“Love can sometimes be magic. But magic can sometimes… just be an illusion.”

Javan

There are two definitions of the term natural bodybuilding – an official one and an underground one.

Official definition: Natural bodybuilding represents a competitive activity in which the participants are judged by the aesthetic qualities of their physiques. The bodybuilders’ goal is to increase the size of their musculature while reducing their body fat levels to a minimum without using prohibited performance-enhancing drugs (PED).

Natural bodybuilders have to pass through many drug tests in order to earn their right to compete. The most common ways to determine the status of a bodybuilder are urine, blood and polygraph testing. Competitors who fail to pass the examinations cannot compete.

Underground definition: Due to some form of self-righteousness, many consider themselves natural if they only use testosterone because the hormone occurs naturally in the body.

Lifetime natural bodybuilders

Lifetime natural bodybuilders are bodybuilders who have never taken banned performance-enhancing drugs (PED).

Fake natural bodybuilders (fake natties)

Fake natural bodybuilders take banned performance-enhancing drugs (PED) during their preparation for bodybuilding contests. Yet those individuals still claim that they are natural and continue to compete. The drug testing procedures are usually manipulated through a wide variety of well-elaborated strategies.

Half-natural bodybuilders (half natties)

Half-natural bodybuilders are fake natural bodybuilders who have a bad genetic response to anabolic drugs and/or use only small amounts of muscle enhancing drugs.

Note: Fake natural and half-natural bodybuilders seem to be suffering from schizophrenia and have many alter egos. They will never, under any circumstances, reveal their addiction to muscle enhancing drugs and sometimes even their families don’t know what’s going on.

Most bodybuilders are extremely secretive and have at least three different personalities – one for the general public, one for their significant other, and one hidden identity that they hide from everyone.