With the evolution of performance-enhancing drugs and the mass demand it has among modern-day athletes, the sport of bodybuilding is often regarded as a rather dangerous one. However, things were not the same in the golden days of bodybuilding, and the resurfaced statement of a bodybuilder is evidence of it.

Steve Reeves, the late professional American bodybuilder and actor, once shed light on why, according to him, the Golden Era of bodybuilding was healthier than the sport young athletes are experimenting with in the modern era.

Steve Reeves’ take on the modern age of bodybuilding

The official Instagram account of a bodybuilding fan page, @thegoldendaysofbodybuilding, shared an old video of the late legendary bodybuilder Steve Reeves, where he talks about why the sport is depreciating in terms of safety with each passing day.

Steve Reeves goes on to talk about how bodybuilding was a sport that people opted to stay healthy instead of just competing and gaining mass. He says, “That’s the thing you see; during my time, I believed that bodybuilding was a health-oriented sport, whereas now it’s unhealthy, chemical-induced gains, and all that.”

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He further advises that if one cannot acquire an aesthetic physique naturally, it is better to not take a shot at the sport at all. He mockingly added, “I believe that if your genetic background did not give you the hormones to build the kind of body without injecting other hormones into your body, you should take up some other sports like, I dunno, catching, butterflies, ping pong, or whatever you know.”

Why did Steve Reeves refrain from injecting steroids?

Further in the resurfaced interview with Steve Reeves, he was asked whether he would have started injecting steroids if they were available to him. To this, he replied that he would have never opted for it because he hates it and would have never taken it as it is absolutely not health-oriented.

He said, “Never, because it’s not health-oriented. I plan to live to be 100. I don’t know if I’ll make it but I’m gonna try and that they would get me dead at 65 probably.” Although the legend did not live as long as 100, he surely did lead an exceptionally healthy 74 years to earn the name of one of the best bodybuilders. What are your thoughts on Steve Reeves’ opinion on PEDs? Let us know in the comments section below!

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