Not necessarily in terms of being jacked ...

 

Was it Lex Luger in WCW around the mid-90s when Schiavone would tout him as having 3% body fat?

 

Or

 

Was it Ricky Steamboat in the late 70s around the time Flair says he was living on nothing but tuna and chicken breasts?

 

Or someone else?

Pam Grier in 1974.

When I think of best wrestling bodies it doesn't necessarily mean to me the most jacked up. That would be a different category. Luger is a good choice when he was cut as was Steamboat in the late 70s for sure.

 

Here's a few when I think of best wrestling bodies that come to mind though:

 

 

 

 

 

Brian Cage every day since 2013

We've cited lots of guys who have died young or ended up in wheelchairs so far. Just saying.

Sami Zayn looks like a legit athlete not a cartoon character.

Sami Zayn looks like a legit athlete not a cartoon character.

In some sports at certain positions. There's a bit of a range up and down a given roster much less across sports.

This reminds me of a funny bit from Meltzer, some time during the '92 steriod scandal.

 

Can't remember all the details, but the point was that a not very physically impressive indy worker cut a promo saying he would show the crowd 'what a real man is supposed to look like'.

We've cited lots of guys who have died young or ended up in wheelchairs so far. Just saying.

 

It's very sad indeed. Without uploading more photos I also think of great wrestling bodies when I think of Kerry and Kevin Von Erich, Sid Vicious before he got more bloated, and Kevin Sullivan circa 1980-1981. He was legit shredded back then.

Kenny Omega was at his peak bodywise a few months back he still looks good now but, not as shredded.

Probably someone before the steroids era who looks like an actual athlete instead of a bodybuilder, someone with the body type of Arn Anderson/young Lou Thesz or Bockwinkel, etc.

Rick Rude circa 1992 & Bruiser Brody circa 1981.

the guy who could lift the most & go the longest & have a natural lifespan. that's my answer

 

i'll again post my obligatory reminder that ripped abs have fuck-all to do with athletic ability and we have a totally warped idea of "athletic bodies"

R-Truth whenever he was at his physical peak. Not so big that he didn't look athletic. Super lean.

Cesaro.

Also, no-no to the Eddie mention.

It amazes me how long wrestling was pushing body guys before Vince Jr. entered promoting. Even in the '50s, they're all over the place.

 

As far as wrestlers who did it without being self-destructive, Gene Stanlee lived to the age of 88. John Cena seems like a good candidate too.

Mike Shaw.

A bit of a divergence from best body in the sense of being most ripped or most realistically athletic, but hear me out on this: I kind of feel like in a weird way Samoa Joe, at his leanest, has one of the best fits in terms of body to character I've ever seen in wrestling. Big enough to be a seemingly legitimate beast, genetically predisposed to being big but holding it really well and making you believe that he was absolutely an athlete, not so oversized that anything overly flashy will seem unrealistic or at half speed... obviously he ballooned a bit in TNA but at his ROH peak and in his recent NXT run.

Anyway, as you were, sorry for the mild derail there.

the guy who could lift the most & go the longest & have a natural lifespan. that's my answer

 

i'll again post my obligatory reminder that ripped abs have fuck-all to do with athletic ability and we have a totally warped idea of "athletic bodies"

Even entirely natural power lifters and marathon runners usually end up with a multitude of injuries and joint issues just from how hard they push their bodies. Bodybuilders pay the price for pushing things to extremes, but that's really not any different from any sport. Let's please stop pretending health and athleticism aren't entirely separate concepts.

 

Also, saying someone looks like an athlete is a hopelessly vague phrase. Depending on the sport, athletic bodies range from the sickly thin cyclists to massive sumo wrestlers. The things done by male gymnasts have a lot in common with the modern wrestling style and they definitely have that ripped as fuck look that's so shameful to be into.

Can't we just put this more serious talk to bed and just marvel at pics of Sexy Lexy etc?

My ideal would be Cesaro. John Cena is the God of Mass

 

And for pure athletic "I will murder you with my bare hands", nobody comes close to Brock.

In terms of really old school guys Buddy Rogers has to be mentioned.

Bockwinkel. The consummate wrestling physique

 

 

The thing is, lifting weights by athletes didn't really become commonplace until the 80s, the same time that steroid use exploded. So it's hard to get a feel for what a natural muscular athletic (as opposed to purely cosmetic) physique can look like. I do recall Dave saying that Jack Brisco was considered the archetype of what an athletic physique should look like in the early 70s.

The thing is, lifting weights by athletes didn't really become commonplace until the 80s, the same time that steroid use exploded. So it's hard to get a feel for what a natural muscular athletic (as opposed to purely cosmetic) physique can look like. I do recall Dave saying that Jack Brisco was considered the archetype of what an athletic physique should look like in the early 70s.

Relevant reading: http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/32340-the-superstar-image-today-vs-yesterday/?p=5708181