Profile Post

The blog that I have chosen to profile is a blog of my friend’s. His name is Christopher Kim, a senior accounting student at the Leventhal School of Accounting at the University of Southern California. The name of his blog is Fat to Fit! ~Day by day thoughts and feelings during my cut for the Bodybuilding.comChallenge. In terms of subject matter, it relates to bodybuilding from an amateur standpoint. It is in the subject of bodybuilding, but it is from a different viewpoint. As stated, this blog is written and maintained by Chris Kim, a senior at USC. His relation to the field of bodybuilding is very limited beyond aspiring bodybuilder. He is not a prominent name in the industry, has no sponsorships, and has no competitive show wins under his belt. However, he is just starting out, and he does extensive research on the field of bodybuilding. He maintains this blog while working out twice a day, going to school full time, internships/projects, and studying for his CPA (Certified personal accountant) examination. The frequency of posts is not set, as posts may appear daily to reflect each passing day, while sometimes posts pop up and reflect on a couple days in a single post. This is to be expected, as a college student has significantly less time to blog about their daily routine as compared to a professional bodybuilder or even professional blogger. There are days when exams, homework, or studying come into play, and the daily blogging style is not ideal at times. In terms of popularity, this blog is difficult to gauge. However, his blog posts are linked to his Facebook account, and he gets a rather large amount of traffic because of this. The amount of likes that he gets on his posts indicates to me that his blog is popular enough, at least in the realm of his Facebook friends. Two interesting blog posts that I would like to point out are his first post and his most recent post. His first post is interesting because it chronicles the beginning of his journey to lose weight, where he clocks in at 235 pounds. He mentions that he is fatigued, and exhausted from the caloric deficit that he is experiencing. His most recentpost chronicles his 61^st and 62^nd day in the cut, and with his weight down to an astonishing 208 pounds. His blogging style has changed, and you can see the shift in emotion that he has. His posts are longer and more detailed. His first post is more jovial, and has more enthusiasm behind his posts; you can see it in his voice style; the way his posts are written. His most recent posts is more somber, and while still enthusiastic, it conveys a more serious tone. 

            This blog absolutely relates to my blog, because it chronicles a man who is on the bodybuilding journey as well. He is the epitome of a person who has ventured into the deeper layers of bodybuilding. He’s not an amateur, not quite a professional, but someone in between that normal people can relate to. The blog itself is not so much scholarly or academic, but more on the leisure side. It’s a casual blog meant for the casual reader. The posts vary in detail, ranging from extremely broad to meticulously detailed, depending on Chris’ mood that particular day. He is always sure to include some type of meal plan or workout regiment so that the people who are following his blog can follow along. While some may think that his audience is other people whom bodybuild, Chris wants to inspire people in general to take the pledge to physically better their bodies. This blog helps my blog personally because it helps me get a sense of what bodybuilding means to another person and it allows me to gather different opinions. My site differs because it is not about logging my progress; it’s more of a hodgepodge of advice, reviews, and ideas. Overall, Chris’ blog is a great read for people who want to find inspiration in all fitness, not just bodybuilding.

Venice Beach, the Mecca of Bodybuilding.

Let me start this blog post by firstly saying that I apologize for the late post. I know this was supposed to be up on Friday, but I simply had to wait until Sunday night to post. This is because today I visited Venice Beach, California, which to those who do not know is considered one of the “Meccas” of bodybuilding.

Quite frankly, it was an amazing experience. There were numerous bodybuilders working out at Muscle Beach, and they were exceptionally down to Earth and humble. There seems to be a negative stigma regarding bodybuilders being extremely intimidating and hard to approach, but many of the bodybuilders are very nice, and will drop what they are doing to take pictures with fans, or give advice to aspiring bodybuilders. Interestingly enough, the bodybuilders of Muscle Beach have a large fan base; people gather around the outdoor gym to watch these professional athletes perfect their craft. Undoubtedly, these athletes draw awe inspired looks from little boys, bashful, flirtatious gazes from women of all ages, and pure respect from the older men.

           
There is also a different type of bodybuilder that works out at Venice, which are the calisthenics focused bodybuilders. These athletes utilize the pull up bars,Olympic swings, dip bars, etc. to get their workout in. While some people scoffat the idea of using what seems like children’s playground equipment, it’sactually an insanely hard way to work out. In fact, after long boarding from Venice to Santa Monica and back, I joined a group of people working out with calisthenics, and let me be the first to tell you that it is no joke. A circuit of pull-ups, push-ups, dips, and squats to failure is nothing to laugh at. It was extremely strenuous.

In general there is a richness of bodybuilding culture that is definitely felt at Venice Beach. From the moment you step into the area, you see remnants of the golden age of bodybuilding strewn across shop posters and murals. The culture is vibrant, and as a person who’s trying to aesthetically improve, I feel the immense respect that bodybuilders have for each other. Venice Beach is a place where the best of the best work out, and it’s a place where people go to draw inspiration. Honestly, I have been feeling a bit down about my body image, feeling like my gains are not good enough. But like a shot of caffeine to the mother of 5 trying to put dinner on the table on time, visiting Venice recharged and rejuvenated my love for working out and weightlifting.

If you have time, visit Venice Beach. Whether or not you have been involved in bodybuilding in anyway, you will learn to have an appreciation for the sport. To be honest, there’s an aura about Venice, and if you visit, you’ll understand. Happy lifting!