HomebodybuildingThe Hard Reality of Natural Bodybuilding: What No One Tells You!

The Hard Reality of Natural Bodybuilding: What No One Tells You!

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The Hard Reality of Natural Bodybuilding

The one thing about natural bodybuilding or getting into shape without using drugs that you never hear about.

I’m going to tell you exactly what it is.

Getting into shape without using drugs means a different process than common media perspective

I’m getting ready for my first natural bodybuilding competition here in America.

I’m really focused.

I’ve been training hard for years, and I’ve finally been able to realize my dream going from 125 pounds to being able to be in a place where I really feel like I’m going to belong on stage and look fantastic as a natural bodybuilder with my high intensity training.

Putting on muscle as a natural bodybuilder takes years and years

And the day before the competition, I meet someone who I hadn’t seen in a very long time.

He looked at me and he said,

When cutting and leaning out you tend to look smaller in your regular clothes!

“Kevin, what’s going on? Did you stop training?”

Yes, that happened.

I was in up to that point, the best shape in my entire life.

But when he saw me in clothes, he asked me if I’d stopped training.

The leaner you are the smaller you can look when fully clothed!

Why is that?

To find out why and understand a little bit more about some of the unspoken realities of what it means to get to a really low body fat percentage, either for bodybuilding competitions or just cutting up to get into really great shape.

Stay tuned, roll the credit.

So in this video we’re talking about what happens, what’s the reality of getting really lean, having that six pack, having every single muscle clearly defined, having your body fat percentage being really low.

Leaning out and losing fat without drugs takes time but the results are worth it!

But before I go any further, like that, lifetime everyone for tuning in, especially those this be a one stop place for anyone searching training naturally without drugs or supplements.

Thank you so much for the support, I truly appreciate it. And to be sure to like, subscribe and hit that bell. So your first site to get new content as it comes out.

Kevin’s First Natural Bodybuilding Competition in the US

So the reality of getting into fantastic shape, like I said, my first competition in America, I was really stunned when a friend of mine saw me and thought that I had stopped training.

Natural Bodybuilder Kevin Richardson in some of the best shape of his life!

And here’s the reason why, because I was dramatically smaller, much smaller.

I was off season, up to 252 pounds, the heaviest weight of my entire life.

Natural Bodybuilder Kevin Richardson at his heaviest at 252lbs

And from my first contest here in America, my first big contest here in America, that is I had cut down to 209 pounds.

That’s a pretty big difference.

And I did in a pretty fast period of time as well.

The Reality of Losing Size Pre-Contest or When Cutting Down

If you’re 252 pounds and you cut down to 209 pounds, you lost a lot of weight and a lot of size.

You’re not going to look the same way.

Your clothing fits differently as you get more cut

Your clothes are going to be falling off of you.

You’re also probably, if you go really low in the body fat percentages into the low single digits, you will not by any stretch of the imagination look massive.

How Drugs Distort What Natural Athletes Expect to Look Like

Most actors and influencers use drugs in order to transform their bodies in a short period of time

We are very accustomed now to seeing actors just literally transform and somehow or the other go to the gym, start working out really hard and they get bigger and more defined.

The lower your body fat percentage the smaller you can look as a natural bodybuilder

What they don’t tell you is the fact that they’re using drugs.

I can tell you for a fact that it is impossible as a natural athlete to not get smaller as you become more and more defined.

Getting bigger and more defined at the same time is often thanks to drug use in training

And a lot of men are really surprised when they cut down and find themselves putting their clothes on and feeling really small in that it’s not something that they expect.

Natural athletes become smaller as they get more and more defined

And unfortunately, because like I said before, we don’t talk about it, it comes as a surprise.

The Real Reason Getting More Defined Naturally Can Frustrate Men

So let’s get to the central issue, which is the fact that most of us, myself included, when we start bodybuilding, we do it because we want to get bigger.

Most start bodybuilding because they want to get bigger and gain muscle mass!

We want to have an impressive physique.

We’re not doing it necessarily to get smaller.

And that’s what happens.

And so for a lot of people, it can be a real blow because it kind of goes contrary to everything you’re doing.

You’re working so hard in the gym, you’re doing your best for your diet, you’re cutting down, you’re seeing the results from all the hard work you’re putting in, and yet when you put your clothes on, you will look like you’re not really working out.

Knowing what to expect as you cut down is important for a natural athlete

Now what happens is you look like this, but you feel like this.

That can be really hard.

It can play tricks on your mind.

Even though you feel smaller you actually look fantastic when cutting down!

So it’s really important going in, knowing exactly what the outcome’s going to be.

With your clothes on, you’re going to look smaller.

And I wish I could go back in time and tell myself that because it wouldn’t come as that much of a shock.

Natural Bodybuilders in Contest Shape Aren’t Massive
Natural athletes lose size as they cut down!

And if you ever went to a professional natural bodybuilding competition with some of the top athletes and you saw them right before a competition, and even though they may not look huge in clothes, they are truly inspiring, nonetheless.

Line up of Natural Bodybuilders competing in the WNBF bodybuilding competition world championships

Natural Female Bodybuilders Aren’t Huge

As far as women are concerned, I think everyone should see a high-level natural female bodybuilder, pre-contest up close.

Yvette Arthur, Natural Ms. Olympia bodybuilding champion

They are tiny.

Again, tiny.

They’re not huge.

They’re not jacked, absolutely not.

As a natural athlete, woman do not get that big.

And they’re much smaller than you might imagine when you actually stand next to them.

Kevin's Naturally Intense bodybuilding team competing at the WNBF pro-qualifiers

Now that being said, when your shirt comes off and you’re in really, really good condition, it is exceptionally impressive, which is why bulking has never been part of my philosophy.

Bulking up does not help you keep or maintain size and it's better to stay lean year round

And my whole idea is maintaining a lean as possible physique all year round and then slowly building muscle, even if it means staying smaller.

Being Big and Defined Naturally Can Take A Long Time

But again, even though you’re slowly building muscle while you’re staying lean, this is something that’s going to take years.

It takes years and years to put on muscle mass as a natural bodybuilder

And I think I sound like a broken record whenever I talk about the fact that building quality muscle takes years because I think we’re just not hearing enough of it.

And you need to really have that wrapped around your head.

Training Naturally As A Path of Self Improvement & Self Discovery

Plus you have to understand that being a natural athlete is a path of self-discovery and self-improvement.

Natural Bodybuilding is a path of self-discovery and improvement

It’s you being the best you can possibly be.

And for that, you don’t need to compare yourself to anyone else.

So I’m telling you, focus on yourself.

Focus on the journey.

The rewards are exceptional.

The perks of natural bodybuilding and training are vast

You’ll be more healthy, you’ll look fantastic, you’ll feel fantastic.

Don’t worry about the fact, they say you look smaller in clothes, and over time you will get bigger.

And if you stick with it for years and years and years on and you will get big enough where you look like you lift weight, even though you are pretty much on the lean side.

So stay the path, stay natural, know I believe in you, and as always, Excelsior!

Related articles:

Natural Bodybuilding Is Not A Joke

Body Fat Percentage Comparisons

Click for a free copy!

CLICK FOR A FREE COPY OF KEVIN’S WEIGHT LOSS EBOOK!

Featured everywhere from the Wall Street Journal to CBS News, Kevin Richardson’s Naturally Intense High Intensity Training have helped hundreds lose weight and transform their bodies with his 10 Minute Workouts. One of the top natural bodybuilders of his time, Kevin is also the international fitness consultant for UNICEF and one of the top personal trainers in New York City.

Kevin Richardson
Kevin Richardsonhttps://www.naturallyintense.net
Featured everywhere from the Wall Street Journal to CBS News, celebrity Personal Trainer NYC and with over 2.6 million readers of his blog, Kevin Richardson is the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training, one of the top lifetime drug free bodybuilders of his time, the first International Fitness & Nutrition Consultant for UNICEF, 2020 and 8 Time Winner of the Best of Manhattan Awards for Personal Training and a world recognized authority on high intensity training. Kevin has helped thousands, from celebrities to CEO's over the past 30 years achieve their fitness goals with his 10 minute high-intensity workouts done just three times a week in conjunction with his holistic nutrition approach. You can learn more about about his diet and training services at www.naturallyintense.net
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