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Above: Bodybuilder John Fabian takes a break between preacher curls at Powerhouse Gym. |
LAKEWOOD, OH--Clarifying a common misconception about "two very distinct sports," bodybuilder John Fabian extensively explained the difference between bodybuilding and weight training Monday.
"It's a frequent assumption that weightlifting and bodybuilding are one and the same," Fabian, 31, told Perry Sarkes, a sales associate at Play-It-Again Sports, a sporting-goods store at Westgate Mall. "But in reality, nothing could be further from the truth."
Fabian, who was at Play-It-Again shopping for a back-support belt, was forced to explain the difference to Sarkes when the 20-year-old employee asked him how long he'd been a weightlifter. Fabian replied that he's been a bodybuilder for more than six years.
"Bodybuilding emphasizes developing large, well-defined, well-proportioned muscles," Fabian said. "In weightlifting, on the other hand, the goal is simply increasing muscular strength. Some bodybuilders are cut, but they’re skinny. Sure, they might be 215, but you put a sweater on them and they look like a holocaust victim. And most weightlifters are fat-big. Now, weight training, that's something else entirely. Weight training builds strength to improve performance in other athletic activities. You're gonna see a lot of basketball and football players doing weight training. Moses Malone, the greatest forward of all-time, didn’t need weight training, cuz he was a Bigbaby. And you better recognize, cuz Bigbaby ain’t no JOKE!"
Though Sarkes had not asked, Fabian went on to explain that it is an individual's goal for his or her body which determines the fitness program that particular individual should choose.
"A bodybuilder is looking to achieve a certain overall body image," said Fabian, who works out approximately 30 hours a week and subscribes to numerous bodybuilding magazines, including Flex, Ironman, and Muscle And Fitness. "It's much more than simply upping the weight on your bar."
As Sarkes rang up the Weider pro-series belt and oversized B.U.M. Equipment tank top Fabian had picked out, the 1991 Friar’s Club Chicken Leg Contest semi-finalist explained that bodybuilding competitions are much more "involved" than weightlifting competitions.
"In bodybuilding, you don't just walk off with the prize because-- Damn! (checking out the aerobics instructor as she walks by)-- you lifted the most weight," Fabian said. "You've got to have 100 percent control over every— Mmmm! She’s hot! (watching a girl in spandex straddle a leg machine)-- part of your body, including your brain. You've got to be ripped from head to toe, but you also need a certain mental attitude."
A major part of bodybuilding is what Fabian calls "achieving the bodybuilder ideal" of perfect definition, size, and symmetry.
"I've seen a lot of guys with mind-blowing quads, but then they look ridiculous," Fabian, a clinically-diagnosed Bigorexic said. "To be a competition-level bodybuilder, you need the complete package. That's not so in weightlifting, where you can easily get away with favoring certain muscle groups over others like I do with my Ohio State workout—75 sets of bench and upper body and 1 set of legs."
A bodybuilder, Fabian said, must also know how to properly apply skin-bronzing agents, oils, and depilatories to emphasize muscle definition while posing onstage.
"Bodybuilding requires finesse and style, not just brute physical strength," Fabian said. "Schwarzenegger, Sergio Oliva, Frank Zane--those guys were incredibly strong, but you have to remember that they were also tremendously graceful. And when it came time for the pose-down, they really knew how to put on a show … Talkin’ ‘bout ARNOLD! … No JOKE!"
This is not the first time Fabian has clarified a point regarding bodybuilding. Last Friday, on the stretching mats at Bally’s, the full-service health club he patronizes when Powerhouse Gym is closed, Fabian educated club member Stacey Schuitt about the crucial role proper diet plays in bodybuilding.
"More than in any other sport, in bodybuilding, eating right is your number-one priority," said Fabian, who lists his favorite foods as meat, Marc’s potato salad, and anything that happens to either be on sale or leftover from dinner at somebody’s house. "If you don't put the proper fuel in your engine, your car isn't going to go anywhere. Gorgeous!"
"I eat a high-protein meal one hour before working out and a mixed high-protein and potassium-rich carb meal one hour after the workout," Fabian told Schuitt. "Then I take a Creatine Monohydrate supplement if it's an arm day, or a 32-ounce Twin Lab Amino Fuel shake if I'm doing legs. I drink 3 protein shakes per day and eat 2 protein bars during the day at work. Then I stuff my belly with a Fred Flintstone-sized steak every night, which is a meal that 95% of America doesn’t deserve because they’re too fat. But I’m allowed to eat it because Bigbaby ain’t no joke!” As Fabian recently told Giant Eagle checkout clerk Josh Calhoun, the rewards of bodybuilding are well worth the tremendous work and dedication the sport demands.
"I'm developing every muscle in my body, from pecs to glutes to hammies," Fabian said. "Why devote yourself to a sport that doesn't demand perfection from every inch of you? When I use my body, I want to go all-out, balls to the wall. Plus, this is where all the hotties work out."
Trainer Randy, Fabian's longtime friend and frequent spotter, is equally enthusiastic about bodybuilding.
"Bodybuilding is like no other sport," Randy
said. "But don't make the mistake of thinking that all bodybuilders are
the same. Approaches and procedures vary widely from organization to
organization. Don't assume, for example, that NABBA bodybuilding is the same as
IFBB or NPC bodybuilding, because it's not. Let me explain."
© Copyright 2001 Onion, Inc., All rights reserved.
http://www.theonion.com/
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© Copyright 2001 Onion, Inc., All rights reserved. |