This past weekend the Mr. Olympia bodybuilding event was held, with a new champion being crowned in the prestige men’s open division: Nick Walker. Walker was a fan favourite as an underdog overcoming some injuries. Plus he wears glasses on stage, which is something I respect. He came in well conditioned, and his only real competition, I thought, was from the gigantic Samson Dauda, who could easily have won. But I thought the judges’ decision was fair.

I follow bodybuilding just a little bit, and have since the glory days of Arnold Schwarzenegger, before he became a movie star. I don’t think it’s healthy though. In fact, quite the opposite. This kind of training (and massive drug use, which at least competitors today are far more open about) will probably take 10 years off your life. But when it comes to athletic competition people do go to extremes.

The one thing that really struck me watching this year’s event was the overdeveloped deltoids. Here’s the final four line-up from this year’s competition (you can click the pic to make them even bigger!).

Some well-rounded characters.

Now saying these round, bulging shoulders don’t look natural, or that they look downright freaky, isn’t really a valid critique because everything about these bodies looks freaky and unnatural. But I don’t remember bodybuilders’ shoulders looking like this in previous years. It’s like they have bowling balls stuffed under their skin in a place where you don’t expect to see such massive growth. It’s not at all aesthetically pleasing and like I say, it seems like something new. Nevertheless it’s taken over elite level bodybuilding. When you add in the distended bellies or bubble guts (Palumboism), it just screams ill health to me, which is why I prefer the classic physique competition. Still, it’s hard not to stare at the big guys.