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Lee Priest: “Nobody Knows Who Phil Heath Is!"

AnaSCI

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Sep 17, 2003
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(older article but something I ran across again today and felt like posting)

by: Jonathan Leonard

It wasn’t too long ago that Arnold sparked a major embroilment in the bodybuilding community with his controversial remarks about the “GH gut” of today’s elite athletes. While many would agree with him that the physiques of modern competitors have taken a turn for the worst, others have gone on to defend today’s athletes. However there were some who felt the need to hit back with an equally controversial comment.

Such is the case for current and reigning Mr. Olympia, Phil Heath. As the champion of the sport, Phil has every right to defend himself and fellow competitors — that is if he brings a valid argument defending why modern Olympia athletes have distended stomachs and why it would be acceptable to present them as such.

But rather than taking the high road, Phil took an uncalled jab at Arnold:

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In Steps Lee Priest

Never afraid to speak his mind, Lee Priest has always been one of the top, if not the most, controversial men in the sport.

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Being an elite competitor during, what many deem the golden era and most competitive decade in the history of bodybuilding, Lee has earned the right to say exactly what he feels about modern bodybuilding and has many a time voiced his not-so-subtle opinion on the physiques of this age.

So what did Lee have to say about the matter at hand?

Lee Priest and Phil Heath's Comments on Arnold's Legs - YouTube

Well, that escalated quickly. A prime example of classic Lee; not holding anything back and telling the truth as it really is. Personally, I couldn’t have said it any better myself. If Arnold were to be a competitor in this day and age, he undoubtedly would be Mr. Olympia, simply because of his mindset and champion-like mentality. And if you’ve seen Pumping Iron, you’d have an idea of what Arnold’s mindset was when it came down to competitions.

As for Phil Heath, one of the reasons why so many people became fans and followers of his (other than his build), was due to his down-to-earth character and friendly personality. Clearly these two traits are dwindling by the Sandow. The more trophies he wins, the more arrogant he becomes.

In all truth, you have the right to be a bit cocky when you’re the world champion of a sport, but that doesn’t give you the credentials to disrespect any former champion.

The Evolution of Bodybuilding

The goal or ideal physique back in the late 60’s and 70’s was that of proportion and symmetry. Remember, back then bodybuilding was kind of a new thing to the public. And even though the bodybuilders back then weren’t as big as they are today, they still stood out and drew much attention wherever they went.

Now just imagine Arnold being as big as Mr-Olympia-Ronnie during that period. He most certainly would not have been able to breach the social barrier between bodybuilders and the general public. So for both the sport and bodybuilding in modern society, Arnold and his “no legs” played the perfect role back when he was Mr. Olympia.

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During the 90’s, bodybuilding was trying to find a balance between size, proportion and symmetry. Not many were able to get it right, leaning either toward too much size and not enough proportion, and it also being the other way around.

Lee was one of the few to nail all three aspects.

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And now we present the legs of the current Mr. Olympia, Phil Heath:

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Over the last 60 odd years, bodybuilding has evolved a great deal, with each of every decade’s physiques fitting precisely where they should — with a few exceptions like Tom Platz and Victor Richards.

So in conclusion, now that we all have these pictures to make comparisons, was it fair for Phil to say what he did?
 

MattG

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Arnolds legs were great for his era imo. Not massive by today's standards, but his complete package to me is ideal. I would absolutely rather look like a prime Arnold vs anytime Phil Heath.
 

AnaSCI

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Lee has one of my all time favorite physiques and is still in Pro shape to this day. I can see Phil throwing in his dig because Arnold was bashing on today's bodybuilding and obviously took offense to it but Olympia wins or not, I don't think Phil could ever pick out a single weak point on Priest!
 

lycan Venom

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I seriously would rather look like arnold or lee any day over phil. I guess i just appreciate the 60's-90's style rather than the freaks of nature of the 2000's. I mean coleman and cutler are super bad ass as are other too but just my preference. Love how lee priest always is a shit talker but with the truth.
 

ASHOP

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Arnolds legs were great for his era imo. Not massive by today's standards, but his complete package to me is ideal. I would absolutely rather look like a prime Arnold vs anytime Phil Heath.

I thought ARNOLD had great legs for his time and era. I recently heard some younger guys in my gym talking about ARNOLDS legs,,,seems they think the norm now are legs like KAI and PHIL.
 

aon1

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Me personally I think Arnold's legs and lees for that mater fit there body and in my opinion is what we should be striving for, being superhuman ,perfecting the body so to speak not just getting huge. I will be pissed if i ever let my legs look anything like Phil's , don't get me wrong each to there own Phil's a beast and if that's what your in it for due respect but I just feel we should be perfecting the human body and I think the guys of old were after just that.
 

squatster

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If Arnold had the stuff we have today - he would have looked just like Phil and the rest of them
Back then they didn't have the pharmaceuticals we have today or even the supplements of today
Some of the supplements now are better then some if there juice. It is very impressive that they could build the body's they had
 

squatster

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Guess what I was saying - he pushed what he had to the max of the max and there is no doubt in my mind that if he had the chance to do it now in todays age he would go past what we have today
O I guess now he could have won men's physique or bikini- what ever it's called
 

Sully

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If Arnold had the stuff we have today - he would have looked just like Phil and the rest of them
Back then they didn't have the pharmaceuticals we have today or even the supplements of today
Some of the supplements now are better then some if there juice. It is very impressive that they could build the body's they had

Disagree. There's not much they didn't have back then as far as AAS is concerned. I'm guessing Tren wasn't around yet, and the designer steroids hadn't come around yet, but the major anabolics were all around. Test, Deca, Dbol, etc, were all available. And let's not forget they were getting genuine pharmaceutical gear with a doctor's prescription. They weren't dealing with underdosed or bunk gear from sketchy UGL's.

And even today, there's not a legal supplement that's as effective as any real AAS. Sure, creatine and BCAA's can help make a difference, but a couple hundred Mg's of Test is still more effective.

This is just a guess, but I think they just used less gear less often.
 

AnaSCI

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Sep 17, 2003
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Disagree. There's not much they didn't have back then as far as AAS is concerned. I'm guessing Tren wasn't around yet, and the designer steroids hadn't come around yet, but the major anabolics were all around. Test, Deca, Dbol, etc, were all available. And let's not forget they were getting genuine pharmaceutical gear with a doctor's prescription. They weren't dealing with underdosed or bunk gear from sketchy UGL's.

And even today, there's not a legal supplement that's as effective as any real AAS. Sure, creatine and BCAA's can help make a difference, but a couple hundred Mg's of Test is still more effective.

This is just a guess, but I think they just used less gear less often.

I agree. They had access to genuine products in those days. No need to question anything. The goals and physiques were just to a different standard in those days. The vacuum pose is a perfect example - What competitor in the top ranks today could hold that pose?

I believe things started to change during the Yates area. That is when it became a game of mass monsters - How much weight can one man hold while still visibly seeing every individual muscle. Then Coleman came along and took it to the next level. Now there is Ramy.

Now since the growth guts have gotten too out of hand, they are trying to taper the competition back a couple of notches.
 

squatster

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You both have grood points
The only growth hormones we had back then we're from cadavers - scary
We didn't have the peptides and insulin- not 100% sure about the insulin
Once these guys started the insulin and growth it was a game changer
 

Sully

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You both have grood points
The only growth hormones we had back then we're from cadavers - scary
We didn't have the peptides and insulin- not 100% sure about the insulin
Once these guys started the insulin and growth it was a game changer

You bring up a good point that I forgot about. They didn't have HGH back in the day, and as far as I know they didn't use insulin. I just don't know how much of a difference either of those would have made in that era, though. Many of those guys were known to only run 2-3 real cycles a year. Now, even basic gym rats that don't compete commonly stay on cycle for more time than they're off in a years time. I'm guilty of it myself.

I just don't believe that the bodybuilding physique in those days was limited or dictated by what drugs they did or did not have access to. It seems like it was a function of the standards that competitors were judged against when they got on stage. The expectation was different in those days. Huge legs weren't considered to be a part of the judging criteria. Neither was being super lean and dry. Those guys cut down to what, 6-8% BFin the day? Now anyone that's not under 5% is considered to look sloppy and out of shape on stage. It was just a different time with different judging standards.

Over the years, as the limits were pushed, the standards began to change. Guys stayed on cycle longer to get bigger, and when someone came in massively larger than his competitor, that became the new defacto standard by which others were judged. When someone came into a competition with that super dry grainy look and won, that became the new standard.

The same comparison can be drawn in other sports. Look at football 40 years ago vs now. Compare the body type of the average starting left tackle in the NFL now vs then. A guy that's 6 feet tall and 240lbs would be considered to be far too small to be an offensive lineman in the modern NFL. 40 years ago, the average O Lineman may not have even been that big. As any competitive endeavor goes from one generation to the next, it will necessarily take on a new sense of what the minimum standard to entry is. It's a natural process. And it's one that has produced the mass monsters of the current era in bodybuilding. As well as the Kanye West size ego that some of the current champions possess.
 

rAJJIN

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Mar 1, 2006
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Coaches also have learn tricks and gotten smarter.

Old days I
Am not sure they had guys like "dr.diet" chad Nichols.

And so many guys willing to push the limits.... Sometimes even to there death.
 

rAJJIN

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Mar 1, 2006
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Lee has one of my all time favorite physiques and is still in Pro shape to this day. I can see Phil throwing in his dig because Arnold was bashing on today's bodybuilding and obviously took offense to it but Olympia wins or not, I don't think Phil could ever pick out a single weak point on Priest!


Except that he is 5' tall.