# Is Bodybuilding a sport? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [September 2, 2022, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845 "2022-09-02T22:31:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2022, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/81 "2022-10-09T03:19:09Z")
> [@2\_More\_Bits](#): > > Not a sport. A beauty pageant. Like Miss Universe. What does a Miss Universe contestant have to do to prepare for a competition? ---
**Author:** ![2\_More\_Bits](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/2_more_bits/32/4148_2.png) [@2\_More\_Bits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2_More_Bits)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2022, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/82 "2022-10-09T12:33:08Z")
I don’t think there is a talent portion to the Miss Universe contest. I imagine preparations include working out, dieting, practicing walking and posing and smiling and ??? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2022, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/83 "2022-10-09T14:14:38Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > What does a Miss Universe contestant have to do to prepare for a competition? Diet and exercise, not to the degree of a bodybuilder but certainly more than the average person. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/84 "2022-10-10T11:35:23Z")
I think it is pretty clearly _not_ a sport, being 100% judged and based on an arbitrary aesthetic standard. Yes, “bigger” seems reasonably objective, but what are considered the “correct” proportions is not that clear and has changed over time. Then you have how the posing is judged – the “correct” way for a competitor to move. Finally you have miscellaneous things like the tanning, hair removal and desirable vascularity etc But I think we should be clear that that doesn’t make the activity better or worse in any way. I have a lot of respect for the guys who manage to do the incredible amount of work, and have the self-discipline, to get that big and that shredded. I’m not deriding bodybuilding by saying it’s not a sport. We have a similar thing with the debates on chess being a sport. It’s not to imply that it’s silly, or for kids, to say it’s a game, not a sport. Likewise here. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2022, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/85 "2022-10-25T23:25:17Z")
As I have stated, I think it is probably a sport but understand how others would disagree. If it has image problems they are unlikely to be helped by articles like the one in the Washington Post today about female bodybuilders in some contests allegedly facing manuipulative situations. As a strong advocate for weight training I really prefer when competition only involves doing healthy things. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2022, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/86 "2022-10-26T00:09:09Z")
It can be argued that all spectator sports and competitions fall into the general category of entertainment performances. Performing a football or tennis game is more improvisational and aleatory, while performing a figure skating routine or bodybuilder or beauty competition is more scripted and rehearsed. So I’m not sure there’s that much descriptive value in trying to fine-tune definitions of what separates “sport” from “non-sport”. “Athletic game competitions” and “athletic non-game competitions” would be how I’d distinguish, say, baseball from figure skating. Then there are various forms of non-athletic competitions, some of which are in game-play form and some not. And then you have all your other entertainment performances, athletic and non-athletic, that don’t involve direct competition. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2022, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/87 "2022-10-26T12:25:40Z")
Ultimately these types of debates boil down to 3 possible takes: 1. What is Bodybuilding? 2. What is Sport? 3. Gatekeeping The first one can be interesting, as you have a chance to gain a deeper understanding of an activity enjoyed by many people. The second one is less interesting because it’s simply a debate over a word’s definition, with arbitrary lines being drawn around activities. The third is distasteful as it incorporates an underlying desire to exclude activities from the preferred label. For all the protestations to the contrary (i.e. ‘sport’ isn’t the preferred group, we’re just trying to accurately define things) the debate is never about what may be called a ‘game’ or an ‘activity’ it’s always a debate about ‘sport’. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2022, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/88 "2022-10-26T12:57:28Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > The third is distasteful as it incorporates an underlying desire to exclude activities from the preferred label. And, as I say, also the opposite. Many people enter discussions like this apparently with the presumption that if we say that something is not a sport, then our intent is to demean that activity. I workout myself, so I have some appreciation of the dedication and science that goes into making incredible physiques: about 50x the amount of hard work that I am capable of. I don’t think it’s easier to be a champion bodybuilder than a champion sprinter, say. Nonetheless, I think the cleanest definition of “sport” is a physical activity with largely _objective_ _point-scoring_, and therefore I don’t think bodybuilding qualifies IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2022, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/89 "2022-10-26T18:27:27Z")
The WaPo article claimed in some women’s bodybuilding competitions, a requirement for high success was sleeping with a judge or posing in scant clothing. These photographs were allegedly found on sketchy websites. I am summarizing the article without link, knowledge of its truth or further comment except it seems in some limited cases to be appalling and not at all a fair and balanced competition. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2022, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/90 "2022-10-26T18:38:44Z")
It’s difficult for me to imagine how a body building competition could be held without the participants being scantily clad. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2022, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/91 "2022-10-26T18:45:41Z")
Sure. But not lingerie. This is not a reasonable expectation for a bona fide sport. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2022, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/92 "2022-10-26T18:52:41Z")
We’re not talking about a bona fide sport we’re talking about competitive body building. I kid, I kid. You make a valid point. I’ve heard a few women body builders talk about feeling pressured to get breast implants so they can look more feminine during competition. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2022, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/93 "2022-10-26T19:31:00Z")
There are competitions of the ‘Bikini Body’ type that are clearly not body building competitions. They are beauty contests with no physical activity to measure. On the general topic, I have already proven body building is a sport according to the same criteria others found acceptable for other sports. I also think it is a stupid sporty It has also been the breeding ground for PEDs. This was the origin of steroids and other drugs used to build muscle rapidly that then migrated to the rest of the sports world. Back in the 60s when few people had more knowledge than news reports about East German athletes body builders were already displaying the grotesque muscle growth associated with these substances. Those physiques have become so common younger people may not realize how strange they were when they suddenly emerged into the culture. Arnold and everyone else used the juice to get those bodies unnatural proportions. And numerous people suffered illness and death with undesirable effects that will plague them the rest of their lives. And for many more the undesirable effect was living in prison. Bodybuilding is a sport. It is a dark, dangerous, sport promoting unhealthy activity and crime. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2022, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/94 "2022-10-28T06:35:23Z")
I realise I never elaborated on why I don’t think bodybuilding is a sport - I don’t think it’s a sport because what’s _ultimately_ being judged there is not the _performance_ (a-la the frequently-compared gymnastics or skating) but the _bodies_ of the performers themselves. That it takes hard work to achieve and to display that body isn’t in doubt. But it’s the body, its composition, that’s being judged in the end. Yes there are points for posing, but that’s just a means to that end. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2022, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/95 "2022-10-28T06:43:12Z")
> [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > > [@BigT](#): > > > > And race car drivers, at least, didn’t seem to act like sports people. > > Can you clarify this statement? I’m curious. Not too much. It’s more a vibe than anything. They seem more like gearheads and geeks than they feel like the type who gets really into health and fitness. That I guess is what I think of as the sporty-type: the people who get really into physical fitness. Hence why it fits with bodybuilding in my mind. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2022, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/96 "2022-10-28T07:16:23Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > They seem more like gearheads and geeks than they feel like the type who gets really into health and fitness. I think it’s already been covered, but be assured driving a race car at or near the limit for any length of time requires a good level of physical fitness, and those at the top of the sport (e.g. Formula 1, Indy, NASCAR) are extremely fit. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2022, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/97 "2022-10-28T07:49:06Z")
> [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > > [@BigT](#): > > > > They seem more like gearheads and geeks than they feel like the type who gets really into health and fitness. > > I think it’s already been covered, but be assured driving a race car at or near the limit for any length of time requires a good level of physical fitness, and those at the top of the sport (e.g. Formula 1, Indy, NASCAR) are extremely fit. Right, and learning that was the first time I considered it a sport. ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2022, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/98 "2022-10-28T17:02:08Z")
Just IMO, no. It’s a physical competition, but to my thinking, it’s little different than Beauty Pageants. Now if they got oiled up and wrestled around on stage, then, maybe, yes. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2022, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/99 "2022-10-29T05:44:37Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Not too much. It’s more a vibe than anything. They seem more like gearheads and geeks than they feel like the type who gets really into health and fitness. I used to think the same thing as well, but it turns out that professional race car driving is pretty hard on the body. They need to train their core muscles and their neck in order to handle the G forces and they need excellent endurance because it turns out they sweat a ton wearing those fire suits without any A/C in the vehicle. It’s not like you or I going 75 down the highway. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2022, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845/100 "2022-10-29T14:15:56Z")
By that standard, Fire Fighting should be a sport. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bodybuilding-a-sport/970845.md?page=6)