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Kelly Shimoda for The New York Times

FLEX, POSE, SMILE Melvin Cooper, 64, entered his first bodybuilding contests last year

UNTIL nine years ago, Dr. Neal Grossman didn’t make a habit of parading around his bedroom in his skivvies and admiring his physique in the mirror. Nor did he ever imagine that his oldest son, then a teenager, would take one look at his father midflex and cry out, “Dad, put your clothes back on!”

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Jessica Kourkounis for The New York Times

Ed Cole, 72, also entered his first bodybuilding contests last year.

But now that Dr. Grossman, a 60-year-old Baltimore dentist, is a competitive amateur bodybuilder, an extra ounce of flab makes the difference between a sizable trophy and going home empty-handed. “The minute you start winning, that’s all the validation people need to accept what you do as legitimate and something to be appreciated,” said Dr. Grossman, who is 5-foot-2 and a chiseled 121 pounds.

He is one of a small but growing number of 60- and 70-year-old bodybuilders stripping down to Speedos, slathering on bronzer, and strutting their stuff onstage in natural, or drug-free, competitions. The season for amateur and pro-level events begins this month.

Last year, the World Natural Sports Organization, one of about a dozen bodybuilding groups devoted to drug-free contests, had 44 competitors older than 60, up from two in 2000, said Jeffrey Kippel, a founder.

Many bodybuilding contestants are not tested and steroids use is rampant. But most natural bodybuilding contests require participants to complete urinalysis and polygraph tests before events.

In the last five years, the number of men and women in their 60’s and 70’s competing in United States Bodybuilding Federation shows has doubled to 16, said Brian Washington, the commissioner of the federation, another drug-free group. Those figures will not put senior softball leagues out of business any time soon, but in an age in which athletes are publicly flogged for using steroids and human growth hormones, it is heartening to find a cohort of older Americans hellbent on getting cut the old-fashioned way. Or so they say.

Skeptics believe that natural bodybuilders may not be entirely drug-free.

Still, the oldest age group of natural bodybuilders has drawn enough interest that last year the Fame World Tour, a series of physique competitions sanctioned by Mr. Kippel’s organization, hired Scott Hults, a retired Naval officer-turned-bodybuilder to be in charge of promotions for the 60-plus division.

“Age is a statistic, not a burden and there is no reason a man or woman can’t get into and maintain the best shape of their lives at any age,” said Mr. Hults, 64, who has competed in 26 shows since 2005 and last year won an age-group title.

Some older bodybuilders were weight lifters or wrestlers in their youth; others are fitness buffs who want to test their mettle; still others are retirees who refuse to go gently anywhere.

Although it is harder to build muscle later in life — 18 to 35 are considered the prime muscle-building years — it is possible, said Jose Antonio, the vice president of the National Strength and Conditioning Association.

Take Ed Cole, who entered his first bodybuilding contest last year at age 71. After retiring in 1992, Mr. Cole, who is 5-5, ballooned to 195 pounds. In 2000, he resolved to start weight training, which he had not done since he was a gymnast in his youth. He spent 90 minutes a day hoisting weights in the fitness center he built in his basement, and by 2004, he was 50 pounds lighter, and a certified personal trainer to boot.

He overhauled his diet, too. But after roughly seven years of diligent eating “for nutrition only,” he was ready to grease up his muscles and join the brawny and drug-free. To this day, he said, nothing stronger than magnesium has passed his lips.

Older bodybuilders tend to be disciplined purists. Younger competitors might want to push the envelope and beef up as much as possible, said Dr. Antonio, who has a Ph.D in muscle physiology. “Older individuals just want to improve their physique.”

Mr. Hults said: “Maybe if I had started bodybuilding in my 20’s instead of my 60’s, I might have used steroids. But since I did get into the game later in life, it made sense for me to go the natural route. I’m glad I did. I have been able to achieve much on my own, without illegal muscle enhancements. That in itself is very satisfying.”

But he does acknowledge knowing several senior athletes now on steroids, human growth hormone or testosterone replacement therapy.

For the most part, the senior bodybuilders say they take great pride that their amped-up pectorals are strictly the result of diet, exercise and vitamins and supplements.