Most big guys at the gym are all alike; every big guy looks ridiculous in his own way.
This is good news for you.
You can zig while everyone zags and look like a man.
You may not be the biggest guy in the gym, but you can build a body that even the biggest, juiced up guy (with puss-dripping pimples on his back) will admire and respect; a body that girls actually like to look at.
After all, do you actually think that a lot of girls are into the biggest guy in the gym? Do you think that those girls fantasize about being underneath his huge, sweaty, Axe-covered body – all while screaming his name and scratching the pimples off of his back?
I didn’t think so.
No one dreams of looking like a “Bro”, and not many women dream of being with one (I can’t speak for them all). This isn’t a fact, but it is common sense.
If you look like a “Bro”, or are on the path to becoming one, then it’s time to evolve. Charles Darwin would be proud of you.
It’s time to stop looking like a “Bro” and start looking like a man.
The “Bro” Look
Walk into any Big-Box Gym, and you’ll be able to spot a “Bro” instantly.
Bros seem to flock to these gyms like seagulls over a piece of bread. If you walk into the men’s change room and it wreaks of un-washed gym shorts and one-too-many sprays of Axe, then you’re bound to spot one. They’re in there somewhere, grunting and checking themselves out in the mirror.
Every Bro has a specific look to them.
First of all, they’re usually way too big for their strength levels. Combine this with large amounts of bacne (acne on your back), and it’s a good indicator of abused anabolic use.
As for their overall aesthetics, we should start at the ground and work our way up.
Lower Body
Are their calves small? Yes. If asked, they probably say that they train their calves once per week – on leg day – but if you watched their workout, they’d be maxing out on the calf raise machine with a very small range of motion (probably 10% of what it should be). They’d probably also stop the set with 10 reps left in the tank because, you know, “it burns”.
Next stop: the upper legs. If you look at the front of the legs, you will see some quad development (the key word here is “some”). These have been built from an overloaded leg press with an underused range of motion, and if they’re lucky, some squats. Moving to the back of the legs, you will see a large area of skin where their hamstrings and glutes should be.
“Hamstrings and glutes? I can’t see them in the mirror so I don’t train them often.”
Seems logical. If you’re walking down the street in front of a hot girl, you better be walking backwards so she sees your “best self”.
Upper Body
This is where things get really interesting.
If you look at the abdominal region, you may possibly get a hint of a 2-pack and maybe even a 4-pack. You have to remember that Bros are forever bulking, so they probably won’t have washboard abs. Expect a waist size of 35 inches – minimum.
Moving up, you will see some large (although droopy) pecs, and overdeveloped anterior deltoid muscles due to a substantial amount of bench pressing on Mondays, (and sometimes) Wednesdays and Fridays.
When viewing from the side, you will see the shoulders pulled forward, and a lack of rear deltoid development.
Arms
Bros usually have fantastic upper arm development. This is one thing that they’re doing correct (unless the only body part they train is their arms). Forearm development is usually a hit or miss with most Bros. Some guys train their forearms and push through the burn, and some don’t.
Puss-Filled Bacne
Lastly, if you look at a traditional Bro’s back, you will likely find Bacne. This can be from a combination of diet, stress levels, and hormones.
“…Androgenic hormones, which include estrogen or testosterone, can go into overdrive and cause the sebaceous glands to pump out excess sebum. The follicles can’t handle it all, so clogged pores result.” (Jaracz, 2014).
In my experience, to get rid of the Bacne, try the following:
- Stop taking supplements with fillers. Buy high quality protein supplements from companies such as Truenutrition or Canadian Protein.
- Wash your back daily with Benzoyl Peroxide Wash (10%).
- Do an elimination diet. The simplest one to follow is Robb Wolf’s recommendations for the Paleo Diet. Once you’ve followed it for 2-4 weeks, slowly start to introduce foods back into your diet one-by-one and see how it affects your Bacne.
The Unspoken Big Box Gym Competition
The goal of every Bro in the gym isn’t to get big muscles so girls will find them attractive.
Sadly, the goal is to be the biggest guy in the gym. Every guy who has lifted weights in a Big Box Gym for three or more years knows this, and if they don’t agree, then I’m willing to bet that they’re lying. Coming from a guy’s perspective, you can feel it as soon as you pick up a dumbbell. It’s as if each gym transfers “this energy” to you through the handles in the weights, the lighting, and the mirrors.
You can fight the feeling, and once you’ve conquered it, you’ll be well on your way to looking like a man.
The “Man” Look
On average, women tend to be more attracted to guys with a narrow waist, broad shoulders, and a broad chest – or in other words, a V-tapered upper body.
Taking this one step further, mathematicians as early as 1509 believed that the body had perfect proportions when they came as close to the golden ratio has possible (1.618). Today, many people believe (including myself), that the golden ratio should be your desired shoulder-to-waist ratio; meaning that the circumference of your shoulders divided by the smallest circumference of your waist should equal 1.618.
For the chest, most guys overdevelop their mid or low pecs. This makes their chest appear droopy. Instead, you want it to appear broad and large. This can be done by focusing on the outer and upper pecs.
On top of this, many people believe that Steve Reeves had the ideal male physique between 1940 and 1950. The theory was that the circumference of the upper arms, calves, and neck should all have equal measurements for an aesthetically pleasing body. For example, the circumference of Reeves’ calf, neck, and upper arm were 18.5 inches each.
As for the legs, this separates the men from the Bros. A guy with muscular and powerful legs will always grab attention. Using Steve Reeves’ recommendations from the 1950’s, he believed that the circumference of your thigh should be 1.75 times that of your knee. I will take this one step further and say that your hamstring development should match your quad development; I’m talking big and thick hamstrings that hang off of your femur when you show off your legs. For the glutes, if you are training your legs using Bulgarian Split Squats, Back Squats, and Deadlifts, then your glute development should be substantial. No extra glute work will be needed.
Lastly, this brings us to the smaller body parts: the rear deltoids and forearms. Most people skip these body parts, but they shouldn’t. Look at your favourite superhero. Chances are that they have massive forearms and rear deltoids. Large forearms instantly make a man look strong. Look at any picture of a brick layer or mechanic from the 1940’s and you’ll see what I mean. Increasing the size of the rear deltoids instantly makes your shoulders look 3D. Your shoulders look wide even as your turn around, and this can only be accomplished by training the rear deltoids.
I’ve termed the above physique as The “Man” Look, and I advise anyone following JMax Fitness to try and strive for this physique – drug free.
Exercises to Look Like a “Man”
After knowing the definition of the “Man” Look, it’s time to train your body so you can achieve this look.
Vince Gironda had it correct back in the 1960’s. He discovered how to target different parts of the muscle to chisel the physique like sculptor. Many of the exercises in this section are from his teachings.
First of all, the goal should be to sculpt a V-tapered upper body. The fastest way to start doing this is to get leaner. When you’re leaner, your waist instantly shrinks. It’s like magic or something.
Generally, I recommend all guys to be under 13% bodyfat and stay there year round. It doesn’t matter if you’re bulking, I still recommend every guy to stay this lean. You will look better, and it seems to actually be easier to gain muscle without gaining fat. Once you’ve done that, then here are my favourite exercises to create the “Man” Look:
Body Part |
Exercise |
| Broad shoulders | Barbell behind the neck overhead press |
| 3D shoulders | Rear delt flyes (try John Meadows’ Rear Delt Destroyer at the end of your shoulder and/or back workouts) |
| Broad Chest | Incline dumbbell press; dumbbell pullover |
| Back Width | Bodyweight or weighted pullups |
| Back Thickness | Snatch Grip Deadlifts; Seated Rows |
| Upper Back Width (extreme V-taper) | Gironda 45 degree pulley row |
| Thighs | Lying hamstring curls; seated hamstring curls; Bulgarian split squats; Front and back squats |
| Calves | Standing calf raises; seated calf raises; calf raises on the leg press (use a full range of motion) |
| Forearms | EZ bar reverse barbell curls; deadlifting without straps; behind the back wrist curls |
| Upper arms | Any biceps curl variation; any triceps isolation exercise |
| Neck | Wrestler neck bridges |
The Happiness Rule
One last thing needs to be mentioned.
You need to be happy with your physique, and enjoy your life at the same time. Finding a balance is crucial.
This means that you need to learn how to go out and enjoy yourself with friends. You don’t want to be the guy who sits at home because he can’t drink with his friends or take his girlfriend out to a cool restaurant. Practice flexible dieting by tracking your macros. I don’t care how you do it, but most guys can incorporate a couple of drinks and some “dirty foods” every now and then.
You need to find a happy medium with the magnitude in which you are happy with your body, and the amount of fun you want to have.
For example, I know that I enjoy my life the most when my happiness for my body is between between 80 – 90%. Generally, when I’m 80 – 90% happy with my body (100% being near perfection), I still think that I look pretty awesome, but on top of this I can eat dessert every day, and go out with my girlfriend or friends for dinner and eat whatever I want (as long as I don’t over-eat).
I’ve noticed that when my happiness for my body is between 80 – 90%, that I’m maintaining a body fat percentage of approximately 13% (measured by Bodymetrix Ultrasound). When my happiness for my body is above 90%, I think that my body looks awesome, but I’m in fact, miserable. This is because I can’t go out with my friends or girlfriend, and I’m a slave to my diet and training. This sucks. Find a happy medium between fun and your diet & training. Your life will be much more enjoyable.
When you prioritize the “Man” Look, it allows you to be happier with your body image because you’re sculpting your body to appear attractive and aesthetic instead of huge and pimply.
Wrap Up
It’s time to be a man.
You don’t need anabolic drugs, and you don’t need to be the biggest guy in the gym. Instead, you should build a proportional and aesthetic physique that women find attractive. Focus on creating a V-taper and don’t forget to train your legs.
After you do this, find a happy medium with how your body appears, and how happy your life is. If you look awesome, but your life sucks, then sacrifice the way your body looks in order to take your girlfriend out on a date. Being 100% happy with your appearance is great, but not if it means that you’ll be alone and miserable the rest of your life.
Leave that for the Bros.
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