Why is it more exciting to see famous people with muscles?

I'm curious what do you think is the psychology behind this?

We get extremely excited when a famous person like celebrity or non-bodybuilding athlete shows muscles, when we wouldn't even take note of that amount of development it they were not famous.

Really it should be no different, all pictures on this site are of people who we are unlikely to ever meet IRL.

Yet we get extremely excited even for TV personalities we never knew existed before their pic was posted here. Take Jillain Fertig for example, a local news anchor, arguably barely a celebrity, yet she gets 10 times the favorites than a regular instagram girl would get with similar physique.

And I'm not grandstanding here, I'm just as guilty of this as anyone.

Probably because the people in question feel guilty because attraction to female bodybuilders doesn't get them positive reaction from friends or at least they imagine it wouldn't.

So if a "celebrity" is into fitness it makes those people feel like they're normal for liking muscles because celebrity comes with a fan base. And muscle fans feel included and accepted.

A side point: STOP posting celebrity pictures with minimum muscles. Just because you like them doesn't mean you have to post them on a bodybuilding site.

This is an interesting question and I don't know the answer, just thinking about it. I wonder if it's because we sort of feel like we "know" that famous person, and now we're seeing their muscles, which are unexpected in some cases. The pictures are also likely to be in more of a real world setting as opposed to a posed photo shoot. So it's more like seeing a girl you know flex and they have kind of nice muscles, instead of looking at professional pictures. I think the point is that even though the celebrity pretty much lives in a different universe, there is a sort of realness to the picture.

Perhaps the unexpectedness of the muscle or flex? Just like in real life....?

I understand this 100% I have noticed if its a celebrity that I don't know... I don't seem to care as much like you mentioned. But if its a celebrity that I know of (maybe somebody I have seen in a TV series or something) the extra excitement is there again. Similar feeling to when I see one of my friends with some muscle definition. I feel like it has something to do with feeling close to the person ? Not entirely sure. Just something to think about ? ahaha

Yeah it's as others have pointed out, it's due to how familiar you are with the person. I would argue that it also extends to those you know personally, and the excitement may actually be more intense in that situation.

If I find out some "Tiktok influencer" I know nothing about built some muscle, I don't really care so much. If I found out it's some actress I've seen for a long time (Natalie Portman, for example), then the excitement is much higher.

But I would say if someone I knew back in high school who was a skinny little stick... one day I check up on her and find out she's a bodybuilder, I would say that would blow me away more than anything else. The closer you feel you are with the person, the more affected you are by their transformation.

I don't care much these days but when i first started getting into this it was mind blowing because i could not just Google pictures and videos of the strongest women around

i remember Demi Moore in striptease she looked so great in that movie i was not used to seeing that much muscle in a sensual situation i know they where already making those mixed wrestling videos back then but i had no idea about them.

Probably because the people in question feel guilty because attraction to female bodybuilders doesn't get them positive reaction from friends or at least they imagine it wouldn't.

So if a "celebrity" is into fitness it makes those people feel like they're normal for liking muscles because celebrity comes with a fan base. And muscle fans feel included and accepted.

A side point: STOP posting celebrity pictures with minimum muscles. Just because you like them doesn't mean you have to post them on a bodybuilding site.

I think you are wrong on both accounts. 1. I don't feel guilty about my attraction to muscular women, and I never hid it from my friends. And those who have a problem with it can pound sand. 2. It is more likely that the traditional fans of said celebrity would be appalled if their favorite celeb got jacked, so it's actually the exact opposite of acceptance you get from their built in fanbase.

Multiple people have mentioned familiarity, that may be the case for some people. But my example Jillian Fertig contradicts that. She is obviously not familiar to anyone but those who live in the specific area where she was a TV anchor. I doubt all the hundreds of favorites on her images are people from there.

As for acquaintances you haven't met in a long time, I'm not sure. It never happened to me, that someone I used to know would've went through a transformation, so I can only imagine. And I think if I haven't seen someone in over 10 years they'd be as good as strangers at that point.

I think it's because it suggests that muscle might be going mainstream.

Multiple people have mentioned familiarity, that may be the case for some people. But my example Jillian Fertig contradicts that.

If I had to guess as to why Jillian is fairly popular, then I'd say it's fantasy based. Maybe Jillian triggers a fantasy that some local weather girl or news anchor to their area will one day grow muscles. So it's not so much as them liking her specifically, but the idea of someone like her.

I agree with the mainstream comments. I think because it's a type of attraction that is considered really niche, it's nice - even a bit comforting - to see it in a setting where it's more likely to be accepted.

For me it's the exact opposite. I don't care much about celebrities with muscles. Jillian Freitag is meh in my book.

On the contrary one of my favorites is the girl next door vibe. But I'm not quite sure if Jillian Freitag (local news anchor) actually somehow fits partially into this category... Now that I think about it.

Maybe becuase people get excited because their main focus isn’t usually bb’ing

Famous or not doesn't matter to me actually the non-famous ones are better. They don't have huge salaries, access to highly skilled trainers and nutritionists, fancy facilities and tailored meal plans, nannies, housekeepers, they just get it done and fit real life in as well. Almost every gym has girls that look way better than the celebrities and they aren't afraid to put on more muscle.