Instapundit linked to a brutal piece on The Death of Women’s Bodybuilding. Even the author’s ostensible defense of female body builders is devastating:
However true that may seem on the onset, in reality, no man has the right to say that. Personal femininity is defined by each woman for herself and of herself; even if what’s staring at her in the mirror has developed a man face — five-o’clock shadow and all.
Even the seemingly gnarliest of females have an aspect of femininity. As long as she has a va-jay-jay and all X chromosomes, she could make a vintage cigar store Indian look like Cameron Diaz and somewhere in there is going to be a vestige of what makes her feel like a girl.
But the author’s greatest disgust is reserved for the men who find such women attractive:
Interestingly, there is a subculture that finds these extreme cases of masculinized women attractive and/or desirable. We tend to label these people “schmoes” — men who sexually fetishize female bodybuilders.
I used to look at these men in disgust for their perverse nature, booking private sessions for “posing” and “wrestling” and other general kinkiness. But, in respect to the female bodybuilders out there still intent on pushing the envelope, I’m going to change my mind.
These guys have shown their worth in saving some semblance of the upper echelon of female bodybuilding by putting their money where their whack-off lube is.
The disdain for schmoes is common in the industry. Even the women who dedicate their lives to being hugely muscular are disgusted by the kind of man who would find hugely muscular women attractive. From a Muscle Insider column Schmoes in Bodybuilding:
Go to any top bodybuilding show and hang out in the lobby near the female bodybuilders, and you’ll see them swarming around them like ants near a picnic basket! My first encounter with a schmoe was many years ago at a top bodybuilding contest. I was talking shop with a very muscular female pro bodybuilder who was in all the magazines at the time. All of the sudden she grimaced, tried to hide behind me, and cursed under her breath. Unfortunately, a schmoe had her in his sights and was making a beeline straight for her.
Even a post from femalemuscleblog trying to salvage the view of schmoes admits that schmoes are most commonly seen as disgusting for being turned on by women with large muscles:
The term schmoe is a term used describe hardcore fans of female bodybuilders. They should not be confused with other men who just likes muscular women. Schmoes like a certain type of muscular woman. They like the most muscular, strongest, and athletic woman. Although schmoes are fans of the female bodybuilding in particular, they also enjoy fitness, figure, bikini, and physique competitions. Feelings about these types of fans are divided in the fitness industry . Usually, the term has a negative connotation. Stereotypes range from schmoes being perverts, awkward, pathetic, fetishists, or men with some form of mental defect…
…The idea of schmoes being mentally disturbed is repeated constantly. Liking muscular women can hardly be described as a mental disorder. It would be ludicrous to say so.
