age 3 or 4, watching Jack LaLanne show the ladies how to improve their busts) I've been obsessed with muscle. I was also the epitome of the sissy boy (despite the fact that I never did dress up or played with dolls or even had a doll house) and in fact wanted to be a little girl (it seemed like so much more fun!) How exactly I managed to reconcile the two (obsession with muscles, wanting to be a little girl) remains a mystery, although having my first orgasm around age 12 pretty much put an end to the "I wanna be a girl" component. (I didn't know what it was like to be a little girl but I knew that whatever THEY had it wasn't the same as THAT and THAT was too good to give up!)

Combined with the fact that I was totally unathletic and my father was totally anti-sports, I got a lot of grief for it. When I finally did start lifting, the gains came pretty easily. To most people I *look* like a big butch guy, so, yeah, in that regard, for ME bodybuilding = masculinity. I definitely don't look like a girl.

Looks, of course, aren't everything. No matter what I look like, the fact remains I'm a bit of an egghead, I have a big vocabulary, and I sound a lot like a Southern version of Minnie Mouse.

Which confuses too many people, I'm afraid. I've had any number of hot guys walk away as soon as I opened my mouth, and just about as many assume I was a bottom (I'm not.) I guess shades of gray are hard to deal with (especially in a dimly lit bar.)

xoxo

Richard

[nj.]

Originally Posted by arpeejay

Which confuses too many people, I'm afraid. I've had any number of hot guys walk away as soon as I opened my mouth, and just about as many assume I was a bottom (I'm not.) I guess shades of gray are hard to deal with (especially in a dimly lit bar.)

Haha, tell me about it. But hey, the confusing people are usually the most interesting ones