No, this isn't a self-portrait. I know you were thinking it was. This was actually a result of doing some research for a new project. I'd been looking up reference on bulging muscles, and noticed the little detail of the revealed veins. I have no idea why the body does this. I'm sure there's a very interesting explanation that my friends in medical school could give me, but what's important is that when the human body works out way more than I do, veins start popping up. It's a little detail, and it'd be easy to just leave it at that.
But there are a few things to keep in mind when bulking up a character. I've heard many times from many girls that a guy that is the ultra-buff, body-builder type is not really that attractive. Especially once you start getting into the body-building competition musculature: it's almost gross. Physical, sexual attraction is more related to the lean, toned muscle definition, rather than the hulking lump of testosterone. I think this type of muscular proportion hits on the more primitive, barbaric, archetype than the heroic, attractive one. Conan the Barbarian, Joe Kubert's Tor, Samson, The Incredible Hulk, Hercules, Thor, etc. are all examples of that pure, unbridled, raw power within the human psyche that simply has the desire to hit things. This type of character is different from the archetype exhibited in Captain America, Achilles, King Arthur, Luke Skywalker, etc., who are if nothing else, a bit more well-rounded characters.
What does this have to do with veins? I think that a good way to help reinforce a character's physical strength is to have the muscles start to show some veins around them. But be aware that this might trigger an idea in the audience's mind that makes them think of that barbaric, violent, potentially physically un-attractive, character type. This could be fore good or ill, depending on the context.
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