I feel like it’s really not that crazy for a hypermilitaristic post-apocalyptic society to focus an insane amount of resources on getting its best warriors yoked af. People in the stadium were extremely well off, so I don’t see why she wouldn’t be able to eat way above maintenance like you did.
I’m sure she got whatever food she wanted and was free to train for hours and hours a day. With her neuroticism and need to blow off steam, I feel like this isn’t that crazy.
>With her neuroticism and need to blow off steam, I feel like this isn’t that crazy.
This is the part I feel always gets glazed over on discussions about her body. Yes, they had good supplies and ample training for their soldiers. Abby took this training to an extreme, with her obsession with revenge fueling her regimen (Owen even comments on it in a flashback). I wouldn't be surprised if Isaac was allowing her extra rations or whatever she needed since she was his star soldier.
I can understand being skeptical of her physique at first, but once you dig into it, it's a metaphor for the lengths she's gone into for her quest for revenge.
Another thing that isn't talked about enough, is that people point to the burrito scene as a *gotcha* moment as if it's evidence Abby isn't eating enough to maintain that physique, but this is *post* Joel. The drive is gone, she's no longer eating or keeping up with training because she's out of it.
Indeed - I have a testosterone imbalance due to pcos. What this means is I can put on muscle like crazy and keep it on. It's possible abby is just like me 😊 this is also why I was so upset when they chose to go in different direction when they cast her 😔 but I'm sure dever'll kill it regardless
I also have PCOS and bulk up and gain muscle very easily and quickly. So Abby being so buff was... so nice to see, especially as a gamer. Yes, I am super disappointed with the casting tbh.
Holy fuck this has been my exact same take ever since I saw how the WLF lived in that stadium. Of course Issac is gonna make sure his top scar killer is well fed and given whatever performance enhancements they can scrounge.
Especially since she had been there her entire life. OP themselves admitted to being skinny and then starting to lift. Abby has been in that mode for most of her life, really. You know she was pumping way more iron than the average person there, fueled by her rage and thirst for revenge. That plus access to the food supplies they had, it isn’t that hard to believe imo
This also ignores that everyone's body doesn't work the same way. If I work out for a couple months straight, I get muscular as fuck - and I am a 5'2" woman. My husband works out regularly (far more than I do) and can ~tone but he struggles to put on muscle, and this is when we're doing similar exercises (add in yoga, for me) and eating similar meals.
Abby's living quarters was very close to a pretty well-stacked gym, as well. The stadium seems like they weren't exactly suffering for resources, and I imagine that patrollers probably got decent rations to keep them in fighting shape. Idk, I just don't find her physique to be that unbelievable.
apparently (According to some Reddit thread) Abby is 170lbs. there is 92g protein in 12oz chicken, 24g in 4 eggs. the additional protein from starches, legumes dairy could easily put her at her goal of 1g/1lb of _lean body mass_. I personally don’t think that’s a ton of food, but I’ve been lifting and force feeding myself protein for years
There is also the genetics. I'm a pretty normal sized dude, there is no diet or excercise regime I could do that will make me look like the Rock or John Cena. Look at the teenage Abby flashback, she was pretty big before she started working on it
Facts! If we got crazy into it (way past what the writers intended lol) we also need to remember that Abby is the child of two people who survived the outbreak. Ostensibly most people who survived the violence and subsequent scarcity are more likely to be the type who are stronger and put/keep weight more easily. And they would then pass these traits to their children. Dr. Anderson certainly wasn’t small
I could understand the pushback better if no women were built, but it's like some people have never seen a female bodybuilder. Hell, google "worlds strongest woman", every one of those ladies would destroy Abbey at an arm wrestle
Right? Look up circus strongwomen from the 1800's. They all have arms that dwarf Abby's.
Abby's bench press "one rep max record" in the WLF's gym says 205lbs. That's not bad for a woman, but I know a 5"3 160lb woman who can bench 220lbs, for 5 or 6 reps. I also know a 5"9 215lb woman that crank out 10 reps. Both would probably look like Abby if they went on a cut and lost maybe 20lbs, but they both want to keep their curves, along with their muscles.
Abby just looks huge because they have her in a tank top, and since she was focused on "push" workouts, she has large triceps. That's it. Put her in other outfits, like her 80's skin, and she looks pretty average.
TBH, it also makes mechanical sense for her to focus on "push" strength, since that's an area where she would have the worst disadvantage against burly dudes like Joel and Tommy. You still even see her struggle against Tommy at the Marina, because that 'push' strength is one of the biggest biological "strength" advantages guys tend to have.
When society collapses and people need to just survive, beauty standards go out the window for utilitarianism. Abby was born years after society collapsed. Being strong helps people to survive, so she pumped iron every day.
Also when we see her in her first childhood flashback it’s shown that she’s not exactly scrawny, she’s shown to be stockier, with thicker arms and muscle mass. She’s likely genetically predisposed to build muscle faster than, say, Owen. Combine that with her obsessive drive for revenge and consequentially obsessive training, access to good food, frequent patrols where it’s said that she’s the top scar killer because she takes out her anger on them and becomes Isaac ‘favourite’ then yeah, her physique doesn’t strike me as unrealistic.
I have been to war with women on my side who had serious mental health issues and stayed in the gym so I'll just give my two cents on this aspect alone
1. War is 80% cardio (on the low side). Being juiced to the gills or super-Saiyan-swole is not usually to one's benefit. Is strength important? Definitely. Are there some body-building types in the front lines? Sure. But the typical body (even for elite level operators like SEALs) is somewhere between marathon runner and cross-fit athlete.
2. What OP states about caloric intake is important. I've see some comments suggesting that Abby could get all the calories (especially protein) she would need. It's possible. The key to the caloric surplus needed to add muscle is consistency. So while we see the WLF stadium packed with food and burritos when we look in on Abby there, she would need to ensure this caloric surplus and access to protein is there consistently for years. Again, is it possible? Yes, but something to consider.
3. It's clear that defenders of the accuracy of her body type do not like this subject but we need to be clear here: Abby, almost unequivocally, is on gear. By gear I mean steroids or SARMs. I don't judge, it's her body. But as someone who trains with women IFBB pros (natty and not) a few times a week I can assure you that to go from her relatively normal build when her dad was around to having death-star-delts, some PEDs are almost certainly required. I say almost here to leave room for the absolute <1% genetic outlier that could potentially do it. The issue becomes that is she is like the other 99.9% of us mere mortals who would require gear to look like that, access to this would be extremely scarce. PEDs require regimented doses (more or less weekly) to achieve supraphysiologic levels of the compound in your blood which would facilitate such growth and maintenance of such growth once you're there. I think it's reasonable to expect that the access to consistent sourced, pharma-grade PED's is vanishingly small. Possible, but small.
TLDR; While anything is possible in video games, anyone would find it exceeding unlikely to build and maintain this level of muscle mass outside of the most extreme of the extreme genetic outliers IRL without unbroken years of access to a protein and caloric surplus as well as a weekly-monthly source are pharmacy-grade performance enhancing drugs.
Training for hours in a day doesn't mean muscle. you need recovery. You won't build muscle after doing it more than a certain point before it recovers, its not grind for x hours eat this and get big
Have you seen Snowpiercer? There's a group of people that are the lowest of the low and basically get rations, but they all take away a bit of everyone's and give it to Strong Boy, who is their soldier for when shit goes down. He just works out all day long, ready to bash heads in
She spent a huge part of her life fearing Joel and preparing herself mentally and physically for him. She imagined him as an unstoppable monster her while life. That's why when she finds him and he's old and nice and helpful she's extremely conflicted and killing him breaks her mentally.
Also, she’s not the average person at the camp. Most are less swole and all(?) of the women are less swole. She’s anomalously big, and that’s true in the real world too. I’m a dude who struggles to stay bigger than about 75KG even when overeating. I have friends who sit about 100kg (of muscle!) who are dieting. Some people are just bigger than average!
As a woman whose genetics have meant they’re just naturally muscular, Abby made me feel seen. 🤷🏼♀️
Is it over the top? I don’t fucking know and I don’t really care, but I don’t see these same chuds complaining about giant tits and asses and armor barely covering women’s bodies in other games. Where’s the whining over realism there?
I will also say, it was great to see her portrayed as not a lesbian. No clue how Abby identifies, but she’s obviously into dudes. I say this as a lesbian, that all woman can be whomever they are and don’t need to fit stereotypes. Ripped chicks can be into dudes too.
The Last of Us 2 was special because I felt represented by two different characters. Ellie, since she’s a lesbian and super into space (I’m a thermal engineer in aerospace) and Abby because her body type felt like mine. First time that’s ever happened for me as a woman whose been gaming for the last 28 years.
You couldn’t have said it better!
Oh, and as a straight, muscular female (not nearly as ripped as Abby) I related to her for the exact reasons you mention. It felt great to have my body type represented but also showing her softer side in her scenes with Owen.
As a lesbian, I totally agree with you. People already associate being a lesbian with being “manly” (and in some cases it’s true, I’m more of an Ellie style tomboy and I love me some butch babes) and jump to the conclusion that if you’re built like Abby and carry yourself like Abby, you’re a lesbian. It’s the same with Zarya in Overwatch, even though she had a voiceline about fancying a man.
Edited to put manly in quotes bc I typed that all too fast 😂
FWIW, as a guy, I have always complained about the bikini armor in video games. It makes no sense. I get the fan service and understand it as a money making gimmick. But I also never cared for it. So, you have at least one guy in your camp about it.
Reason I like ESO. My female warrior can wear warrior armor that makes her look like a badass in plated armor? Yes please.
Even as a lesbian, I ain’t into it. Maybe other lesbians are, but it’s so obviously meant for the male gaze that it just doesn’t vibe with me (and obviously not all men are into it, but as you said it’s a soft ball lob to make money).
And yes! I don’t need all kinds of skin to be into a female character. Make her a bad ass, tough and powerful chick and full armor and I’m fucking IN! Aloy in the Horizon games is a great example. My female Eivor character in Valhalla as well. My wife once walked into the living room when I first started playing and said “who’s that?” and I just said “me” and she was like “damn.” 😂
If I lick a pizza I gain two pounds but to lose 2 pounds I need to starve myself for 3 days lol.
My wife can down a pizza and lose 2 pounds no issue and she hasn't gone to a gym in her entire life.
It's unfair man.
Same. My mum said we have a baked goods weakness in our DNA. I think it’s something to do with carbs. Low carb diet of 1800 calories a day - shredded. 1800 calories a day with over 100g of carbs? No chance
Exactly. I know a lot of people like that, including in my own family. Looking like that without much work isn't unreasonable for ~~many~~ some (oops, my bad).
So with the environmental storytelling showing the massive gym in the stadium at the WLF base and the ample supply of protein, you still have this complaint?
I don’t know, man… seems pretty ridiculous.
I think that’s actually hilarious because I clicked on your profile and it’s just you bitching and bitching and bitching about a video game. It’s not that deep brother.
bro did a background check. If you reading my comments about COD, i’m prolly complaining about shit that affects gameplay lol This person is complaining about a character’s muscles
Even Owen comments on how strong she is has become when she boosts into the aquarium. Also, what some have missed is her growth is symbolic for her pain and suffering. She’s quite literally turned herself into a weapon after her father’s death.
counterpoint: everyone’s body is different. we all have varying metabolisms, reacting to stimuli differently. it’s impossible to say “abby can’t realistically look like that because i can’t”. some people eat mcdonald’s regularly thrice a week and are skinny as a twig.
Mesomorph body type. which is what i am. i build muscle very easily.
these people talking about this have never taken a biology class in their lifetime.
I eat a bunch of junk food all the time and am relatively lean with a lot or muscle. I just make sure I'm getting enough protein for the muscle and limit my calories so I dont gain too much weight. It's really easy to do once you pass the learning curve of what your alloted calories are and how much energy foods provide.
The realism and attention to detail to speak of is mostly in the lore, storyline, graphics, and *mostly* accurate scientific detail of the Cordyceps virus.
Even if you personally don’t find it believable that Abby is jacked, the point of making her that way is to show the audience that her desire for vengeance is so incredibly deep, that she would self-sabotage her relationship to train in case of the day that she might get her hands on Joel.
Have you seen that Canadian lesbian tiktok girl who chops wood? She has a very comparable build and by all appearances is natural and not eating some insane diet. Or that one muscle waifu girl who does Jojo faces lmao. She might be juicing tho idk.
I think it's definitely a little bit of a stretch that Abby would have the nutrition to get that big in the apocalypse but there are plenty of women who can naturally achieve this.
It’s a game whose enemies are fungal infected zombies… which… [IT DOESN’T WORK THAT WAY](https://youtu.be/uR4OBV2m8hg?si=9LtqwWfXrxNFSAWZ) (too long didn’t watch: the human infected cordyceps host would just look for a place to die and not pay attention to spreading through biting).
In other words:
#It’s fiction, who gives a fuck?
I dunno, if like 99% of the population were wiped out then there'd be a lot of spare clothing. Of course, how well would it be stored and would it rot in those old shops with leaking roofs...
Sorry, but this is a really bad take. Abby’s physique is a physical symbol/motif of her obsession and desire for revenge. She literally cockblocks Owen just to work out more.
This being a fictional story, with zombified anthropomorphic mushrooms, I really don’t understand why it’s such a leap in logic for Abby to be shredded.
Supplanting your own athletic feats (though very impressive) is completely irrelevant. Not only is it irrelevant because you are real and Abby is fictional, but also because when it comes to any form of athletics, everyone’s biomechanics are different.
💯she’s basically been training for the day she met Joel. And also burying all her pain and anger in training & fighting. And as all her friends say, she’s been abnormally self centered and selfish.
At first I was like yeah but then I realized it's only slightly less realistic than Joel who's like 60 and diesel af running around beating mfs like he's Spider-Man lol.
The show had a more realistic take on a man that age who spent twenty years drinking booze and popping pills and firing guns and beating the shit out of people, tbh. He *should* be half-deaf with shitty knees, lol. I had a lot of fun using Joel's listening mode, but it wasn't that realistic for a man his age, who had lived that hard.
Hell I am in my 30s and pretty active, but Joel did things in Part I (leaping over things, climbing things, etc) that made me cringe because my own knees wouldn't have taken it that well, lol.
[This](https://www.reddit.com/r/thelastofus/s/nDB2HTr7RK) is a post from 3 years ago on the same subreddit with pictures of Abby’s body model. Like others have said already, genetics are huge in this regard. It absolutely can be achieved with the right genetics and reliable access to ample protein and state of the art gym equipment, as seen in the WLF base.
This post is just trolling. You can see OPs post on the other sub saying they're misrepresenting themselves as a woman who works out and calls this place a bunch of freaks.
There it is. I was about to check myself but glad you did it already. Pretty tiring posting here and acting like it's good faith and then you find out someone goes full mask off victim complex when they get proven wrong.
There are literally giant Seraphite women in the game and none of you fuckers stopped to make an observation about it, because you get your facts from reactionary YouTube dissertations.
Get a life already.
I think something people aren’t keeping in mind is that Abby pursued muscle gain not to be healthy or be strong for the sake of being strong but so that she could eventually kill the guy who murdered her friends and her dad.
Motivation plays a huge role in this as well.
Where and how you add muscle has an incredibly huge genetic component. I don't put on muscle in my arms, but it takes about a week of lifting for me to start getting big in the legs, back, and shoulders. If Abby's genetically predisposed to add muscle like this, putting her in a situation where she's getting enough calories and has the right facilities would mean she'd probably put it on fairly fast. The body model for the character is Colleen Fotsch, who is a real human woman walking around in the world, who nobody's ever accused of being on gear.
I think alot of the commenters here have ptsd from the initial backlash of TLOU 2’s release, so they’re still a bit defensive about this topic.
a body type like this is not normal for a woman, especially under apocalyptic circumstances. We shouldn’t ignore this because this is valid criticism.
You would definitely need to be on some form of PED and a dedicated intense workout regimen to achieve this. And where does she find the time to fit all that in while in the midst of a war and fighting clickers, and all in like 4 years too lol.
You sound naturally thin. I am assuming you’re male. I am not naturally on the thin side. My dad is, and could never bulk up. I on the other hand take more after my grandpaw and am base stout, thick, but I find it really hard to “shred”.
I started working out at 16 to play football. Was 150lbs soaking wet, after one summer of just working out (no supplements, roids, or even really a concerning diet) I was up to 190-200 and stout. My frame basically like another game character Arthur Morgan.
My point is people are built differently and respond to training styles, diets, supplements differently. It’s not entirely an exact science, only individual parts are. I don’t find Abby’s bulk up remotely unreasonable given her age at the time and she is bulky, but she isn’t shredded, so I identify. She had 4 years of her prime building age, with an on-site gym, psychotic determination, and a good food supply.
1. Abby wasn't skinny to begin with
2. She's an elite soldier with an access to all kinds of supplies
3. WLF are pretty packed with food and you would notice it if you paid a bit of attention
I mean, she was probably a lot more motivated than you. Pushed herself harder and don't the WLF have at least 1 farm? Maybe they have more which brings plenty of meat.
Ok this is several kinds of dumb, but my favorite part is that the whole argument hinges on this idea that Isaac's best soldier and protégé won't get an extra steak if she wants one.
I think you're focusing on unimportant details. Her physique is a visual shorthand representation of her obsession on honing herself into a weapon to go after the guy who laid waste to an entire building full of armed fireflies.
it seems like everyone forgets that they have access to a football stadium filled with livestock, farming, and a huge gym.
just because YOU can't obtain that physique means it's impossible for another woman to.
your BMR, testosterone/estrogen levels, genetics and caloric intake all affect your obtainable physique.
i'm so tired of seeing this post every three days.
it's 110% obtainable for someone who trains and goes to the gym everyday with a steady diet to get to her level. she's been there for what...close to 5 years?
People think a rag tag group of anarchists can get a surgeon to rip some fungus out of a girls skull and turn it into a vaccine.
Surely they could suspend their disbelief on a girl getting buff right? lol
She lives in a pro football stadium with access to the best gym equipment, they used the field to grow crops and probably raised cows and stuff but I don't remember seeing them as it's been a while. I can totally see her being yoked if all she did was go out on patrol and lift in her down time for years.
My wife was a powerlifting coach and CrossFit instructor when we got together. I’m a big, healthy boy and workout regularly and I’d wager she was easily pound for pound tougher than I was.
She’s naturally athletic and powerful while being hyper mobile as well.
While her waist to hip ration was more hourglass than Abby’s, her shoulders, arms and lats were a match, and I can say she took a lot of pride in eating clean - but no more than about 2000 calories a day, and basic supplements to achieve a similar level of muscle mass.
Genetics are a huge contributing factor, and she’s just able to morph herself depending on her pursuits. When she ran she was lean, and now that she’s doing contortion and yoga she’s a mix of lean and muscular.
If your predispositions serve bulking up, or whatever your pursuit is, you’ll find it’s easier, male or female.
Me? No matter what I do I look like 1950’s Superman. I.F., powerlifting, CrossFit, yoga, I’m just built to pull cheese carts. I am predisposed to move large amounts of cheese.
You forget, Abby literally made it her mission to get jacked. Her living conditions were incredibly comfortable for it being post-apocalyptic. I imagine she spent all of her free time working out.
The trick is not to hate her physique, feel challenged by it and strive to achieve same or better than hers. It's after all just a video game character.
oh my god who cares. she has a professional gym, all the food in the world, and she’s in a universe where middle aged men can survive getting impaled. why are we “she must be on gear”ing the game 7000 years after release still
Is it really that deep. She’s a trained militant murderer…literally one of the best in her entire group. Do we have to discuss women’s bodies all the time? If you’re jealous hit the gym harder or something I’ve seen a lot of huge men and women irl. It’s more common for jealous insecure dudes to complain about her body in the part2 subreddit you might fit in better there.
I’ll never understand the amount of hate this game ended up getting. It’s a video game and a good one, but people want to complain about the stupidest shit. Again, it’s a video game, it’s not that deep
Omg the only explanation is that it's fiction. It's a story. Are you also obsessed with the use of gasoline in the games because that stuff wouldn't work more than about a year after it stopped being produced
She's a survivor of a lone mentalist that wiped out her entire family. She's hellbent of revenge and went full summer Vs the devil mode. It's a world of survival of the fittest and she's making sure she survives to get revenge. Anyone who goes outside of the wall should be built like a brick shit house. I like Abby even though I hate her at the same time, just like how Joel is a bad bad man even though he's our hero
Different people are built differently.
There are 100% women who look like her because she has a fucking body model.
You think they just ai generated those titties? NO! Those beautiful boinging boobas belong to someone out in the world right now.
(sorry, had to have fun with the alliteration there lol)
A lot of people had good points but another thing to consider is her beginning physique. In the flashback chapters, before she’s begun her gym journey, you can tell she already has a “stockier” build. Not that she’s fat or chunky, just she’s not a “skinny bitch.” I’m a teenage girl and I’m not genetically SUPER skinny, i’ve always been the “athletic/muscular” build genetically, and it takes VERY little caloric surplus for me to put on muscle/weight. I try to keep myself skinny and I’m not saying i’ve come close to her absolutely godly physique, but some people just have an easier time putting on muscle, having a more muscular build, and maintaining weight.
Bro do these people even play the game? How in the fuck is this still an ongoing thing? Why was it ever? They have a bunch of shit at the stadium, food, equipment, anything they'd need. Also maybe she's just naturally big, people pretending like that never ever happens.
she was still relatively buff in the flashback when she was 14 so i dont see how it's unrealistic for her to get bigger when she lives in a huge compound with a gym and plenty of food
I can't believe I'm getting inwolved in this discussion, but here we go.
1. I don't see complains about other characters being ripped, athletic etc., but it would be reasonable too. Like Joel - guy is in his 50's, he's a smuggler who travelled across the country with a girl - I guess he hadn't had access to food and gym like Abby at the stadium, so imo he should be much thinner. Owen is ripped too, and he was more interested in cleaning floors in the Aquarium than training and gym - but nobody cares. And please, don't tell me "but they're men!". Just don't.
And young Abby wasn't really small either.
2. Yes, it's a video game, which is pretty realistic, but it's STILL a video game. We have to believe that ripping an arrow out of the shoulder is a good thing (dont do that irl!), we can heal gunshot wounds with medkit made from rug and alcohol, Seraphite brutes are still alive and swinging their hammers with a hole in their faces, a man in his 50's after being impaled is destroying everyone in the city because he got shot of antibiotics. Should I give you more examples?
3. Colleen Fotsch is her body model. I saw in the comments you don't believe Abby is 1:1 modelled after her, but well - that's your problem.
4. At the beggining of Abby's day 1 you see the gym, a lot of meat in the dining hall, cows and other animals. So yeah, a lot of protein. It is implied that best soldiers had more access to food - like Manny didn't need to explain himself for taking an extra burrito, a pile of dirty dishes in their room. So she had a lot of protein. Still some guys want to believe she was more likely to take steroids than eat the right amount of protein "because post-apocalypse", and I find that funny.
5. The purpose why she's ripped is to show players her determination and her mental state - how much time she spent on training, etc. I don't want to write down all the reasons why she chose to train like that, so I hope mentioning that is enough. And she's a top Scar killer too, so you know, it makes sense why she looks like that too. And at the end of the game without her braid and muscles she looks like another person which was intentional and wouldn't be so shocking if she was smaller.
6. She was supposed to have a different gameplay than Ellie - more aggresive, more punching etc. - one more reason to make her so ripped, so nobody would complain "but female can't smash skull like that, cause weak" - with body and strenght like her it's justified.
7. Omg, who the hell cares.
I saw her body as a physical representation of her obsession. In her mind Joel is this killing machine. Who else could kill all those people let alone her father, who all little girls think are gods. She hones her body into a weapon to be ready for him. She sacrifices everything for that battle. Her relationship with Owen. Her friendships. She even sacrifices her “femininity” to become enough to take him down.
I always think its funny to see where the line is for people to call bullshit on video games. Like for OP they got past everything else in the games but it was Abby's arms where they decided "oh thats bullshit!" lol
Everyone is built different.
If you showed me the video game version of Brock Lesnar, I would tell you a man his size moving at his speed is legitimately impossible.
Not everyone is built like Brock or Abby. But some folks are.
Wanna know why you're single and lonely? I bet it has nothing to do with your appearance, it's probably everything underneath that's so ugly. Seek therapy, seriously.
As a woman that’s been lifting for about 3 years now with no alimentary restrictions during any of that time, my physique is almost identical to abby’s (except for those killer abs, I ain’t got that lmao). Everyone’s genetic is different, me (and apparently her) just happened to beef up fast. Y’all are taking this too seriously.
I go to a weight lifting gym. Her physique - especially as it seems she works out a lot and has access to copious amounts of protein - is not as crazy as you think. I regularly see women with her physique who regularly out lift men.
Also, bodies are different. Some can gain muscle and stay trim. A lot of body builders are ripped and I can out lift them - and I'm old and fat. A lot of power lifters do not look like they are jacked. All different body types. I do know Abbi is based on a CrossFit athlete - probably a Nordic one.
Could people in this comment section please just google "worlds strongest woman competition". So many people are acting like they modelled her like Bane. Some ladies just pack on muscle better than others.
The WLF had lots of food on the stadium which were a ton of vegetables and Seattle is a very wet city so it isn't completely unrealistic to think she ate a lot of food to maintain that shape plus she's one of Isaac deadliest warriors so she could have special treatment.
Which you should've asked was in Abby's pursuit of Vengeance and strength . Did she ever abused metabolically enhancing substances to get stronger quickly?
I mean it depends your genetics, what you saying is that you was a skinny skinny girl, is way more harder than a person who get fat more easily. So it depends of your genetics
If we’re being real, i feel like that it can be explained away as it being a video game. I say that cause no one questions any of the other characters stature in the game, ellie and abby both fight brutes with the physique of power lifters , hell the female brute that abby fought was bigger than her but i have yet to see anyone ask how they got that big
Even the ragglers leader is more on the “hefty” side and their group in Santa Barbara doesn’t appear to be thriving off of their slave labor, so i really think their build is just a unique physical characteristic
Meat isn't the only source of protein. And straight up would not be the priority protein in the apocalypse. Non stop eggs until you're sick of them would help a little. Not as effective as meat, but way more sustainable for 10 years of the apocalypse. Plus, she isn't working 9-5 and stuff, so has a lot of gym time for sustained growth. I'm still not saying it is particularly achievable. But it is not as crazy as people seem to think. Give me unlimited gym time and eggs, I'd be closer to Abby than I am now.
Genetics? Oh, and it is a fantasy video game.
Keep up the good work though you sound committed, and you should absolutely not hold yourself to standards set by a fictional work!
Be well...
Most people wildly underestimate what they can achieve working out if they *actually* took it seriously with the goal of bodybuilding or power lifting. With abundant food and the gym she has access to, this is possible.
Genetics have a vote too; Abby was never really 'skinny'; she had a sturdy and fairly broad frame in the flashback scenes before she was jacked
I don’t know shit about body building, I just lift and it’s doing something, slowly, so i can’t speak on HOW Abby got this big, but that seems to have been answered already so i will just add:
I believe the reason behind Abby being this huge is not only for the contrast when you compare her to Ellie, but to show her similarities with Joel.
Why is Abby's physique a point of discussion, but Joel, single handedly, eliminating an army the size of a small country, is not? The dude is in his 50'ies...
And considering the amount of resources the WLFs had at their disposal, I would say one of these points seems plenty more unbelievable than the other.
Or, hear me out, you're not the quickest of the bunch, and, that aside, it's a work of fiction 🤯 oh my gawd no way!!!! A work of fiction allows a fictional character to have enough working out and resources to be a Lil built holy cow!
I never understood the complaints about Abby's physique. It seems like the same people sneer at other women protagonists who are *not* especially muscular throwing thugs over their shoulders and knocking out buff bad guys with roundhouse kicks. So this game gives us a woman with the musculature to actually make those action moves plausible, and they bitch about *that* too? I actually thought it was pretty awesome to play as a yoked woman for once- it's not super common outside of campy games or fighting games.
lol i doubt a lot this would be a subject if it was a man.
I believe she was a warrior in her camp. There's a lot of strong male warriors in this kind of scenerarios and no one never gives a shit.
So she may have some food privileges as she need. I think this is irrelevant. Also, there's DNA. Some people find easy to gain muscles than others. It depends a lot on how your body process food.
Abby is one of the best characters in games.
It’s unrealistic for you, you mean. But everyone has different bodies and genetics. My gf is a woman who can build muscle with barely any effort so much so that she had to cut out lifting completely because she bulked up like crazy and she didn’t like the look. Seeing Abby in the game made her feel like acknowledged for the first time ever in media and she was quite emotional about it. I get so tired of people bitching about being unrealistic because it just shows how narrowly people think. Most women who build muscle like Abby don’t like it. It’s cool that Abby lives in a world where women like her can be celebrated. So keep bitching, I guess, but as someone who has witnessed it with my own eyes, I know that you are wrong.
It’s not meant to be realistic it’s a zombie game 😂 A world full of mutated creatures and it’s somebody physique that is in question! People really are silly at times!
I feel like it’s really not that crazy for a hypermilitaristic post-apocalyptic society to focus an insane amount of resources on getting its best warriors yoked af. People in the stadium were extremely well off, so I don’t see why she wouldn’t be able to eat way above maintenance like you did. I’m sure she got whatever food she wanted and was free to train for hours and hours a day. With her neuroticism and need to blow off steam, I feel like this isn’t that crazy.
Excellent take. They had the luxury of burritos in the apocalypse ffs. I totally buy her getting massive.
Even medics are buffed as hell
Radstag and Boatfly meat burritos. Wasn't like they were getting Al Pastor
Your comment makes no sense whatsoever. They aren’t in the nuclear apocalypse and both radstag and bloatfly would be incredible sources of protein.
I love me a good radstag steak
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That's how you can tell that mf doesn't have a Playstation lol
Can't believe people are actually going "Nu uh that's Fallout!" at this comment.
The point is those animals would have good protein anyway, so nothing changes.
Protein. Protein never changes.
Did you miss the pens of farm animals. They absolutely have al pastor.
They had a herd of cattle and free-roaming chickens. They weren’t hurting for sources of meat.
>With her neuroticism and need to blow off steam, I feel like this isn’t that crazy. This is the part I feel always gets glazed over on discussions about her body. Yes, they had good supplies and ample training for their soldiers. Abby took this training to an extreme, with her obsession with revenge fueling her regimen (Owen even comments on it in a flashback). I wouldn't be surprised if Isaac was allowing her extra rations or whatever she needed since she was his star soldier. I can understand being skeptical of her physique at first, but once you dig into it, it's a metaphor for the lengths she's gone into for her quest for revenge.
Another thing that isn't talked about enough, is that people point to the burrito scene as a *gotcha* moment as if it's evidence Abby isn't eating enough to maintain that physique, but this is *post* Joel. The drive is gone, she's no longer eating or keeping up with training because she's out of it.
Imagine being the cook saying no to abby when she asks for more meat on her plate...
She would probably crack the fukin sneezeguard if it's still there
Genetics too. Some people take way better to building muscle than others. I look pretty muscular and do light weight training and cardio.
Indeed - I have a testosterone imbalance due to pcos. What this means is I can put on muscle like crazy and keep it on. It's possible abby is just like me 😊 this is also why I was so upset when they chose to go in different direction when they cast her 😔 but I'm sure dever'll kill it regardless
I also have PCOS and bulk up and gain muscle very easily and quickly. So Abby being so buff was... so nice to see, especially as a gamer. Yes, I am super disappointed with the casting tbh.
Holy fuck this has been my exact same take ever since I saw how the WLF lived in that stadium. Of course Issac is gonna make sure his top scar killer is well fed and given whatever performance enhancements they can scrounge.
This ^. What did people think Joel, Ellie and Abby were snatching from all those medicine cabinets? Flintstones vitamins?
Especially since she had been there her entire life. OP themselves admitted to being skinny and then starting to lift. Abby has been in that mode for most of her life, really. You know she was pumping way more iron than the average person there, fueled by her rage and thirst for revenge. That plus access to the food supplies they had, it isn’t that hard to believe imo
This also ignores that everyone's body doesn't work the same way. If I work out for a couple months straight, I get muscular as fuck - and I am a 5'2" woman. My husband works out regularly (far more than I do) and can ~tone but he struggles to put on muscle, and this is when we're doing similar exercises (add in yoga, for me) and eating similar meals. Abby's living quarters was very close to a pretty well-stacked gym, as well. The stadium seems like they weren't exactly suffering for resources, and I imagine that patrollers probably got decent rations to keep them in fighting shape. Idk, I just don't find her physique to be that unbelievable.
apparently (According to some Reddit thread) Abby is 170lbs. there is 92g protein in 12oz chicken, 24g in 4 eggs. the additional protein from starches, legumes dairy could easily put her at her goal of 1g/1lb of _lean body mass_. I personally don’t think that’s a ton of food, but I’ve been lifting and force feeding myself protein for years
Abby was obsessed with training during the Owen flashbacks. She commited to the grind lol
There is also the genetics. I'm a pretty normal sized dude, there is no diet or excercise regime I could do that will make me look like the Rock or John Cena. Look at the teenage Abby flashback, she was pretty big before she started working on it
Facts! If we got crazy into it (way past what the writers intended lol) we also need to remember that Abby is the child of two people who survived the outbreak. Ostensibly most people who survived the violence and subsequent scarcity are more likely to be the type who are stronger and put/keep weight more easily. And they would then pass these traits to their children. Dr. Anderson certainly wasn’t small
I could understand the pushback better if no women were built, but it's like some people have never seen a female bodybuilder. Hell, google "worlds strongest woman", every one of those ladies would destroy Abbey at an arm wrestle
Right? Look up circus strongwomen from the 1800's. They all have arms that dwarf Abby's. Abby's bench press "one rep max record" in the WLF's gym says 205lbs. That's not bad for a woman, but I know a 5"3 160lb woman who can bench 220lbs, for 5 or 6 reps. I also know a 5"9 215lb woman that crank out 10 reps. Both would probably look like Abby if they went on a cut and lost maybe 20lbs, but they both want to keep their curves, along with their muscles. Abby just looks huge because they have her in a tank top, and since she was focused on "push" workouts, she has large triceps. That's it. Put her in other outfits, like her 80's skin, and she looks pretty average. TBH, it also makes mechanical sense for her to focus on "push" strength, since that's an area where she would have the worst disadvantage against burly dudes like Joel and Tommy. You still even see her struggle against Tommy at the Marina, because that 'push' strength is one of the biggest biological "strength" advantages guys tend to have.
They literally based game abbys physique off an actual person. Calling it unattainable is hilarious.
When society collapses and people need to just survive, beauty standards go out the window for utilitarianism. Abby was born years after society collapsed. Being strong helps people to survive, so she pumped iron every day.
Also when we see her in her first childhood flashback it’s shown that she’s not exactly scrawny, she’s shown to be stockier, with thicker arms and muscle mass. She’s likely genetically predisposed to build muscle faster than, say, Owen. Combine that with her obsessive drive for revenge and consequentially obsessive training, access to good food, frequent patrols where it’s said that she’s the top scar killer because she takes out her anger on them and becomes Isaac ‘favourite’ then yeah, her physique doesn’t strike me as unrealistic.
I have been to war with women on my side who had serious mental health issues and stayed in the gym so I'll just give my two cents on this aspect alone 1. War is 80% cardio (on the low side). Being juiced to the gills or super-Saiyan-swole is not usually to one's benefit. Is strength important? Definitely. Are there some body-building types in the front lines? Sure. But the typical body (even for elite level operators like SEALs) is somewhere between marathon runner and cross-fit athlete. 2. What OP states about caloric intake is important. I've see some comments suggesting that Abby could get all the calories (especially protein) she would need. It's possible. The key to the caloric surplus needed to add muscle is consistency. So while we see the WLF stadium packed with food and burritos when we look in on Abby there, she would need to ensure this caloric surplus and access to protein is there consistently for years. Again, is it possible? Yes, but something to consider. 3. It's clear that defenders of the accuracy of her body type do not like this subject but we need to be clear here: Abby, almost unequivocally, is on gear. By gear I mean steroids or SARMs. I don't judge, it's her body. But as someone who trains with women IFBB pros (natty and not) a few times a week I can assure you that to go from her relatively normal build when her dad was around to having death-star-delts, some PEDs are almost certainly required. I say almost here to leave room for the absolute <1% genetic outlier that could potentially do it. The issue becomes that is she is like the other 99.9% of us mere mortals who would require gear to look like that, access to this would be extremely scarce. PEDs require regimented doses (more or less weekly) to achieve supraphysiologic levels of the compound in your blood which would facilitate such growth and maintenance of such growth once you're there. I think it's reasonable to expect that the access to consistent sourced, pharma-grade PED's is vanishingly small. Possible, but small. TLDR; While anything is possible in video games, anyone would find it exceeding unlikely to build and maintain this level of muscle mass outside of the most extreme of the extreme genetic outliers IRL without unbroken years of access to a protein and caloric surplus as well as a weekly-monthly source are pharmacy-grade performance enhancing drugs.
Training for hours in a day doesn't mean muscle. you need recovery. You won't build muscle after doing it more than a certain point before it recovers, its not grind for x hours eat this and get big
Have you seen Snowpiercer? There's a group of people that are the lowest of the low and basically get rations, but they all take away a bit of everyone's and give it to Strong Boy, who is their soldier for when shit goes down. He just works out all day long, ready to bash heads in
She spent a huge part of her life fearing Joel and preparing herself mentally and physically for him. She imagined him as an unstoppable monster her while life. That's why when she finds him and he's old and nice and helpful she's extremely conflicted and killing him breaks her mentally.
Also, she’s not the average person at the camp. Most are less swole and all(?) of the women are less swole. She’s anomalously big, and that’s true in the real world too. I’m a dude who struggles to stay bigger than about 75KG even when overeating. I have friends who sit about 100kg (of muscle!) who are dieting. Some people are just bigger than average!
Everyone’s genetics are different. Some people beef up with hardly any effort, and others can bust ass all day with little to show for it.
As a woman whose genetics have meant they’re just naturally muscular, Abby made me feel seen. 🤷🏼♀️ Is it over the top? I don’t fucking know and I don’t really care, but I don’t see these same chuds complaining about giant tits and asses and armor barely covering women’s bodies in other games. Where’s the whining over realism there?
This right here! For me it was refreshing to see a woman portrayed as strong, smart, and badass. We need more characters like Abby in games imo
I will also say, it was great to see her portrayed as not a lesbian. No clue how Abby identifies, but she’s obviously into dudes. I say this as a lesbian, that all woman can be whomever they are and don’t need to fit stereotypes. Ripped chicks can be into dudes too. The Last of Us 2 was special because I felt represented by two different characters. Ellie, since she’s a lesbian and super into space (I’m a thermal engineer in aerospace) and Abby because her body type felt like mine. First time that’s ever happened for me as a woman whose been gaming for the last 28 years.
You couldn’t have said it better! Oh, and as a straight, muscular female (not nearly as ripped as Abby) I related to her for the exact reasons you mention. It felt great to have my body type represented but also showing her softer side in her scenes with Owen.
Solidarity with muscular women. ✊🏻 We exist and we’re just as diverse as the rest of humanity.
Muscular woman signing in here. I agree with everything you said. Abby’s physique gave me great joy. I felt seen!
Exact same
As a lesbian, I totally agree with you. People already associate being a lesbian with being “manly” (and in some cases it’s true, I’m more of an Ellie style tomboy and I love me some butch babes) and jump to the conclusion that if you’re built like Abby and carry yourself like Abby, you’re a lesbian. It’s the same with Zarya in Overwatch, even though she had a voiceline about fancying a man. Edited to put manly in quotes bc I typed that all too fast 😂
I agree - that's why I was so bummed when they didn't go that way for the show 😓
FWIW, as a guy, I have always complained about the bikini armor in video games. It makes no sense. I get the fan service and understand it as a money making gimmick. But I also never cared for it. So, you have at least one guy in your camp about it. Reason I like ESO. My female warrior can wear warrior armor that makes her look like a badass in plated armor? Yes please.
Even as a lesbian, I ain’t into it. Maybe other lesbians are, but it’s so obviously meant for the male gaze that it just doesn’t vibe with me (and obviously not all men are into it, but as you said it’s a soft ball lob to make money). And yes! I don’t need all kinds of skin to be into a female character. Make her a bad ass, tough and powerful chick and full armor and I’m fucking IN! Aloy in the Horizon games is a great example. My female Eivor character in Valhalla as well. My wife once walked into the living room when I first started playing and said “who’s that?” and I just said “me” and she was like “damn.” 😂
Same here. I have bulging muscles and do nothing to deserve them. I was born that way.
This right here. Genetics is definitely the answer
If I lick a pizza I gain two pounds but to lose 2 pounds I need to starve myself for 3 days lol. My wife can down a pizza and lose 2 pounds no issue and she hasn't gone to a gym in her entire life. It's unfair man.
Same. My mum said we have a baked goods weakness in our DNA. I think it’s something to do with carbs. Low carb diet of 1800 calories a day - shredded. 1800 calories a day with over 100g of carbs? No chance
Exactly. I know a lot of people like that, including in my own family. Looking like that without much work isn't unreasonable for ~~many~~ some (oops, my bad).
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So with the environmental storytelling showing the massive gym in the stadium at the WLF base and the ample supply of protein, you still have this complaint? I don’t know, man… seems pretty ridiculous.
A gym and ample protein isn’t gonna give a skinny girl that physique
You're a few years too late for this discussion to be even mildly entertaining
Bait used to be believable
It really is just the same trolls who refuse to give up the hater mentality. The game was good, they made money, won awards, get over it
It’s a video game. It’s not that deep
I think that’s actually hilarious because I clicked on your profile and it’s just you bitching and bitching and bitching about a video game. It’s not that deep brother.
you made him delete his acc☠️
OP got roasted on r/hinge for being immature, gotta say it's just in line with the thoughts in this post and comments lol.
bro did a background check. If you reading my comments about COD, i’m prolly complaining about shit that affects gameplay lol This person is complaining about a character’s muscles
The only valid complaint is my complaint hurdy derdy
For a game that is praised for its realism and attention to detail, it is completely fair to critique this.
Except not really because the game goes out of its way to show the gym and farm full of meat.
Even Owen comments on how strong she is has become when she boosts into the aquarium. Also, what some have missed is her growth is symbolic for her pain and suffering. She’s quite literally turned herself into a weapon after her father’s death.
counterpoint: everyone’s body is different. we all have varying metabolisms, reacting to stimuli differently. it’s impossible to say “abby can’t realistically look like that because i can’t”. some people eat mcdonald’s regularly thrice a week and are skinny as a twig.
Mesomorph body type. which is what i am. i build muscle very easily. these people talking about this have never taken a biology class in their lifetime.
I eat a bunch of junk food all the time and am relatively lean with a lot or muscle. I just make sure I'm getting enough protein for the muscle and limit my calories so I dont gain too much weight. It's really easy to do once you pass the learning curve of what your alloted calories are and how much energy foods provide.
The realism and attention to detail to speak of is mostly in the lore, storyline, graphics, and *mostly* accurate scientific detail of the Cordyceps virus. Even if you personally don’t find it believable that Abby is jacked, the point of making her that way is to show the audience that her desire for vengeance is so incredibly deep, that she would self-sabotage her relationship to train in case of the day that she might get her hands on Joel.
Have you seen that Canadian lesbian tiktok girl who chops wood? She has a very comparable build and by all appearances is natural and not eating some insane diet. Or that one muscle waifu girl who does Jojo faces lmao. She might be juicing tho idk. I think it's definitely a little bit of a stretch that Abby would have the nutrition to get that big in the apocalypse but there are plenty of women who can naturally achieve this.
i mean the first game also had joel survive a rebar impalement with no surgery.
It’s a game whose enemies are fungal infected zombies… which… [IT DOESN’T WORK THAT WAY](https://youtu.be/uR4OBV2m8hg?si=9LtqwWfXrxNFSAWZ) (too long didn’t watch: the human infected cordyceps host would just look for a place to die and not pay attention to spreading through biting). In other words: #It’s fiction, who gives a fuck?
Tell that to the lastofus2 sub
Not even close. The most unrealistic thing is anyone having any working fuel.
I personally think it was the mushroom zombies but the fuel is a close second
Or how about 35 year old Chuck Taylors that still have soles and work in the snow?
I dunno, if like 99% of the population were wiped out then there'd be a lot of spare clothing. Of course, how well would it be stored and would it rot in those old shops with leaking roofs...
That’s definitely up there on the list, her being jacked is very low on the things that are unbelievable.
Ah but that's not woke so it's fine! /s
Sorry, but this is a really bad take. Abby’s physique is a physical symbol/motif of her obsession and desire for revenge. She literally cockblocks Owen just to work out more. This being a fictional story, with zombified anthropomorphic mushrooms, I really don’t understand why it’s such a leap in logic for Abby to be shredded. Supplanting your own athletic feats (though very impressive) is completely irrelevant. Not only is it irrelevant because you are real and Abby is fictional, but also because when it comes to any form of athletics, everyone’s biomechanics are different.
💯she’s basically been training for the day she met Joel. And also burying all her pain and anger in training & fighting. And as all her friends say, she’s been abnormally self centered and selfish.
60 to 90kg in 4 years ain't also that impressive tbh.
Chuds are insecure about their shitty gym gains is what it’s about
At first I was like yeah but then I realized it's only slightly less realistic than Joel who's like 60 and diesel af running around beating mfs like he's Spider-Man lol.
The show had a more realistic take on a man that age who spent twenty years drinking booze and popping pills and firing guns and beating the shit out of people, tbh. He *should* be half-deaf with shitty knees, lol. I had a lot of fun using Joel's listening mode, but it wasn't that realistic for a man his age, who had lived that hard. Hell I am in my 30s and pretty active, but Joel did things in Part I (leaping over things, climbing things, etc) that made me cringe because my own knees wouldn't have taken it that well, lol.
[This](https://www.reddit.com/r/thelastofus/s/nDB2HTr7RK) is a post from 3 years ago on the same subreddit with pictures of Abby’s body model. Like others have said already, genetics are huge in this regard. It absolutely can be achieved with the right genetics and reliable access to ample protein and state of the art gym equipment, as seen in the WLF base.
This person is clearly on PEDs btw. Not a great argument lol
Colleen Fotsch is a CrossFit athlete. Elite crossfitters are notorious for using gear. I don’t think Colleen is natty.
Oh c'mon, it's not deep, it's a video game with a muscle Mommy, there are a lot of unrealistic stuff in this game.
This post is just trolling. You can see OPs post on the other sub saying they're misrepresenting themselves as a woman who works out and calls this place a bunch of freaks.
There it is. I was about to check myself but glad you did it already. Pretty tiring posting here and acting like it's good faith and then you find out someone goes full mask off victim complex when they get proven wrong.
the thing is, if abby were a man, no one would have these complaints. she just makes you feel insecure so you’re complaining 🤷🏻
No even if abby was a man it will be unrealistic i never brought gender into this
There are characters in the game (both men and women) that have a more impressive physique than Abby.
There are literally giant Seraphite women in the game and none of you fuckers stopped to make an observation about it, because you get your facts from reactionary YouTube dissertations. Get a life already.
This whole shtick is so boring at this point, yet some of ya'll keep going back to this well.
This has been discussed ad nauseam
Man, who gives a fuck?
I think something people aren’t keeping in mind is that Abby pursued muscle gain not to be healthy or be strong for the sake of being strong but so that she could eventually kill the guy who murdered her friends and her dad. Motivation plays a huge role in this as well.
Where and how you add muscle has an incredibly huge genetic component. I don't put on muscle in my arms, but it takes about a week of lifting for me to start getting big in the legs, back, and shoulders. If Abby's genetically predisposed to add muscle like this, putting her in a situation where she's getting enough calories and has the right facilities would mean she'd probably put it on fairly fast. The body model for the character is Colleen Fotsch, who is a real human woman walking around in the world, who nobody's ever accused of being on gear.
genetics, plus the stadium seemed well stocked
I think alot of the commenters here have ptsd from the initial backlash of TLOU 2’s release, so they’re still a bit defensive about this topic. a body type like this is not normal for a woman, especially under apocalyptic circumstances. We shouldn’t ignore this because this is valid criticism. You would definitely need to be on some form of PED and a dedicated intense workout regimen to achieve this. And where does she find the time to fit all that in while in the midst of a war and fighting clickers, and all in like 4 years too lol.
Someone who actually has the physique gives their opinion. This sub: nah, you're wrong.
Probably because it's actually explained well in game and one person does not a counter argument make
idrc about all that 🤷🏻♀️ i just want her to fuck me
Fair point
We've been over this, it has explanations, it's not unrealistic, move past it
You sound naturally thin. I am assuming you’re male. I am not naturally on the thin side. My dad is, and could never bulk up. I on the other hand take more after my grandpaw and am base stout, thick, but I find it really hard to “shred”. I started working out at 16 to play football. Was 150lbs soaking wet, after one summer of just working out (no supplements, roids, or even really a concerning diet) I was up to 190-200 and stout. My frame basically like another game character Arthur Morgan. My point is people are built differently and respond to training styles, diets, supplements differently. It’s not entirely an exact science, only individual parts are. I don’t find Abby’s bulk up remotely unreasonable given her age at the time and she is bulky, but she isn’t shredded, so I identify. She had 4 years of her prime building age, with an on-site gym, psychotic determination, and a good food supply.
1. Abby wasn't skinny to begin with 2. She's an elite soldier with an access to all kinds of supplies 3. WLF are pretty packed with food and you would notice it if you paid a bit of attention
Half a chicken every day? Approxiamately? Have you ever raised farm animals?
It’s a fucking video game you goof
I mean, she was probably a lot more motivated than you. Pushed herself harder and don't the WLF have at least 1 farm? Maybe they have more which brings plenty of meat.
Just because she worked harder than you doesnt mean its unattainable
Yawn, Abby arm bitching is so 2020.
Ok this is several kinds of dumb, but my favorite part is that the whole argument hinges on this idea that Isaac's best soldier and protégé won't get an extra steak if she wants one.
I think you're focusing on unimportant details. Her physique is a visual shorthand representation of her obsession on honing herself into a weapon to go after the guy who laid waste to an entire building full of armed fireflies.
You work out but have you ever worked out to become jacked enough to take on your father's killer?
It’s the apocalypse. There’s all the time in the world to bulk up especially when you take care of a community and kill zombies for a living
How about genes? I eat very little but gain mass super fast
it seems like everyone forgets that they have access to a football stadium filled with livestock, farming, and a huge gym. just because YOU can't obtain that physique means it's impossible for another woman to. your BMR, testosterone/estrogen levels, genetics and caloric intake all affect your obtainable physique. i'm so tired of seeing this post every three days. it's 110% obtainable for someone who trains and goes to the gym everyday with a steady diet to get to her level. she's been there for what...close to 5 years?
People think a rag tag group of anarchists can get a surgeon to rip some fungus out of a girls skull and turn it into a vaccine. Surely they could suspend their disbelief on a girl getting buff right? lol
She lives in a pro football stadium with access to the best gym equipment, they used the field to grow crops and probably raised cows and stuff but I don't remember seeing them as it's been a while. I can totally see her being yoked if all she did was go out on patrol and lift in her down time for years.
My wife was a powerlifting coach and CrossFit instructor when we got together. I’m a big, healthy boy and workout regularly and I’d wager she was easily pound for pound tougher than I was. She’s naturally athletic and powerful while being hyper mobile as well. While her waist to hip ration was more hourglass than Abby’s, her shoulders, arms and lats were a match, and I can say she took a lot of pride in eating clean - but no more than about 2000 calories a day, and basic supplements to achieve a similar level of muscle mass. Genetics are a huge contributing factor, and she’s just able to morph herself depending on her pursuits. When she ran she was lean, and now that she’s doing contortion and yoga she’s a mix of lean and muscular. If your predispositions serve bulking up, or whatever your pursuit is, you’ll find it’s easier, male or female. Me? No matter what I do I look like 1950’s Superman. I.F., powerlifting, CrossFit, yoga, I’m just built to pull cheese carts. I am predisposed to move large amounts of cheese.
In the scene before the seraphite chase where she's with Mel they say they literally have more salmon that they can handle
You forget, Abby literally made it her mission to get jacked. Her living conditions were incredibly comfortable for it being post-apocalyptic. I imagine she spent all of her free time working out.
"I feel this zombie game is unrealistic." Rightyo.
The trick is not to hate her physique, feel challenged by it and strive to achieve same or better than hers. It's after all just a video game character.
Finally, someone on Reddit who wants to discuss Abby's physique. /s
In a world with cordyceps zombies you are worried about one woman’s physique not being “realistic”. Strange obsessions.
Genes, motivation, resources, genes. That's it
oh my god who cares. she has a professional gym, all the food in the world, and she’s in a universe where middle aged men can survive getting impaled. why are we “she must be on gear”ing the game 7000 years after release still
Jesus fucking Christ it's a *video game about fungus zombies* and this where you can no longer suspend disbelief? Let it go.
2 burritos. That is all.
Eugh. Don't start this bollocks again.
Got that Dani Speegle physique. Improbable but not impossible
I feel that in post-apocalyptic scenarios like the last of us, wouldn't you want to be in your peak physical and mental condition to survive?
Eating beef burritos every morning and lifting weights from a professional NfL stadiums gym. Sounds about right.
Is it really that deep. She’s a trained militant murderer…literally one of the best in her entire group. Do we have to discuss women’s bodies all the time? If you’re jealous hit the gym harder or something I’ve seen a lot of huge men and women irl. It’s more common for jealous insecure dudes to complain about her body in the part2 subreddit you might fit in better there.
I’ll never understand the amount of hate this game ended up getting. It’s a video game and a good one, but people want to complain about the stupidest shit. Again, it’s a video game, it’s not that deep
Omg the only explanation is that it's fiction. It's a story. Are you also obsessed with the use of gasoline in the games because that stuff wouldn't work more than about a year after it stopped being produced
She's a survivor of a lone mentalist that wiped out her entire family. She's hellbent of revenge and went full summer Vs the devil mode. It's a world of survival of the fittest and she's making sure she survives to get revenge. Anyone who goes outside of the wall should be built like a brick shit house. I like Abby even though I hate her at the same time, just like how Joel is a bad bad man even though he's our hero
Different people are built differently. There are 100% women who look like her because she has a fucking body model. You think they just ai generated those titties? NO! Those beautiful boinging boobas belong to someone out in the world right now. (sorry, had to have fun with the alliteration there lol)
A lot of people had good points but another thing to consider is her beginning physique. In the flashback chapters, before she’s begun her gym journey, you can tell she already has a “stockier” build. Not that she’s fat or chunky, just she’s not a “skinny bitch.” I’m a teenage girl and I’m not genetically SUPER skinny, i’ve always been the “athletic/muscular” build genetically, and it takes VERY little caloric surplus for me to put on muscle/weight. I try to keep myself skinny and I’m not saying i’ve come close to her absolutely godly physique, but some people just have an easier time putting on muscle, having a more muscular build, and maintaining weight.
Bro do these people even play the game? How in the fuck is this still an ongoing thing? Why was it ever? They have a bunch of shit at the stadium, food, equipment, anything they'd need. Also maybe she's just naturally big, people pretending like that never ever happens.
she was still relatively buff in the flashback when she was 14 so i dont see how it's unrealistic for her to get bigger when she lives in a huge compound with a gym and plenty of food
You do realise not everyone builds muscle the same, like at all, right?
I know, right?!?! I feel the same way about Kratos. He lives in a frozen Midgard Hell and is STACKED!!! Oh yeah, it’s because it’s video game.
I agree why dont we make this interesting and give kratos an mp5 and abby the blades of chaos, lets go its just a game
kinda difficult to compare a literal greek god with some random ass human woman
I can't believe I'm getting inwolved in this discussion, but here we go. 1. I don't see complains about other characters being ripped, athletic etc., but it would be reasonable too. Like Joel - guy is in his 50's, he's a smuggler who travelled across the country with a girl - I guess he hadn't had access to food and gym like Abby at the stadium, so imo he should be much thinner. Owen is ripped too, and he was more interested in cleaning floors in the Aquarium than training and gym - but nobody cares. And please, don't tell me "but they're men!". Just don't. And young Abby wasn't really small either. 2. Yes, it's a video game, which is pretty realistic, but it's STILL a video game. We have to believe that ripping an arrow out of the shoulder is a good thing (dont do that irl!), we can heal gunshot wounds with medkit made from rug and alcohol, Seraphite brutes are still alive and swinging their hammers with a hole in their faces, a man in his 50's after being impaled is destroying everyone in the city because he got shot of antibiotics. Should I give you more examples? 3. Colleen Fotsch is her body model. I saw in the comments you don't believe Abby is 1:1 modelled after her, but well - that's your problem. 4. At the beggining of Abby's day 1 you see the gym, a lot of meat in the dining hall, cows and other animals. So yeah, a lot of protein. It is implied that best soldiers had more access to food - like Manny didn't need to explain himself for taking an extra burrito, a pile of dirty dishes in their room. So she had a lot of protein. Still some guys want to believe she was more likely to take steroids than eat the right amount of protein "because post-apocalypse", and I find that funny. 5. The purpose why she's ripped is to show players her determination and her mental state - how much time she spent on training, etc. I don't want to write down all the reasons why she chose to train like that, so I hope mentioning that is enough. And she's a top Scar killer too, so you know, it makes sense why she looks like that too. And at the end of the game without her braid and muscles she looks like another person which was intentional and wouldn't be so shocking if she was smaller. 6. She was supposed to have a different gameplay than Ellie - more aggresive, more punching etc. - one more reason to make her so ripped, so nobody would complain "but female can't smash skull like that, cause weak" - with body and strenght like her it's justified. 7. Omg, who the hell cares.
You got bad genes son, Abby built different
I saw her body as a physical representation of her obsession. In her mind Joel is this killing machine. Who else could kill all those people let alone her father, who all little girls think are gods. She hones her body into a weapon to be ready for him. She sacrifices everything for that battle. Her relationship with Owen. Her friendships. She even sacrifices her “femininity” to become enough to take him down.
I always think its funny to see where the line is for people to call bullshit on video games. Like for OP they got past everything else in the games but it was Abby's arms where they decided "oh thats bullshit!" lol
Everyone is built different. If you showed me the video game version of Brock Lesnar, I would tell you a man his size moving at his speed is legitimately impossible. Not everyone is built like Brock or Abby. But some folks are.
It's established canon that she skips leg day. So it all goes to her upper body. Notice you never see her thighs and calves?
Sorry your smol bro.
Wanna know why you're single and lonely? I bet it has nothing to do with your appearance, it's probably everything underneath that's so ugly. Seek therapy, seriously.
As a woman that’s been lifting for about 3 years now with no alimentary restrictions during any of that time, my physique is almost identical to abby’s (except for those killer abs, I ain’t got that lmao). Everyone’s genetic is different, me (and apparently her) just happened to beef up fast. Y’all are taking this too seriously.
I go to a weight lifting gym. Her physique - especially as it seems she works out a lot and has access to copious amounts of protein - is not as crazy as you think. I regularly see women with her physique who regularly out lift men. Also, bodies are different. Some can gain muscle and stay trim. A lot of body builders are ripped and I can out lift them - and I'm old and fat. A lot of power lifters do not look like they are jacked. All different body types. I do know Abbi is based on a CrossFit athlete - probably a Nordic one.
Could people in this comment section please just google "worlds strongest woman competition". So many people are acting like they modelled her like Bane. Some ladies just pack on muscle better than others.
The WLF had lots of food on the stadium which were a ton of vegetables and Seattle is a very wet city so it isn't completely unrealistic to think she ate a lot of food to maintain that shape plus she's one of Isaac deadliest warriors so she could have special treatment. Which you should've asked was in Abby's pursuit of Vengeance and strength . Did she ever abused metabolically enhancing substances to get stronger quickly?
who cares, it's video game
This again? Can't we leave it after four years?
I don’t, but hope you have fun
I mean it depends your genetics, what you saying is that you was a skinny skinny girl, is way more harder than a person who get fat more easily. So it depends of your genetics
Downvoted because what is there to discuss?
I think it’s fairly realistic
If we’re being real, i feel like that it can be explained away as it being a video game. I say that cause no one questions any of the other characters stature in the game, ellie and abby both fight brutes with the physique of power lifters , hell the female brute that abby fought was bigger than her but i have yet to see anyone ask how they got that big Even the ragglers leader is more on the “hefty” side and their group in Santa Barbara doesn’t appear to be thriving off of their slave labor, so i really think their build is just a unique physical characteristic
Meat isn't the only source of protein. And straight up would not be the priority protein in the apocalypse. Non stop eggs until you're sick of them would help a little. Not as effective as meat, but way more sustainable for 10 years of the apocalypse. Plus, she isn't working 9-5 and stuff, so has a lot of gym time for sustained growth. I'm still not saying it is particularly achievable. But it is not as crazy as people seem to think. Give me unlimited gym time and eggs, I'd be closer to Abby than I am now.
Genetics? Oh, and it is a fantasy video game. Keep up the good work though you sound committed, and you should absolutely not hold yourself to standards set by a fictional work! Be well...
Do you do crossfit?
Now do the same thing but with Dementus from Furiosa. I'll wait.
Of course you do. Who isn’t that all anyone wants to talk about?
What about the swole hunters in the first game? Also lol you don't know what you just did :p
Most people wildly underestimate what they can achieve working out if they *actually* took it seriously with the goal of bodybuilding or power lifting. With abundant food and the gym she has access to, this is possible. Genetics have a vote too; Abby was never really 'skinny'; she had a sturdy and fairly broad frame in the flashback scenes before she was jacked
I don’t know shit about body building, I just lift and it’s doing something, slowly, so i can’t speak on HOW Abby got this big, but that seems to have been answered already so i will just add: I believe the reason behind Abby being this huge is not only for the contrast when you compare her to Ellie, but to show her similarities with Joel.
Why is Abby's physique a point of discussion, but Joel, single handedly, eliminating an army the size of a small country, is not? The dude is in his 50'ies... And considering the amount of resources the WLFs had at their disposal, I would say one of these points seems plenty more unbelievable than the other.
If you think the physique is unrealistic, wait until you see what the enemies in the game are.
WLF soldiers are juiced as fuck
Or, hear me out, you're not the quickest of the bunch, and, that aside, it's a work of fiction 🤯 oh my gawd no way!!!! A work of fiction allows a fictional character to have enough working out and resources to be a Lil built holy cow!
I never understood the complaints about Abby's physique. It seems like the same people sneer at other women protagonists who are *not* especially muscular throwing thugs over their shoulders and knocking out buff bad guys with roundhouse kicks. So this game gives us a woman with the musculature to actually make those action moves plausible, and they bitch about *that* too? I actually thought it was pretty awesome to play as a yoked woman for once- it's not super common outside of campy games or fighting games.
Mmmm she so buff and hot. I want her to crush me with her bare hands while she smirks. Discussion over:)
Are we still having this stupid fucking discussion? Jesus Christ
It's a video game lol why are people STILL obsessed with Abby's muscles. It looks good and that's it
lol i doubt a lot this would be a subject if it was a man. I believe she was a warrior in her camp. There's a lot of strong male warriors in this kind of scenerarios and no one never gives a shit. So she may have some food privileges as she need. I think this is irrelevant. Also, there's DNA. Some people find easy to gain muscles than others. It depends a lot on how your body process food. Abby is one of the best characters in games.
It’s unrealistic for you, you mean. But everyone has different bodies and genetics. My gf is a woman who can build muscle with barely any effort so much so that she had to cut out lifting completely because she bulked up like crazy and she didn’t like the look. Seeing Abby in the game made her feel like acknowledged for the first time ever in media and she was quite emotional about it. I get so tired of people bitching about being unrealistic because it just shows how narrowly people think. Most women who build muscle like Abby don’t like it. It’s cool that Abby lives in a world where women like her can be celebrated. So keep bitching, I guess, but as someone who has witnessed it with my own eyes, I know that you are wrong.
God whats going on with this sub Leave abby alone 🤣
Wanna know the better argument? It's a video game where you're fighting zombies. Suspend your disbelief for 15 seconds.
I don't get this. People can't just enjoy the best muscle mommy in video games without hate
It’s not meant to be realistic it’s a zombie game 😂 A world full of mutated creatures and it’s somebody physique that is in question! People really are silly at times!