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Comment by Perceval | Hacker News Reader

I think once he started working out and getting strong, he looked less like an android and more like a human male. His politics may have shifted as a result of building muscle:

* https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S01918...

* https://hbr.org/2013/07/mens-arm-strength-affects-thei

* https://www.psypost.org/strong-men-come-across-as-more-conse...

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He was always athletic. I believe he was captain of the fencing team in high school.

He's also a pretty decent amateur runner, broke 20 minutes for 5k which is nothing to sneeze at, I'm still not able to do it after 1.5 years of training 4-6 days a week.

The bimbofication of society unironically has bad consequences for us all. I believe excess gym makes you less nerdy and more reactive, despite studies saying it 'makes you smarter'.

I'm far from a bodybuilder, but this is certainly . . . a take. Whatever happened to the ideal of a sound mind in a sound body? Why does our society have this stupid "jock/nerd" dichotomy where the smart can't be strong and the strong can't be smart?

As someone who enjoys lifting weights, I agree with you. However, I can easily imagine an argument based on all of the strange add-on effects you get from being immersed in "gym culture". Working out isn't just working out, it means you start getting fitness posts in your social media algorithms, surrounding yourself with a new group of people with potentially different views on masculinity, shilling supplements, etc.

Aka don't ignore the social side of fitness.

I learn what I can, apply it, and then try to run the hell away from the mostly online strength community at large. It’s a lot of drama, shilling, fragile egos, harmful advice, useless advice, mixed with some gems you can mine from it with some necessary filtering and vigilance. My local community on the other hand is amazing.

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