Bodybuilders and their Future (Part 3)

On 22nd May 2003, a Bodybuilder died. Scott Klein was found dead in the early hours in his bed by his mother. Although he was a healthy 30 year old man, he died of cardio-vascular disease and kidney failure. Now this guy had no gentical illness, so as far as I am aware his death was not typical for someone of his age. And then just to top it all another great bodybuilder Tom Prince fell ill during the same week with Kidney problems and ulcers.

Lee Priest, who was a well known bodybuilder at the time, announced his immediate withdrawal from this competitive sport. It had always been rumoured that he had suffered poor health due excessive weight swings and his addiction to junk food. In an interview he said that he couldn't believe what was happening to some of the great bodybuilders out there and that if all we have is our health, some of those top guys didn't even have that.

Yet another great bodybuilder Milos Sarchev also withdraw from competing after having finished 6th at the Hungarian GP and therefore didn't qualify for the 2003 Mr Olympia. But he also blamed poor health for his early exit from the sport. Milos had been at the top for a number of years and had probably competed in more Pro contests than any other bodybuilder and even made a come back after serious injury. But he had also suffered with internal health problems linked to top level bodybuilding and had suffered an almost fatal embolism a couple of years before when he had a blood clot, due to taking Synthol, detach from an artery and cause a blockage in his lung.

More and more top level amateurs and professionals were reporting or admitting to serious health problems. Orville Burke suffered an injury during a post-Olympia photo shoot and needed an operation on a shoulder and elbow. One medical team refused to work on him because of his poor health; another did so only after a report and approval from a heart consultant. Orville suffered serious problems during surgery resulting in kidney failure and his lapsing into a coma. He is still receiving treatment as he slowly recovers but his bodybuilding career is over.

Mike Francois who had an excellent physique up until a couple of years ago suffered serious internal problems as well, resulting in career coming to an end. Nasser el Sonbaty had to pull out of the Night of the Champions 2003 in New York due to health problems and it is said that his career has also come to an end. Another great Flex Wheeler had his pro card withdrawn because of health problems and it was rumoured that he may also need a kidney transplant. Another top American Don Long needed his sister's help to save him when he needed a kidney transplant.

Then there was a really top American bodybuilder Ron Teufel from the 70's who died at 45. We can no doubt argue the case that these examples are not necessarily drug related but it goes without saying that we are talking about young, strong and fit men who should be glowing with health. But I'm afraid that it's just not the case when so many become so seriously ill and sometimes even leading to fatal illness.

I have talked about several drugs which aren't anabolic steroids, and are taken by competing bodybuilders but professionals are at the cutting edge of the game. These pros are very well connected with the drug gurus who are permanently looking out for new material which is able to push that freaky physique on just that bit further. These products are able to make that all important difference to muscle size and vascularity and not forgetting to mention the guru's added earning potential. These top pros need bodies with potent drug handling genetics in order to handle such high doses and complex drug cocktails over long periods of time.

The life of a pro is dictated by his sport and his income earning potential. The time for high earning at the top can be short [even if our Pro remains healthy] and the serious Pro wants to maximise his earnings in that short time. This means a life of competing - unless you are a special kind of showman, your earning potential soon starts to drop if you are not in front of the fans, regularly winning or placing high in contests - of training to be bigger and better next year, of appearing at exhibitions, giving seminars, grabbing star spots, etc. And for all of the last three you will be expected to be in decent shape; appearing as a lard ball is not an option. The consequence of all of this is a life of drug use year round. It is not healthy.

The pro body building scene isn't really what it's made out to be. Training is hard and those heavy weights lead to joint problems and in the modern day era heavy means heavy and injuries are high on the agenda. In addition we have a high food intake including high protein content which over works the digestive system, the kidneys and the liver. This deadly combination causes high blood pressure and accompanied by potent drug cocktails, the stress factor on the body organs is tremendous. The human body needs rest, but there's no rest for a pro bodybuilder.

American football is quite similar in a way as regards the high demands on the body. We are talking about big guys training hard, pounding into each other and the resulting serious injuries. Then there are the drugs to consider, although I can only guess what they may take. The dosage level would be a lot less to that of bodybuilders and they without a doubt receive better medical assistance. Another important point is that the American Football season lasts just 4 months allowing more time to recover.

Those of you who are familiar with my column will be quite aware that I am not against drug use and like any real bodybuilding enthusiast; I do want to see even freakier physiques. What I am against is young men killing themselves in the process. It is not easy to say where to draw the line, but I'm afraid to say that since this started forty or so years ago, NOTHING is going to stop us.

I have faith in that bodybuilding won't turn into a lunatic freaks sport, consisting of a small number crazy guys with a self imposed death wish to become THE FREAK of the year. Maybe it has become this already? It is the old rockers motto incarnate. Live hard, die young and have a good looking corpse. On 22nd May 2003, Scott Klein died. Is death the only real future for the Bodybuilder?

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