Let’s face facts for a second here.  The vast majority of people that lift weights do so for primarily aesthetic reasons.  Sure, many of us want to be stronger, faster, and healthier.  And there are certainly those who train exclusively to improve their sports performance, but in the end I’d be willing to bet that training to simply look better is the single biggest motivation for the average trainee.

So why do many strength coaches crap all over bodybuilding?  I could speculate that it has something to do with the rampant steroid use among high level competitors or the fact that some of them have more oil in their muscles than I do in my car.  Or it could be the mental image of a bunch of oiled up, tanned, men and women posing on a stage in their bathing suits.  I can’t really say for sure.

But what about people who aren’t interested in competing?  What about those who are purely interested in gaining the leanest, most muscular physique possible within their own biomechanical and physiologial framework while keeping an eye on structural balance and joint health?  Is bodybuilding training really so bad for the body that we need to crap all over their methods?

I guess the question I’m really asking is whether it is possible to create a lean and exceptionally muscular physique without sacrificing structural balance and joint health.

And in line with that question, is there room for exercises that are deemed my many coaches as unfriendly for the joints (such as the guillotine bench press) or useless (direct arm training)?

As with everything, I think it comes down to assessment.  If you’ve read my blog you’re probably aware that I am a big fan of movement based testing with such as Assess and Correct, but beyond that I feel that it is really important to use the appropriate assessments to inform your decisions for each individual goal.

For dealing with obesity I use the Edmonton Obesity Staging System, for performance I look at the demands of the sport, and when training for aesthetics I like to do a true visual assessment to direct training.  I should note here that I don’t care much for body fat testing in leaner individuals as this is less important than the physical appearance changes.  I could care less what the number says if a client’s appearance doesn’t reflect it.

Here is a sample of a simple client assessment I use for evaluating a physique in which I can comment on muscle size or relative proportion:

- Upper traps:
- Front delts:
- Lateral delts:
- Rear delts:
- Biceps:
- Tricep long head:
- Tricep lateral head:
- Forearms
- Lower chest:
- Upper chest
- Upper back width:
- Upper back thickness:
- Lower/Mid back erectors:
- Abdominals:
- Obliques:
- Quads:
- Glutes:
- Hamstrings:
- Calves:
 
Highlights:
 
Needs Work:

General Impression & Plan:

Combining this with the movement based screen I should now know what muscles need to be worked (yes, I sometimes work muscles not movements…I know…blasphemy) and which movements should be contraindicated for that person.  If arm training is warranted, I’ll do arm training because I’m not in the business of sticking to a “training arms is for wussies” paradigm because it is popular.  I’m in the business of getting results.

Would I use the guillotine bench press, sissy squats, or upright rows?  Probably not.  But this is primarily because these are not the most effective movements in the first place and I can find exercises to hit the same muscle groups with less risk.

Are joint health and building a muscular physique mutually exclusive?  I would have to say no.  Do you agree?  Feel free to share your thoughts below!

And thanks to my blog reader Rob for putting the idea for this post in my head.  I hope I answered your question.