There's a fine line between looking fit and being fit. There's also a difference between being strong and looking strong as well. Let's face it, I'm not going to be winning any bodybuilding titles or looking like a greek god any time soon. I was never into sculpting my body but rather have the strength and other attributes to do what I love.
For some, sculpting is mindset and often times an obsession to develop the body that makes heads turn and making women's knees buckle. Not saying someone who wants to look fit is a bad thing it just isn't my preference. Now on the other hand, I don't want to be looking like a 400+ obese guy who hasn't done a damn thing in 20 years and eats McDienolds everyday. Sometimes looks can be deceiving and just because someone looks fit, that doesn't mean they have world class strength and the ability to outrun an olympic sprinter.
For the most part, I don't look like the fittest guy, I don't have 20 inch arms, 8-pack abs, cannonball shoulders and certainly don't look like I can go an hour in a workout without sounding like I'm having a heart attack. I do however can move a near 60 pound hammer for reps, have done 500 Squats in a row on multiple occasions, haul heavy furniture, Curl 60+ pound dumbbells, Run Sprints, go an hour or more in an animal workout, can spar with people far lighter than me in No Gi Grappling and other things. I don't feel the need to look like Zeus or Hercules to prove that I can be strong and have stamina, endurance and flexibility.
Maybe it is genetics, maybe it's the way my brain works or how my mind is made up but I don't need to look fit in order to be fit. If my health isn't well and I need to change things up like losing weight, lower my blood pressure, focus more on flexibility or whatever, than I'll do things to make those happen and I have. I was 275 about 2 years ago and that was too much for my height (5'10) so I changed my eating, worked out differently and changed my mindset and now I'm 20+ pounds lighter and feel incredible. I'll probably want to lose more weight in the not too distant future but for now I'm happy with where I'm at.
High Blood Pressure runs in my family so I do know I need to keep an eye on it especially when I get older into my late 30's, early 40's and beyond but I'm going to do the best to my abilities to stay off medication and keep it to less stress, better nutrition and training. The first I had it checked was for a physical a few years ago and I had it at 150+/110 which is damn near danger zone. I also needed my cholesterol levels down because I ha more bad than good. So I changed things up again and instinctively went on a program for 6 weeks before I checked it out again. The next time I went in after doing the program, my blood pressure dropped nearly 30 points at the top number and more than 20 points on the bottom number and it was incredible. Now I haven't done this program in a long time and have used other methods to help keep my BP in tact, one thing more than anything is to keep stress levels down. I hate being on meds because as a child that was what I had to do until I reached about 9-10 years old.
So what does this have to do with sculpting? Quite frankly nothing because just looking fit doesn't mean your health won't be in jeopardy. You can have the fittest looking body on the planet and still have major problems and not always from taking steroids or being natural. People with Diabetes have a sculpted look, not many but they do exist, fit athletes have developed cancer, it happens. Some people who look like a Greek God have high blood pressure or need a sleep apnea mask in order to get rest because their breathing is an issue. I can go on and on but you get my point. Do what makes you happy and keeps you actually fit. Looks won't always save you in real life situations so it is important to understand things in perspective. Now if you're sculpted and have the attributes to back it up, that's awesome, it works for you and it should continue to work for you.
The point is to be healthy and develop your body that can be resilient and strong along with being able to go for a solid period of time, be flexible, have less stress in your life and live well. Sculpting was never my thing because I rather be healthy overall instead of just looking like I'am. A fit body doesn't always mean healthy so learn to value the differences and make the choices that keep you healthy both inside and outside.
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