is bodybuilding a sport?

[Beef]

keen to get your thoughts. I've heard both sides of the debate so lets see if we get a general consensus

[vinnie700]

i think competitive body building is a sport yes.

and bodybuilding in general for non competitive purposes, well.. that's just a athletic lifestyle.

basically i think if there's physical activity and winning or losing involved, then id consider it a sport.

[jimjim83]

If chess is a sport then bodybuilding is a sport.

[Peachy]

I think it is. I reckon a sport should be anything physical that involves hard work. Used to piss me off so much when I was a ballet dancer training 6 hours a day 6 days a week and its called fucken "art". Art is a pansy word and there is nothing pansy about the kinda muscle conditioning you have to do to balance on one leg on your toes with your other leg above 90 degrees while spinning. :roll:

[Beef]

If chess is a sport then bodybuilding is a sport.

"Chess is a recognized sport by the International Olympic Committee[3] with FIDE being the recognized International Sports Federation for chess since June 1999. As a member of the International Olympic Committee, FIDE adheres to its rules, including controversially having doping tests."

:pfft: what a joke. good point jimjim, if chess is truly considered a sport then bodybuilding definitely is

[HarryB]

More of a lifestyle than a sport... and in competition it is hard to classify it as a sport because in competition there is no actual athletic component. Even rhythmic gymnasts have a level of difficulty and an expectation of ability to perform certain things when doing their routines. I think the hardest thing most bodybuilders have to do on competition day is not keel over from dehydration.

[TonganTerror]

Must disagree Harry I think competitive bodybuilding should be a sport I believe anything you train that hard to achieve must be classed as more than a lifestyle! you guys who compete put yourselves through more pain and hardship than most people do in their chosen sport............

[Beef]

Must disagree Harry I think competitive bodybuilding should be a sport I believe anything you train that hard to achieve must be classed as more than a lifestyle! you guys who compete put yourselves through more pain and hardship than most people do in their chosen sport............

yeah thats true, car racing is a sport and it's not exactly "pain and "hardship"

[TonganTerror]

yeah thats true, car racing is a sport and it's not exactly "pain and "hardship"

Even so beef those drivers are fitter than you would believe im sure the supercar drivers hearts stay at @190bpm thats sick they must put in the hard yards outside of the car too.......

[TonganTerror]

on the pain and hardship thing thats what sends me back for more bring the pain \:D/

[teamfatboy]

yeah thats true, car racing is a sport and it's not exactly "pain and "hardship"

Even so beef those drivers are fitter than you would believe im sure the supercar drivers hearts stay at @190bpm thats sick they must put in the hard yards outside of the car too.......

Absolutely... subjecting your body to g forces that load you up with multiples of your own bodyweight, while exercising lightning-quick reflexes in temperature extremes. Yes, motor-racing's a sport, for the participants.

My 2c: Bodybuilding's a sport, even if you're not competing, in the same way that jogging on the waterfront makes you a runner, or going bush-bashing on an MTB makes you a cyclist.

As for Harry's point - rhythmic gymnasts train to make their mind and body do what they want, yes? Don't bodybuilders do likewise. So what if on the day they're not doing their heaviest lifts - and if their posing looks effortless, does that detract from the absolute dedication to diet, to weight training, to cardio and all the myriad of components that make up the training path ?

[Beef]

is playing tennis on nintendo wii a sport? technically it could be...

"what sport do you play?"

"i play wii tennis"

:pfft:

[Phedder]

yeah thats true, car racing is a sport and it's not exactly "pain and "hardship"

Even so beef those drivers are fitter than you would believe im sure the supercar drivers hearts stay at @190bpm thats sick they must put in the hard yards outside of the car too.......

It's not the physical demand that keeps their heart rates that high, it's their need to be so aware and the levels of adrenaline. I'm not saying they're unfit by any means, but the heart rate side of it is highly related to the brain function and activity required. It definitely is physically demanding, G forces and split second reactions, but an equivalent amount of physical activity would not have their heart rates at 190 the whole time.

[TonganTerror]

yeah thats true, car racing is a sport and it's not exactly "pain and "hardship"

Even so beef those drivers are fitter than you would believe im sure the supercar drivers hearts stay at @190bpm thats sick they must put in the hard yards outside of the car too.......both physically and mentally

It's not the physical demand that keeps their heart rates that high, it's their need to be so aware and the levels of adrenaline. I'm not saying they're unfit by any means, but the heart rate side of it is highly related to the brain function and activity required. It definitely is physically demanding, G forces and split second reactions, but an equivalent amount of physical activity would not have their heart rates at 190 the whole time.

:nod:

[Beef]

just found a really interesting article about why bodybuilding isn't an olympic sport at present. definitely worth a read :nod:

http://www.article99.com/2007/11/14/bod ... 63758.html

[Beef]

an extract from the article..

This stand begs the question, "what determines a sport in the first place?". A simple definition by the Australian Sports Foundation says that sport is "a human activity capable of achieving a result requiring physical exertion and/or physical skill, which, by its nature and organisation, is competitive and is generally accepted as being a sport."

Arguably, bodybuilding fits within this definition, and one would think this should be enough for the IOC. However, the primary problem the IOC has with allowing bodybuilding into the Olympics concerns drug abuse

. They claim that the widespread use of performance enhancing drugs by bodybuilders would prevent bodybuilding from complying with Olympic drug policies. There are harsh and vigilant doping rules for Olympic competitors, which would certainly exclude many professional bodybuilders.

[dsmi163]

In my opinion bodybuilding is a sport only if involved in competitions otherwise it is simply an activity

[Luigi]

i believe powerlifting is a sport for obvious reasons

i dont believe bodybuilding is a sport though - too much politics behind the results in certain competitions to call it a sport. in a car race the driver in 1st place is always the winner, but in bodybuilding there has been many instances where the competitor who looks the best has not won for certain 'reasons'

[Outkast]

After reading Luigi's comment I take my vote back LOL

[Bobsta]

Regardless of the results of the judging in a bodybuilding competition, i believe not only is competetive bodybuilding a sport, its probably the hardest sport in the world, it calls upon every extreme a human can be capable of ( Physical, mental and even spiritual)

There might not be that level of athletic performance on the day of competition but the day of the show is only the finish line! the race started months maybe years before hand, and it was every bit a perfomance based physical endevour.

[dsmi163]

good call Bobsta :nod:

[michaelk]

i believe powerlifting is a sport for obvious reasons

i dont believe bodybuilding is a sport though - too much politics behind the results in certain competitions to call it a sport. in a car race the driver in 1st place is always the winner, but in bodybuilding there has been many instances where the competitor who looks the best has not won for certain 'reasons'

much like Olympic figure skating, or a recent refereeing decision in South Africa. Because the outcome was determined by an individual ruling in a certain level of error or dishonesty does that mean rugby is no longer a sport.....or just that game?

[nzmusclemonster]

Whats the difference between a bodybuilding competition and a Miss World Competition? Both sets of entrants go to the gym to keep themselves in good shape. Does that make beauty pageants a sport?

Bodybuilding is a hobby which leads on to a panty parade. Not a sport.

[ThePman]

To me a sport is something you have to be able to quantify. In everything listed, even racing or chess, it's pretty clear who wins and who loses (most of the time, barring things like bad judging etc.). The point is, it's easy to follow the rules and come out with a clear winner - person/team A did X and that is quantifiably better than person/team B.

Bodybuilding is just too subjective. There's no way to provide any kind of numerical value between any two competitors. Even the judge's score sheets are still entirely subjective and may not reflect the best competitor.

Don't get me wrong, I realize it's a ton of hard work to compete, but I just don't see how you could create a reliable and objective scoring system for it in the same way you can for sports with a performance element involved.

[Luigi]

To me a sport is something you have to be able to quantify. In everything listed, even racing or chess, it's pretty clear who wins and who loses (most of the time, barring things like bad judging etc.). The point is, it's easy to follow the rules and come out with a clear winner - person/team A did X and that is quantifiably better than person/team B.

Bodybuilding is just too subjective. There's no way to provide any kind of numerical value between any two competitors. Even the judge's score sheets are still entirely subjective and may not reflect the best competitor.

Don't get me wrong, I realize it's a ton of hard work to compete, but I just don't see how you could create a reliable and objective scoring system for it in the same way you can for sports with a performance element involved.

what i was trying to say but you did it better :clap: