Aesthetic Physique 101: The Ultimate Bodybuilding Guide

Chances are if you’re a guy, you’ve always wanted an aesthetic physique… Even if you didn’t know it at the time.

Maybe as a kid you grew up watching shows like Dragon Ball Z , Superman Or Marvel movies and thought to yourself “Hey… I want to look like that”

Well, I’m here today to show you EXACTLY how you get an aesthetic physique just like these guys.

The truth is, they all share the same attributes that give them an aesthetic physique, and today I’ll present my ultimate guide on how to get one for yourself.

We’ll dive into how to train, what exercises to use, the golden ratio, improving vascularity, and more…

So, if you’re as pumped as I am, let’s dive into this ultimate guide!

What Makes An Aesthetic Physique?

An aesthetic physique is a guy’s body that follows the natural laws of the golden ratio.

The golden ratio is a bunch of rules that come together to create the most scientifically attractive male body possible.

For example, studies have shown that a man with a shoulder-to-waist ratio of 1.618 (meaning his shoulders are 1.618 times wider than his waist) was deemed FAR more attractive by women.

This isn’t just science-y nonsense either, as 1.618 is also the golden ratio associated with beauty all throughout nature.

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So if you’re trying to get an aesthetic physique then following the golden ratio is an essential when getting started.

An Aesthetic Body vs. General Bodybuilding

This is often where a lot of guys mess up… they think that training for aesthetics and bodybuilding are the same thing.

While they’re similar, there are a few key differences between the two:

As you can see, aesthetic training and traditional bodybuilding are in fact, closely related.

Aesthetic training uses bodybuilding principles and vice versa. They are two sides to the same coin.

This is why when we discuss how to get an aesthetic physique there will be some bodybuilding principles involved.

The one thing to remember is that an aesthetic physique will train for proportions over size nearly always.

Studies Show An Aesthetic Physique Is MOST Attractive

As I said earlier, the golden ratio is the most important key when building a physique that causes people to stare when you walk down the street.

But that doesn’t mean it’s the only thing you should work on…

Ultimately, There are MANY different things you can do to get a body that looks like it was carved from stone.

One of the first things you could do is lower your body fat percentage to around 8-16% or just lose some weight to start.

Studies show that leanness, or in simple terms how shredded you are, plays a HUGE role in crafting an aesthetic physique:

“It may be predicted, therefore that, if attractiveness is a mechanism for identifying healthy, fertile mates, healthy levels of body fat (21–33% for women and 8–21% for men; [36]) will be perceived as healthiest and most attractive.”

While it’s true that you don’t NEED to have a shredded 6-pack, I don’t think anyone would argue when I say that it definitely helps…

The best part of lowering your body fat percentage too is that not only will you look way more defined and cut, but you’ll also look BIGGER too.

My Aesthetics Transformation

When I was younger, I was your most stereotypical “hardgainer”…

It felt like I could make all-you-can-eat buffets go BANKRUPT and I still wouldn’t gain any weight.

Fast forward nearly a decade and I’m proud to say I’ve taken the time to build an aesthetic physique… but how did this happen?

The truth is that I realized that with my metabolism, I wasn’t going to be the biggest guy in the gym any time soon.

So instead of being the biggest, I thought about how I could absolutely maximize my physique with what I had…

THAT ladies and gentlemen is the core of aesthetic physique training and a key here at Hardgainer Bodybuilding.

Benefits Of Having An Aesthetic Physique

So why should you even try to get an aesthetic physique, what’s the point?

The point my friends, is that training to get an aesthetic physique will solve about 90% of your problems in life.

Yes, it’s true. When your confidence improves and you get more energy from following an aesthetic workout plan, you’ll be armed with the mental tools for SUCCESS.

Not only that, but having an aesthetic physique comes with some pretty cool perks in life…

Here are a few other benefits that come with training for aesthetics:

• You Don’t Have To Be Massive
• You’ll Get Absolutely Shredded
• Uses Science & Laws Of Nature To Look Like A God
• Develop Amazing Mind-Body Connection (Great For Sports)
• Girls Will Treat You Like A Piece Of Meat (In A Good Way)
• And More…

These are just a few of the benefits that come with an aesthetic physique workout plan, diet, etc.

You’ll still get the other benefits that come with starting ANY workout routine and diet.

Research has shown that people who workout are more confident, have better self esteem and more energy. [R]

That’s not even including the physical benefits like better skin, improved hormones, deeper sleep, etc.

So, if you’re curious about how you can get your OWN aesthetic physique and enjoy the benefits, then read on.

Aesthetic Training 101

Now that you know the benefits of an aesthetic physique, and hopefully are getting pumped too, let’s start to dive into exactly HOW to get an aesthetic body.

The following 4 sections are the core principles of aesthetics training…

We’ll get into the exercises and technical tips later but for now, let’s briefly go over the principles of an aesthetic physique.

These 4 aesthetic physique principles are:

• Develop Your V-Taper
• High vs. Low Reps
• Proportions > Mass
• Low Bodyfat Percentage

Pay close attention, because each of these is KEY when trying to develop the type of body that causes women to get “doe eyes” when looking at you.

Develop Your V-Taper

The very core of training to get an aesthetic body is to develop the V-taper.

We’ll go deeper into this concept later, but for now, understand that the V-taper is the most important element of the golden ratio that we talked about earlier.

A well-defined V-taper will literally have your body shaped like a “V”.

Broad shoulders, a wide back, and narrow V-cut abs all help to maintain this “V” and are always the focal point of aesthetic training.

Again, I’ll show you how to develop this later in this article but for now, understand that the V-taper is one of the most important goals of training to get an aesthetic physique.

High vs. Low Reps

One of the most important parts that guys often mess up with is whether or not you should use low reps with heavy weight or a shit ton of reps with lightweight…

The truth is, you need BOTH.

To keep it simple, we’ll break down heavy and lightweight into two goals:

It’s really that simple.

Depending on where you’re starting from, you may need to adjust whether you’ll primarily use heavy weights (recommended for newbs) or if you have a base of muscle already and are looking to sculpt it.

Proportions Over Mass

The second principle of getting an aesthetic physique is to prioritize proportions over mass 90% of the time.

We’re trying to get built like adonis out here, not the hulk.

But if you ARE looking for sheer mass then I’d kindly point you towards this guide here.

The truth is, an aesthetic physique is completely based on proportions…

Things like broad shoulders, narrow waist, muscle striations, long full biceps, horseshoe triceps, etc.

This is where most guys go wrong and end up developing serious issues such as body dysmorphia…

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Because nobody ever taught them how to get an aesthetic physique, they’ll simply assume that they’re “just not big enough”… EVER.

This leads to poor self-esteem, less confidence, and more. But the truth is, it doesn’t have to.

When you focus on proportions over size, not only will you LOOK way better, but you’ll also FEEL 10x more confident than you were before.

Low Bodyfat Percentage

Lastly, we have maintaining a low body fat percentage.

Having a low bodyfat percentage has several benefits:

• Makes you look shredded (Duh)
  
• Reduces estrogen and increases testosterone
  
• Narrows your waist making your shoulders appear more broad
  
• Develops the “Adnois Belt” in your abs
  
• Makes all of your muscles “POP” more, making you look bigger
  
• and more…

This isn’t even talking about the social benefits such as getting veiny arms (which women love btw), or even a more chiseled jawline due to lower body fat.

Overall, the list of benefits from being shredded is longer than a receipt from Costco.

Ideally, anywhere from 8-12% will serve you well, and if you want more information I recommend you check out my guide to getting shredded.

Aesthetic Physique: Target Muscles

The following sections are nearly a decade of knowledge and experience, all boiled down into select muscle groups.

Not only is the information below the culmination of all my knowledge and experience but also the numerous men that I’ve personally trained for great results.

Building an aesthetic physique comes down to 6 core components:

• A Massive Chest
• V-Cut Abs
• Wide & Thick Back Muscles
• Developing 3D-Delts
• Powerful Arms
• Massive & Defined Legs

The following section will go over the goals for each muscle group, as well as how to go about developing them.

I’d recommend taking a look at the goals of each muscle group and determining where YOU SPECIFICALLY will get the most bang for your buck.

So, without further ado, let’s get into the EXACT step-by-step blueprint for getting an aesthetic physique!

Sculpting A Massive Chest

First things first, let’s talk about the chest. The centerpiece. The part of the body that stands out from in front.

Building a MASSIVE chest is essential, as it signifies strength and masculinity in a man.

However, sculpting a thick chest must be done properly, and to do that you’ll need a balance of the upper chest and lower chest.

Most men tend to have dominant lower chest development due to the bench press exercise being so popular.

Unfortunately, this overdeveloped lower chest can often lead to you being teased for having “man boobs” or “moobs” even if you’re super lean and muscular.

The solution? Start hammering your upper chest just as much, if not MORE than your lower chest.

Some solid upper chest exercises are the incline bench with a barbell or dumbbell, incline flys, or even pullovers.

A well-developed upper chest will give you the “plate of armor” look that you often see in guys like Michael B. Jordan in Creed 2 or Black Panther.

Developing V-Cut Abs

Next, we have developing your adonis belt or getting v-cut abs.

The ultimate goal for your abs is to create the illusion of a “tapering effect” or to put it bluntly… you want your abs to look like an arrow pointing toward your manhood.

A well-developed adonis belt is a huge signal of attraction for women and how could it not?

In addition to the attention that you’ll get from women when you have a well-developed midsection, you’ll ALSO look way bigger in comparison.

When you take the time to get your abs nice and tight and develop the “downward arrow” look, your shoulders will appear FAR more broad, which makes you look more alpha, to put it bluntly.

I have a whole guide on getting greek god abs here, but the fastest way to get ridiculously good abs is to get your diet in check.

There’s a famous saying that goes “abs are made in the kitchen” and this couldn’t be more true.

Building A Wide & Thick Back

Ah, building a wide and powerful back is one of my personal favorites.

One of the core elements for building an aesthetic physique is the ever sought after “V-taper”

The “V-taper” is essentially when your shoulders, back, and abs taper down toward your pelvis creating a “V” shape to it.

There is no faster way to develop a sick V-taper than to develop your back & shoulders.

To build an aesthetic back that’s both WIDE but also thick and defined, you’ll need a select few exercises.

For width, I’d like to kindly suggest one of my favorite exercises: The Weighted Wide Grip Pull-Up.

For thickness, there are a few different great exercises that you could use such as barbell rows, T-bar rows, cable rows, dumbbell rows, etc.

Anything that has the word “row” in it will essentially build up your back THICKNESS as opposed to its WIDTH.

As for the pullups, don’t worry if you can’t add weight yet.

If you can’t do one at ALL, then simply do lat pulldowns with a wide grip and work your way up to doing the weighted pull-ups.

3D-Delts & How To Get Them

Broad and powerful shoulders are one of the key defining characteristics of an alpha male.

Think about it, there’s a reason why when people take steroids or any other anabolic PED’s the first thing that happens is their shoulders and traps BLOW UP in size. [R]

3D-delts will give off the image that you are a naturally high-test male, and the best part is that you can do it without the steroids if you so choose.

The key to developing these “boulder shoulders” is to attack them with laser-like precision.

This level of precision starts with understanding that the shoulders are made of 3 heads:

• The Anterior Head (Front Delt)
• The Lateral Head (Side Delt)
• Posterior Head (Rear Delt)

Most people get shoulder training COMPLETELY wrong.

They think that since the lateral head is on the side, they should just spam lateral raises to get wider shoulders.

While yes, you will get some results, you are leaving out nearly 2/3 of your potential shoulder width… specifically you need to start hitting that rear delt.

“But you can barely even see them, they can’t be that important right?”

WRONG.

Your rear delt attaches to your lateral delt, and when you develop your rear delt, it WILL make your shoulders broader.

And, when you attack all three heads – front, lateral, and rear, you will develop 3D-delts or “boulder shoulders”.

Powerful & Vascular Arms

You might be wondering why it took so long to get to the arms.

Well, believe it or not, you don’t need arms the size of watermelons to develop an aesthetic physique.

However, this doesn’t mean neglecting the arms at all, certainly not.

I am the LAST person who would say to cut back on arm training as I have personally doubled my arm size in just 90 days before.

If you’re looking to get massive and aesthetic arms I highly recommend you check out that article but I’ll give the basics here…

For your triceps, you’ll want them to be massive, yes, but also extremely defined with a “horseshoe” look to them.

For your biceps, you’ll want them to have tall peaks but also fullness to them while they’re relaxed.

For forearms, it’s best to focus on getting vascularity and definition over size and one of the best ways to do both is to use the GRIPXT forearm trainer.

Ultimately, powerful, vascular, and defined arms will be a HUGE contribution to your overall physique and will be a statement piece every time you go out in a t-shirt or tank top, so get to work!

Strong & Defined Legs

Last but certainly not least are the leg muscle which includes the quads, hamstrings, calves, and glutes.

Just because the legs are listed last, does NOT mean that they are the least important… specifically the glutes.

SEVERAL polls have been conducted where 100 women were asked what the most attractive muscle on the male body was and the results will shock you…

At number one there was “a nice set of abs” which isn’t too surprising, but what came in the number two spot? Was it a wide back? Broad shoulders? A Massive chest? Hulked-out biceps??

Nope, it was the GLUTES.

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According to a majority of women, a strong set of glutes is the second most attractive muscle on the male body. Go figure.

However, this doesn’t mean neglecting the other leg muscles, as striated quads look awesome, sculpted calves will make other guys jealous, and strong glutes and hamstrings will make women want to sexually assa-… I mean slap your butt as you walk by.

Seriously, it’s funny how hypocritical some women are when you take the time to develop your glutes, but I digress.

Here’s a list of my favorite exercises for developing powerful and aesthetic legs:

• Heavy Back Squats (Everything)
• Walking Lunges (Mainly Glutes)
• Leg Extensions (Quads)
• Leg Curls (Hamstrings)
• Calf Raises (Guess)
• Leg Press (Quads)
• Romanian Deadlift (Glutes & Hamstrings)

Feel free to add any of the above exercises to your routine.

Just remember, no matter what and under no circumstances should you EVER skip leg day.

Not only will you get chicken legs and teased by people, but (more importantly) you’re missing out on a HUGE advantage to get extra gains.

When you do heavy compound movements like a back squat, your body releases a FUCK ton of natural anabolic hormones like testosterone and human growth hormone (HGH). [R]

Both of which can be used to make the rest of your body grow WAY faster than if you had skipped leg day.

The Aesthetic Diet: Getting A Lean Body

The aesthetic diet is not something one should take lightly…

If you’re a semi-longtime reader of my blog, you’ll know that I HEAVILY employ the rule of thirds …

In this case, the rule states that a third of your bodybuilding results come from your workout, a third comes from your diet, and a third from your recovery.

This is why it’s essential that you not only use the right exercises but that you also eat the right foods.

This means getting your protein intake and diet down PAT if you want an aesthetic physique.

I’ve already written plenty of articles on dieting, and if you haven’t read them I’d recommend you do so.

But here are the basics that you should strive to follow:

• 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight
  
• Healthy carbs to fuel your muscles with glycogen making them bigger and perform at their best
  
• Healthy fats to optimize your hormones in your favor

Of course, there are a ton of other nuances but I find it easy to break down the three core nutrients you need for an aesthetic physique…

And before we move on, I also want to briefly talk about cheat days.

If you’re a hardgainer, don’t even worry about it. You can afford to put on some extra weight.

But if you’re not, then I’d recommend keeping your cheat days to once or at MOST twice per week if it keeps you sane.

But, that’s IF you’re diet is damn near perfect every other day of the week.

You don’t eat an apple one morning, then eat like shit the rest of the day, and then tomorrow be like: “Well I ate healthy yesterday so I deserve a cheat day today.”

No dude, you don’t… Unless you’re eating close to perfect the other days.

I’ll leave you with this analogy… If you eat clean 6 out of 7 days a week, then you have a roughly 85% healthy eating rate, which isn’t perfect but it’s still a solid B+ and certainly better than nothing.

Best Supplements

Now we’re cooking with gasoline, and we get to talk about one of my favorite subjects… supplements!

To be clear, if you don’t have your workout routine and diet down already, then supplements should be the least of your concerns.

Supplements will amplify the results you get from your diet and workout, so if your diet and workout sucks then supplements are going to amplify your gains very minimally.

That being said, once you do have your diet and workout down, it’s essential that you take advantage of supplements.

This isn’t the 1900’s, you don’t become the best looking guy with his shirt off just because you workout, you need supplements to reach your MAX potential.

I talk about litterally every single supplement you could every need or want in my guide “The Aesthetics Blueprint” but I’ll give some of the basics here…

Here’s a few of the best supplements for an aesthetic phsyique:

• Creatine (Essentially Natural Steroids) (Shop Here)
  
• Protein Powder (A Godsend For Gym Rats) (Shop Here)
  
• L-Arginine (Boost Vascularity Dramatically) (Check Price On Amazon)
  
• Zinc, Magnesium, Vitamin D (Boost Testosterone) (Check Price On Amazon)
  
• Green Tea Extract (Supports Weightloss) (Check Price On Amazon)

As time goes on, men around the world will become more and more jacked and there may even come a day where you’ll HAVE to be on steroids to be in the elite category of men physically.

But, that day is not today and these natural alternatives will certainly help you reach that elite level.

It’s all a matter of when YOU want to reach that next level.

Aesthetic Physique Bonus Tips & Tricks

Because I truly want this to be the best free guide on the internet for you to get an aesthetic physique, I’ve included some bonus tips to help get you there.

If you’re looking at everything on this list and thinking “God, all this stuff looks looks like a hassle” just remember the benefits that come with…

You will finally be the guy that everyone stares at when you’re at the beach…

You’ll know what it’s like to have a group of girls screaming in giddy delight as they try to take your shirt off…

And you’ll know what it feels like for a girl to have her nose against your V-cut lower abs (if you catch my drift).

Hopefully, all this seems a little less tedious than it was before and let’s jump in to the bonus tips that we have!

Here’s a few easy to follow tips that will take your physique to the next level:

• Get A Sick Tan
  
• Reduce Water Retention
  
• Get More Vascular

Stay tuned, because next I’m going to break down EXACTLY how to do each of these properly.

Tanning Made Simple

A nice tan will bring out all of the edges of your “cut” physique.

Think about it… Why do bodybuilders get as tan as possible?

It’s because a nice tan shows off your physique best and trust me, women notice a guy with a nice tan.

The way I see it, there’s two paths to go down…

The first is to do it the 100% natural way, which is you lay out a towel and lie down in the sun for a couple hours one side, then flip for another couple hours.

It’s long and tedious, but it’ll get the job done.

The second (and my preffered) option is to get some help with a supplement called Melanotan.

I’ll write a whole article about it later, but essentially melanotan speeds up melanogenesis within your body, or in simple terms… You’ll tan faster, deeper, AND the tan will last LONGER.

Normally, you’d have to inject it but due to the wonders of modern science, you can get it in a nasal spray online from Amino Asylum. (Use Code: HB20 For 20% Off!)

Simply order it, adminster 2-4 sprays and bask in the sun for about half an hour and I kid you not, you’ll have a sick looking tan that’ll last you WEEKS.

Reducing Water Retention

Next is reducing water retention and unfrotunately due to our modern society, MOST people suffer from this.

Water retention is what happens when your body holds on to excess water underneath the skin…

Your body doesn’t use it. It’s just there in case you decide to stop drinking water for a couple days.

Unfortunately, water retention ends up looking like a layer of fat, and one of the fastest ways to look shredded as fuck is simply to reduce water retention.

And ironically, the best way to get rid of water retention is to drink a lot more water.

Why you might ask? When you don’t drink enough water and consume a ton of sodium (which is in most foods these days) your body holds onto extra water as a survival mechanism.

But when you drink a bunch of water it tells your body that it’s OKAY to let go of that extra water since you’re getting a healthy supply of it.

I’d recommend drinking a gallon of water a day. Just doing this will do wonders for your shreds and aesthetics.

Guide To Vascularity

Lastly, let’s talk about how to get thick spiderweb veins, specifically in the FOREARMS.

If you don’t know by now, veiny forearms are a MASSIVE turn on for women and just look plain badass for guys.

The best part about having veiny forearms too is that your shirt doesn’t even need to be off to showcase them.

I already talked about the supplements you can use to boost vascularity like L-arginine but the truth is if you want veiny forearms you gotta train them properly.

In my experience, the best way I’ve found to train forearms specifically for veins, is to use Grip XT.

I talk about it more in the article, but essentially Grip XT is a toy that you use to train the extensors of your forearm and I’m not sure why it works so well, all I know is that it DOES.

Want A Full Aesthetics Training Program?

If you enjoyed this article, I would HIGHLY recommend checking out my flagship ebook “The Aesthetics Blueprint“.

It covers everything you need to go from geek to freak in 90 days or less.

The program has been perfected over the course of a decade to give guys like you the body they’ve always dreamed of.

But, I also put my money where my mouth is, and if you don’t get absolutely PHENOMENAL results after following the program for 90 days then I’ll refund every cent back to you, no questions asked.

Anyways, overall I had a blast writing this MASSIVE article for you guys and I don’t plan on stopping any time soon.

Hopefully you found the knowledge valuable and you can use it for your own fitness journeys.

As always, feel free to send me a message regarding any questions, comments or concerns and until then, I’ll see you guys next time!

-Matthew