Bob Cicherillo - To Be, Or Not To Be... Mainstream.

[webmaster]

Does bodybuilding want to be mainstream? Not necessarily. However if they want to keep the fans they have currently then it is time to get creative. Read on for a current affair of bodybuilding.

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bobchic10.htm

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[MariaKang]

I think that the Kelly and Titus drama is pulling in some interest..... :-)

But besides cajoling people with murder cases, I think you hit the nail on the head. I think....that because bodybuilding is a SUBJECTIVE sport, then it will be really hard to draw in masses of people like a team sport or a broadway play...these events are either measured by real, objective numbers, or driven by pure entertainment building off the human experience.

However, I do think that people are rallied from personal pride and sense of 'ownership'...like having identification with a person, place or thing...Because there is 'no drama' or 'personalities'...because the competitors don't 'represent' them in some way - we are not getting the crowds we need. (especially since we live in such a fat society. who could ever relate to a 'fitness' sport)

From my experience in competitions, I think the best options are:

1. Making it a reality show that ends with competition...people like seeing the process of the transformation: that is the fun part not the end result. (the sport is the daily individual battle of each competitor)
2. Creating more divisions that dictate the end score. (even possible crowd involvement..that should spark drama)
3. Dividing the country up in sections: whether it be by state or by regions. Having special identification with a competitior will create a following.

Those are my thoughts...coming from a pageantry and marketing background. I firmly believe that if you keep doing what you've been doing...you'll keep getting what you've been getting. Thanks for a great article Bob.

[G.D.]

would be nice! i dont have all the answers, but there are a lot of people that are more curious than we think. I reside in the Midwest and people that have known me for the past few years have seen me go from 165 to 220 and they enjoy it more than me seems like, smiling, touching, commenting, etc...at the store you get those looks and nods from little people in their tanks that ask questions like what are you on? i wish i could be that big! damn man are you eatin weights? i go to local gyms around here and even older people (50+) are pumpin iron and hittin the treadmills...a lot of people im sure would agree on more tv exposure or mabe just me, but the reality tv show would be nice ive even thought the same thing and have told my wife that i would sign up if one ever came out,lol! Or even like a show that featured our pro bodybuilders, women and men, working out and having special guest to work out with them...you could call it Iron With The Pros, or whatever...have different bbers on different weeks etc. i would love to see the sport i love so much more available on tv, and keep the pay per view events but showcase events that lead up to it kinda like the WWE or boxing etc... im low income and when im not working 2 jobs supporting my family im pumpin iron eatin and relaxin in front of the tv like SO many of us DO!i hate the fact that bodybuilding is nowhere on TV!! there are so many other BS shows and reality shows, i wanna see somethin that caters to our sport and entertainment! I dont know about appealing to mainstream or not but it sure could be more appealing to people like me the little less fortunate, and i gaurantee we would be gettin together, puttin in money like we do for boxing pay perviews!! Think about it, in most all other sports most people men and women in their sport pump iron!! its like a solid fondation!! bring it on!! what can i do to HELP!! put me in coach!!!

I don't see it ever happening where a bodybuilding show is even remotely close to accepted. The average person sees bodybuilders ( pro or otherwise ) as either steroid superfreaks, narcissist, or losers who can't make it in "real " sports.
Let's face it the average bodybuilding show is boring ( "quarter turn to the right..." ) and only those who love the sport would sit still and watch it for hours on end. I don't think the average guy looking for something to do on a Saturday night would spend his hard earned money on a night of watching a buntch of strangers posing.
I think that bodybuilding will always be a fringe sport, something that only the hardcore few compete in and follow. To compare it with Wrestling would be to wrong because wrestlers are entertaining and performing ( i.e. they are actively doing something that people can relate to )

[dodfire13]

I think that moving into the mainstream is going to happen no matter what bb does in the future, short of something drastic. Take a look at the forums and figure out what the average age is. I think that younger people are becoming more fitness, or at least body, conscious. As that happens you should see a change in the numbers of fans seriously following the sport. Like any other sport, the more people that can feel involved on a day to day basis the more they will follow the pro's. I do think that the push should be towards bringing in the natural comp's just because those people are easier to identify with. But definitely the market will be growing in future years and now is a good time for the bb industry to take a look at making some changes. It would also help if bb's were able/willing to branch out into other business area's that have a fan following. Look at Sean Combs as a perfect example. BB needs smart, business minded BB's to move it into the future. Just my two cents.

As much of a desire as there is for some to gain a mainstream backing for bodybuilding, the question comes to the integrity of the sport and essence of bodybuilding itself. Too many aspects of our society have been turned into "reality" shows that give people no reedeeming value (like Pro Wrestling). Entertainment isn't always carrying a positive connotation-- especially when violence is glorified.

There is a difference between capturing the bodybuilder's "experience" and manipulating/distorting reality. Going behind stage to see pre-contest competitors is one thing (probabaly a good idea), but creating a fabricated (or forced) storyline isn't honest. If that were to happen, then bodybuilding could cross the line from a sport to entertainment, and, as I said before, entertainment isn't often reeding. Sports are pure competition from the athletes perspective; entertainment can be competitive (Pro Wrestling) but competition always takes a back seat to the ALL-POWERFUL dollar (getting the crowds money). That's what "mainstream" bodybuilding would become-- purely entertainment business.

My point comes to this: Maybe bodybuilding will never be about big crowds and flashy shows, but wasn't always about a self-conflict? The true sport always resided in the struggle for a person to enhance his/her body to its limit. The competitions can be seen more as a celebration of the achievements of every individual that competes. By exploiting those competitions, we would eventually lose the true sport of bodybuilding.

[G.D.]

doesnt have to be a flashy twist to a change in how bb reaches people! even if it were somethin' to show our greats leading up to competion time or somethin' gotta change with the times!! show the blood sweat and pain that we/they go through to make gains or even lose/cut etc...see the diets, dont have to talk to much about supps. yea its easy to say go buy a magazine or buy payperview or buy a video, when your in school or working and your on fixed budget some of those things get traded for food and gym fees family etc. so to see somethin on tv not demoralizing by anymeans duh, but encouraging and even helpful when you feel like you need a boost, that's one of the reasons why i joined this forum, and the fact you can get/give advice help and support each other and order supps etc. it was also free which was nice...bb is a sport and to me it is entertaining to see people who share a common interest in the same thing doin what we love to do! even if it was something that was seasonal that was only on for a few months... if people were not interested they wouldnt watch so what, but the ones that are would love it just as we do any other sport! i dont have all the answers but it's just my opinion! and opinions are like butt holes we all have one at times nothing good comes out of it! this thread was an opinion based thread, nothing wrong with finding a way to reach more people that are interested, there will always be nonbelievers, no matter what we do! there was a show in the morning called body shaping, i used to catch it all the time dont see it any more though, the weight lifting part was my favorite! they gave nice ideas and it was simple! if not no big deal, life will go on, it has for this long!! LOL....

[BB2K]

I think alot of people confuse bodybuilding with the negative things that have happened in this sport. (IE. Titus) People are so quick to blame roids for everything. Had this been a non bodybuilder murder, we would never had heard about it. No one talks about football, baseball, tennis or any other sport that uses gear because they are not considered vain for what they do. Bodybuilders are considered snobs and vain because they look in the mirror so much and love to flex for people...jealousy, plain and simple.

I pray bodybuilding goes big time. It is a way of life and a healthy one at that. To many people sit on their behinds and do absolutely nothing with themselves and they are dropping dead everyday. I agree with the above post that bb shows can be very boring to those that do not love it, but bodybuilding isnt just about competing, Its about making changes in your body for the better and being happy with YOU and how you look.

Will bodybuilding go mainstream? I think so. It will take a little more time but eventually it will. You have 3 options with your body 1. Do nothing with it. 2. eat right and exercise, look good and feel good, compete. 3. go to a plastic surgeon and pay thousands of dollars to have something done that you could most likely do with a proper diet and weight training.

I am confident that boybuilding is going no where but up. So many men and women love this sport and so many people are on the rise to greatness. Bodybuilding will never die.