Agree with this and some of the others posting along the same lines.janoycresva wrote: ↑Sat Jan 20, 2024 11:02 amexactly thisTimK wrote: ↑Fri Jan 19, 2024 8:35 am I think it’s partly genetic (height, bone structure, muscle insertions, etc) but not 95%. A lot of it is probably due to not training specifically for hypertrophy, especially for the muscles that make the most difference physique-wise (side delts, arms). And of course not being particularly lean, not being skilled at posing, and not having an instagram feed composed entirely of photos with perfect lighting and camera angles.
getting to a 500lb squat or a 600lb will do almost nothing for many of the muscle groups that impact your aesthetics the most
Hyper focus on SBD generally sucks for: arms, side delts, lats, parts of the back (depending on genetics), quads (also depending on genetics), calves, and often even hamstrings. You can have big SBD numbers with small arms, unimpressive back, mediocre quads, no calves, shoulders that don't pop, and often high body fat that you keep estimating to be 5% lower than it really is.
I really wish the bIG CoMpOUNds religion would die. Somehow if you don't focus on SBD, you fail the manhood test, or something. Nothing wrong with SBD if you love the lifts or train for powerlifting or adjacent sport. However, the nonsense of SBD building great physiques, or squats being the king of lifts, or deadlifts building your whole body has led far too many people astray. If you want to look like a bodybuilder, train like one. I don't know why so many people cannot reduce their obsession with SBD while being closeted physique lifters.