Athletic vs Aesthetic

When it comes to training generally you’re looking to get either an athletic or an aesthetic physique. This doesn’t mean one physique is better than another, but there are certain characteristics specific to each one.

It’s safe to say that the priority for an athlete is to compete and ultimately to win. While a perfect looking body might be nice looks won’t do you much good when you’re on that football pitch or rugby field.

In reality though our culture is one dominated by appearances. Every product in the world is marketed by somebody who looks just right. But just because you put emphasis on athleticism doesn’t mean that you have to abandon aesthetics.

By definition aesthetics is not only the creation of beauty, but the appreciation of it too. The respect for athletes comes from their ability to perform their sport, but increasingly the aesthetics of their bodies is being addressed too.

Just as athletes don’t have to abandon aesthetics, people who strive for an aesthetic physique don’t have to be useless at sport. The misconception is that the two physiques are independent of each other when in fact there is a great deal of cross over.

Times have changed – athletes can be big, lift weights, and build muscle. The problem is a lot of people think that by focusing on athleticism you have to sacrifice size.

Maybe in the past it was true that athletes were generally less muscular and focussed on excelling at running and endurance sports, but now it is different.

So I guess if you came to this blog to find out which physique is better I should apologise. It really is a personal choice.

What I would say is that when it comes to motivation, athletic competition is often ideal. Having something specific to train for can really help.

If you know you have a marathon coming up, or that the new season is about to start, often that will supply the motivation. Your drive to succeed will help you to keep focused – plus if it’s a team sport that you’re competing in, not letting down your team mates will motivate you too.

Gaining an aesthetic physique doesn’t have to be harder, but it is far more specific. An athletic physique is dependent upon the sport that the athlete competes in and the range of body shapes/sizes required in any sport varies.

An aesthetic physique has less variation and many people find it difficult to get their muscles symmetrical and in proportion.

This is where professional advice comes in. A lot of the stuff you need to know about training can be found out through your own research. Personal trainers wouldn’t exist if you could find everything out through Google though.

It seems like I bang on about this point a lot but aesthetics comes from work in the kitchen as well as the gym. Your nutrition really can’t afford to be neglected if you want a traditionally aesthetic appearance.

There’s no reason why you can’t be athletic and aesthetic at the same time. The industry likes to show the two as conflicting but in reality you can blend the two together.