tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29640480.post5823588162245547396..comments2024-03-21T18:54:06.548-07:00Comments on Old Enough to Know Better: HerculesSteve Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079658447270792228noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29640480.post-86648143467282770422007-09-16T17:00:00.000-07:002007-09-16T17:00:00.000-07:00Of course, form follows function, and what you wan...Of course, form follows function, and what you want to do determines what you look like, at least to the degree that your genetics will allow.<BR/><BR/>As an ideal, I've always been partial to the physiques of athletes like gymnasts -- functional, but a bit more rugged and low-fat kind of look.<BR/><BR/>Powerlifters are tremendously strong, but they usually don't seem agile or particularly graceful.<BR/><BR/>Bodybuilders aren't as strong, but the best of them could do things like handstands and splits, back in the pre-steroid days, and they routinely ran or biked for aerobic fitness. And they weren't weak when it came to picking things up and moving them about. A lot of them came out of martial arts for a while, so they could move.<BR/><BR/>Still, I would rather look like Steve Reeves when he played Hercules than Schwarzenegger as Conan.<BR/><BR/>Reeves came closer to that Greek statue ideal, with the proportions -- neck, upper, arm, calves, all the same diameter, broad shoulders and chest, narrow waist.Steve Perryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12079658447270792228noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29640480.post-32111145221214794822007-09-16T16:22:00.000-07:002007-09-16T16:22:00.000-07:00If you look at really strong people who use their ...If you look at really strong people who use their bodies in strenuous ways they usually don't appear ripped and cut. They tend to be more slab-sided. Modern body building works muscles in isolation to get that special look. <BR/><BR/>And frankly, it's counterproductive if you're actually going to be <I>using</I> your muscles. A large part of working efficiently is using your body, not just one part of it. Stevedores and farmers don't look like bodybuilders.Dan Gambierahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04172075070150854447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29640480.post-21637604857812609752007-09-16T14:41:00.000-07:002007-09-16T14:41:00.000-07:00I'm always interested by how these old-timey guys,...I'm always interested by how these old-timey guys, who were considered really buff at the time, look practically normal compared to the chiseled musculature so popular on today's action stars (Brad Pitt springs to mind). I prefer the Steve Reeves look myself.<BR/><BR/>On a side note, athleticism, strength, and desirability don't have to mean cut muscles. I've been watching the Seven Samurai this weekend (4 times so far not including slow-motion replays), primarily because it features a young Toshiro Mifune wearing half-armor and no pants.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29640480.post-86527490922134748202007-09-15T18:01:00.000-07:002007-09-15T18:01:00.000-07:00I am with you there Steve.I grew up watching bodyb...I am with you there Steve.<BR/><BR/>I grew up watching bodybuilding with my dad an ex gymnast and avid iron pumper. He had his magazines and such from the Reeves era as well as a couple of the movies.<BR/><BR/>I always thought Reeves was the best looking of the bunch. To this day, if I was asked by a genie what I wanted to look like I would point at a picture of Steve Reeves. Specifically from right after the Hercules era. He had dropped a tiny bit of size and still had the full beard.Jasonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15131978298661765427noreply@blogger.com