Every man out there wants to improve his physique. For some, a workout of the gym and gaining some muscle might be good enough. But other men are now aiming for bulging veins to show their devotion to their body.
“Vascularity is the new six-pack.” Those are the words of Elias Carmelo, a professional personal trainer who helps takes photos of muscular men before a camera.
If you think that this is about your father’s varicose veins on his legs, then think again. The main vein which personal trainers and fitness nuts are aiming to display is the cephalic vein. This bloodstream runs from your biceps to your shoulders.
Other veins that men want to display include veins on your quads or your calves.
Displaying these vascular veins is a sign that you are lean and muscular, but the primary way to show them is by lowering your body fat to around 8 percent. This is lower than the normal athletic body fat ratio of 10 percent.
By lowering your body fat, athletes remove the layer between your muscle and skin which hides these veins. The result are a set of visible tubes running along your body which form a picture of masculine health.
Not everyone agrees with this new physical ideal. New York Magazine writer Allison Davis sarcastically quipped about how varicose veins, forehead veins, and jugular veins may be some additional veins which could show physical exertion. After all, she asks, “Is there anything hotter than a well-functioning circulatory system?”
One may also wonder if displaying these veins is a sign of a well-functioning circulatory system or if they are instead a health concern. However, Dr. Mark Andrews from the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine claims that there is nothing good or bad about bulging veins when working out. He describes it as “a result of normal physiological mechanisms that result from the rise in arterial blood pressure during exertion.”
Whatever one’s aesthetic thoughts on bulging veins may be, they can be a sign that a person is working out enough. So hit the gym, lift some weights, and maybe you can have your own set of visible veins running along your arms.
