Bodybuilding vs. Longevity

[bodydouble]

Just curious,
Why is extreme muscle enhancement not compatible with longevity?
I understand there is a trade-off between being most muscular and living longer, but I don't know the science of it.

[LonelyPhallus]

All the Mr Olympians are still alive.

[Curt James]

All the Mr Olympians are still alive.

Don Youngblood, 2002 Masters Mr. Olympia champion, died in 2005.

[LonelyPhallus]

Don Youngblood, 2002 Masters Mr. Olympia champion, died in 2005.

That is some knowledge you got there Curt.

[Curt James]

Google helps. I remember Youngblood passing away and knew he had won the Masters Olympia. Found his date of death courtesy of Tim Fogarty's excellent Muscle Memory site.

Check it out: http://musclememory.com/

[ob205]

Just curious,
Why is extreme muscle enhancement not compatible with longevity?
I understand there is a trade-off between being most muscular and living longer, but I don't know the science of it.

I believe there are various studies which correlate bodyweight to longevity and also amount of food consumption to longevity, both done on rats.

The lighter and ones that consumed less food lived longer.

Both of those contradict the BB lifestyle.

[Gaoshang Xiongshou]

I believe there are various studies which correlate bodyweight to longevity and also amount of food consumption to longevity, both done on rats.

The lighter and ones that consumed less food lived longer.

Both of those contradict the BB lifestyle.

So, if the heavier people (bodybuilders), clearly those who consume more food... do you think the inevitable (supposed) can be reversed once they ease out of the competitive scene onto the less extreme side of the lifestyle (with regards to weight and food consumption)?

[Ibarramedia]

If you are muscle heavy you should live longer than those who are obese heavy.

[Curt James]

I believe there are various studies which correlate bodyweight to longevity and also amount of food consumption to longevity, both done on rats.

The lighter and ones that consumed less food lived longer.

Both of those contradict the BB lifestyle.

I thought I read somewhere that that had been contradicted. Have a book somewhere that supports that theory, though. The authors recommend that we eat less and extend our life.

Wtf? To be skinny and weak for "life".

It is also worth thinking about the way that you cook your meat. Grilling, frying and roasting all encourage the formation of so-called advanced glycogen end products, or AGEs for short, which have been linked to triggering inflammatory processes in our bodies including damage to blood vessels and raising blood pressure, both of which in theory could raise the risk of heart disease. Work on mice found that cutting the intake of AGEs by half increased their lifespans. Steaming, boiling and stewing meat are all methods of cooking that produce fewer AGEs and introduce less fat, which is a win-win combination.

From http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/lif...cle6031570.ece

I take great comfort in the idea that people can plan all they want and still be hit by a truck or slip in the tub. It seems that too many people read these studies and then plan their lives in an effort to beat fate. I'm going to eat to reach my goals and let the studies and their authors do the same.

[ob205]

So, if the heavier people (bodybuilders), clearly those who consume more food... do you think the inevitable (supposed) can be reversed once they ease out of the competitive scene onto the less extreme side of the lifestyle (with regards to weight and food consumption)?

Yes, I believe it would be reversible, just like a smoker can quit and reverse the damage they inflicted.

I believe everyone has a natural weight for their frame, obviously no one was supposed to weigh 285 at 5'8". So on the extreme end, I don't think BB and longevity go hand in hand. But say results which could be obtained naturally, think Jack Lalanne, is only beneficial to longevity.

[Will Brink]

Just curious,
Why is extreme muscle enhancement not compatible with longevity?
I understand there is a trade-off between being most muscular and living longer, but I don't know the science of it.

The science is a ways of from being full elucidated there, and it's not established that "muscle enhancement not compatible with longevity." Here's some thoughts I had along those lines recently:

Calorie Restriction Vs. The Bodybuilding Lifestyle


Calorie Restriction (CR) is getting a great deal of media attention due to studies that find animals raised on restricted calories live longer and suffer from fewer diseases. That advice may seem counter to the “bodybuilding/fitness lifestyle” we all follow.

Sure, we all know excess calories—minus any exercise to counter those additional calories—represent a negative for general health and longevity, but should people be severely limiting their calories?

As many of you know, studies have suggested that lower calorie intake translates into longer life spans in animals and—perhaps—people. However, this conclusion is controversial and far from conclusive in my view. For example, a recent study suggests that fat mass, not calorie intake, is what is responsible for longer life spans, at least in mice. (1)

And what does the bodybuilding lifestyle strive for? More muscle and less body fat! Remember, as one would expect, caloric intake and low body fat (leanness) are directly interrelated, which makes it difficult to determine the relative importance of each (CR vs. bodyfat levels) and their contributions to longevity. Thus, researchers are now trying to separate the two issues.

Recently, a Dr. Kahn and colleagues from Harvard Medical School created a strain of mice that lack insulin receptors in their fat cells. As insulin is a primary hormonal mediator of body fat levels in response to caloric intakes, this lack of insulin receptors in the animals’ fat cells caused the mice to have reduced fat mass (less body fat)—and also protected them from age-related problems, such as obesity. However, their calorie intake remained normal and no restriction was required to get the effect that would normally be seen with CR!

The researchers found that the experimental mice lacking insulin receptors in their fat cells had an approximately 18% increase in mean lifespan over their non-modified red eyed squeaky counterparts.

Studies like this one are helping to sort out the effects of leanness (body fat levels) and CR, and their respective effects on longevity and—perhaps—disease prevention. As we can’t all have our insulin receptors removed from our fat cells, researchers are looking to develop drugs to reduce—or block—insulin action in fat cells in humans.

Although such drugs could potentially have side effects, they may also be able to prevent obesity, type 2 diabetes and metabolic diseases related to body fat and excess calories, without having to use strict CR. Hey, we might even live longer!

Bottom line here is, I would not leap onto the CR bandwagon just yet, but would attempt to keep my body fat level low and under control via good nutrition and the bodybuilding lifestyle.

People who allow themselves to get fat (“Dude, I am off season!”) may not be optimizing their longevity, but heck, the guy who actually invented the theory of CR and longevity—Dr. Roy Walford—who practiced CR, died at the very average age of 79, so take that for what it’s worth…


(1) J. Science 2003;299:572-574.

[ZenFit]

There is no free ride in nature: in general maximizing biological fitness (looking & acting like an alpha male) decreases longevity. Most animals live longer in captivity, due to a variety of factors, part of it is due to less sexual competition.

More muscle for example, where not really needed for survival, is inefficient and costly from a metabolic perspective. Some hormones cause more mitosis, leading to faster aging (there is only so many times a liver cell and undergo mitosis). Muscle leads to more free radicals - since more oxygen is needed. Free radicals have been implicated in aging.

On the opposite extreme, I bet that being a long distance runner also does not equate to longevity.