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Permalink Reply by Beach Robinson on February 20, 2010 at 3:17pm

These guy are big and i have not seen any naturally bigger.

I am looking to get into naturally bidybuilding myself, what weight would i need to be at 5.9 to compete and make it worth while?

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Permalink Reply by Mario Fanzolato on February 20, 2010 at 6:17pm

Hi Beach. In my opinion, the best weight to compete at first of all has to be one that you believe is physically attainable. You also want to feel comfortable at that goal weight... You won't really know for sure until you get to that point, but your imagination should give you an idea. Last but not least, your weight should leave you at the intersection between being freakishly big, and aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Note: Don't get scared by the word "freakishly"... I just meant more muscular than the average person.

There is no specific weight that you HAVE to be. Many 'natural' bodybuilding organizations don't even categorize athletes based on weight. Instead, they use 'height' as a criteria for matching bodybuilders into different categories. This is to prevent their amateur/pro bodybuilders from feeling pressured to be bigger than what is possible for them (& unfortunately resorting to drugs to enhance their physique). Because, YES, drugs are ironically present in natural bodybuilding as well. Of course, a true natural bodybuilder under normal circumstances will not use steroids &/or growth hormones. Men's Novice (which means beginner) Tall (Medium or Short) Class, is an example. I'm not exactly sure where someone who is 5.9 would be placed. Check out these articles on natural bodybuilding which I wrote about a year ago. They give more information on the subject.

PS: To answer the part of your question that specifies 'making it worthwhile', it really depends on you and your goals. Do you want to become financially prosperous as a fitness model or pro bodybuilder? Are you more interested in getting world-wide exposure to be well-respected within the bodybuilding community? Or do you simply want to be the best that you can be in this sport that you love so much?

Hope this helps you out.

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Permalink Reply by Beach Robinson on February 21, 2010 at 4:24pm

Thank you Mario,

This helps a lot, i think i was getting a little hung up on just getting naturally big and bodybuilding is a whole lot more than that.

I'll check some of those articles out and i will also spread the word of you and this network both electronically and phyiscally at the gym.

Beach

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Permalink Reply by Mario Fanzolato on February 21, 2010 at 4:58pm

Thanks Beach. I'm grateful of you helping us out. I really do want this to be a network that people could turn to for answers... so continue posting questions, whether they're very general, or specific. PS: You can always send me a direct message if you have a question on something you'd rather not have shared with others.

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Permalink Reply by Peter Chien on June 14, 2010 at 11:03am

Hi, Mario, I'm inspired by the before/after photo of your profile picture, wow you got big! So of the pro natural bodybuilders out there, who are lifetime naturals?

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Permalink Reply by Mario Fanzolato on June 14, 2010 at 9:47pm

Hi Peter. Thanks for the encouragement. I've still got a long way to go to reach my ultimate goal... but I'm proud of myself for the progress I've made (and for persevering this long).

Concerning the natural bodybuilders who are lifetime naturals... This is something that unfortunately is difficult to test for, if even possible. So, I just use them as inspiration because they say they're natural. Basically, I believe it even though I'm not certain of their physique accomplishments. In my observations and experience, I noticed over the years that bodybuilders who are NOT natural, will never say they are. Contrary to popular belief, most people are pretty honest... at least when it comes to steroid or growth hormones use.

A lot of guys have used drugs in the past, and admit it, but consider themselves to be 'natural' bodybuilders now because they no longer use these chemical enhancers. Although in this situation, ex-users sometimes remain fairly huge for years afterwards... I do consider them to be natural. I've never used and never will use any of these drugs, but I'm not perfect and have made mistakes like everyone else.

There are urine and blood tests which can tell if someone is using or has used anabolic steroids for up to a year or something like that. Growth hormones cannot be detected through these tests... but visually it's easy to spot. Bloated stomachs/belly is a side-effect because of the enlarged organs I believe. There are also lie detector and voice-stress tests which some natural bodybuilding organizations conduct on their athletes regarding growth hormone usage.

I do believe that anything is possible, so if guys like Jeff Willet, Skip LaCour, Michael Lockett, Mike Ashley, John Hansen, Ade Rai, and Mike O'Hearn say they're lifetime naturals... then I have no choice but to believe them. My goal is actually to become (and eventually be recognized) as the biggest natural bodybuilder of all-time... so I'm training to be even bigger then the guys I mentioned. When I reach my goal, I know that almost everyone in the bodybuilding world will think I'm on steroids &/or growth hormones... but I'll be willing to do whatever I have to to prove that I'm not, when the time comes.

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Permalink Reply by Mario Fanzolato on June 14, 2010 at 10:04pm

By the way, your profile pics are awesome. I'm inspired by them. When you get the chance add some photos to your page, or directly to the homepage photo slideshow.

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