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Getbig Bodybuilding Boards => Positive Bodybuilding Discussion & Talk => Natural Bodybuilding => Topic started by: nzmusclemonster on February 04, 2007, 02:51:08 AM

Title: The Natural Profiles
Post by: nzmusclemonster on February 04, 2007, 02:51:08 AM
I would like a thread where natties could talk about why they got into bodybuilding and how long they have stayed natural and their choices for being natural. And it is interesting to get to know a bit about our fellow naturals.

If people would contribute that would be cool, as their story could inspire others to 'keep clean' as well  ;D

I got into bodybuilding because my father was a bodybuilder. He was a big dude, 5'9 230 pounds (lifetime natural), and he got me started doing bench presses in the garage when I was 15. A year later he signed me up to the gym and from there on I was hooked.

18-19 have been my best years strength wise. My best lifts were bench press: 315 for 2, but squats I was naturally strong, I think because my father got me doing very strict technique from the beginning. 315x17 and 405x6 were my best at that age.

Sadly, because of injuries and other commitments I haven't been able to get my strength back to that point. But I still continue to train and am not far off there.

I have been training on and off for 8 years having done 5 comps during that time and competed in a federation where 'users' flourish, as the shows are untested. It was good motivation know I would be up against guys who were juicing and I could hold my own against them.

I've stayed nattie because I don't see the attraction of injecting myself and possibly getting an infection, gyno, or risk harming my body in  any way.

OK so thats me, I'm sure there are others with very cool backrounds that would make for Sim interesting reading.... So lets hear ya stories!!!
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: davie on February 04, 2007, 06:50:04 AM
Hey mate, good story!!

im not sure how long iv been seriously lifting as every day month year i try and get more and more serious (if u know what i mean), i guess about3 years. Im 22, and kinda started lifting in my garage wen i was 16 just trying to learn the form on bench rows etc.

Like urself my dad got me in2 it, he used to lift weights for rugby, and as i play he got me doing it aswell.

I think i decided to take it a bit more seriously wen i read 'hardcore bodybuilding' with tom platz on the front. Old school book with old school routine/exercsie explanations and pics/and diet tips. Great book and seeing those guys made me want to lift.

+ I was a small guy, ripped but small.

I did and still want to be as strong and as big as possible. Idont do it to compete, i do it b/c i love to train, i love managing a new and heavier weight than i did last week, or meeting/beating a rep target i have etc, i just love seeing my strength go up and knowing that i am getting stronger and bigger.
Lifting is something i do for me, its al down to me to make progress, and i love pushing myself, and trying to push myself further and harder every session.

davie
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Tier on February 04, 2007, 01:38:01 PM
I got into bodybuilding because i quit hockey at 18 and ballooned up from my constant 80kg to 114 , was miserable and fat , my thighs would chafe when id walk cause i was so fat

bought a 12.5kg dumbbell , did what i could with it , did situps , walking , and skipping with a piece of rope and lost 20 kg's in the 1st month

my diet was diet coke , grain waves , celery sticks and grapefruit juice ( didnt have a clue )

and eventually evolved from there and bought a home bench etc and basically started properly 3 years ago and keep within 80-85 kg (lots of muscle gained and the leanest ive been ever)

now i have a bad back from squatting too heavy and poor deadlifts , my calves are not genetically good enough to ever be a 'pro' and don't see the point in drugs if you dont have the potential to be the best...which just means u juice because your insecure , ive got better things to spend my money on and health is important to me as ive decided to get back into hockey again and am aiming for the new zealand team , will not quit weight training tho

would like to be a dietician one day too

...........still awake?  ;)
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: AVBG on February 04, 2007, 01:47:46 PM
That's a bloody great story Dave & NZMM..


Mine goes something like this..


I started training to bulk up for rugby union when I was 15 as I was to go on a tour to NZ with the school squad..

I really got into it early as I responded to natural fairly quickly. My weight went fronm 70kgs to 85kg within 12 months.


I trained for two years before entering and winning my first local BB comp.. 12 months later I entered & won a teen state title.

I decided to take some time off to concentrate on gaining size to enter the Junior (under 21) division then at the age of 20 whilst preparing for a show, I was hit by a car while crossing the road (thankfully the car when it hit wasn't travelling too fast) and done some major damage to my left knee that required surgery.

Whilst in recovery, I dabbled for the first time in AAS (basic sust and anavar cycle) 2 months... My nutrition was poor and I didn't capitalise on the gains despite a 40lb initial gain.

I stopped training shortly there after for  approx 2 years then, when I went back at the age of 23, I went back on the gear again, poor nutrition and zero PCT resulted in minimal retained gains.

Whilst that time, I injured/cracked my sternum (soft tissue damage) by doing parallel bar dips and that put me out for a further year..

I came back to the gym again at the age of 25 (now 33) and have been training consistantly and drug free since 2000.

I am six foot even at a healthy 270lb (& between 15-20% BF).. I am not particularly strong (I look alot stronger than I actually am  ;D ).. I train for the most part at home in my fully set up free weight gym.

I am now training for the long term goal of entering some masters (over 35) comps in a coulpe of years and am in no rush for quick gains.

Fortunately or unfortunately depending on your perspective, I wasn't a huge responder to AAS and the reality of being a pro wasn't on the cards. So I have maintained drug free training which I will maintain for as long as  I can get out of bed  ;D .

Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: nzmusclemonster on February 04, 2007, 02:27:48 PM
Hey mate, good story!!

im not sure how long iv been seriously lifting as every day month year i try and get more and more serious (if u know what i mean), i guess about3 years. Im 22, and kinda started lifting in my garage wen i was 16 just trying to learn the form on bench rows etc.

Like urself my dad got me in2 it, he used to lift weights for rugby, and as i play he got me doing it aswell.

I think i decided to take it a bit more seriously wen i read 'hardcore bodybuilding' with tom platz on the front. Old school book with old school routine/exercsie explanations and pics/and diet tips. Great book and seeing those guys made me want to lift.

+ I was a small guy, ripped but small.

I did and still want to be as strong and as big as possible. Idont do it to compete, i do it b/c i love to train, i love managing a new and heavier weight than i did last week, or meeting/beating a rep target i have etc, i just love seeing my strength go up and knowing that i am getting stronger and bigger.
Lifting is something i do for me, its al down to me to make progress, and i love pushing myself, and trying to push myself further and harder every session.

davie

Great story! Thats so bizzare, I had the Hardcore Bodybuilding book as well.... extremely motivational, there were some great shots of Mentzer and Serge in there, but the picture of Sergio doing a front double bi on the inside cover was amazing  :o Robert Kennedy is a great author. I also had 'Mass!' by him as well.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: AVBG on February 04, 2007, 02:42:50 PM
The Robert Kennedy books of the late 80's/early 90's were great.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: candidate2025 on February 04, 2007, 02:48:42 PM
2 years and 6 months ago while on vacation in northern california by lassen park; i stopped at a safeway out in the middle of nowhere with my parents. this was my first trip with my parents where i was the only kid...up untill then i had my brothr and sister with me as well; both of whom have now moved out.  so i walk into the store looking for something to keep my entertained because i had already watched all of my dvds i brought for the car....i picked up an md....and ever since then i have been hooked.   when i first started workming out; i was 15 years old..and about 40% bf.   now im 17, 11% bf...about 200 lbs.

ill fill in the blanks later..as i have to go to work now. but stay tuned!!
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: nzmusclemonster on February 04, 2007, 03:02:32 PM
The Robert Kennedy books of the late 80's/early 90's were great.

Hell yeah!!!

And your 270 pounds  :o  :o

Cool story, so juicing in your early 20's didnt screw you up too much and your still making good gains as a nattie from the sounds of things.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: AVBG on February 04, 2007, 03:31:43 PM
Hell yeah!!!

And your 270 pounds  :o  :o

Cool story, so juicing in your early 20's didnt screw you up too much and your still making good gains as a nattie from the sounds of things.

Thanks NZMM,
Honestly besides a bit of gyno, (thankfully) the sides were minimal, I spent a decent time off the gear..

The gains as a nattie are not huge & I don't rely on the scale to look for improvements.. I am finding that my condition progressively gets better whilst my weight is the same & I am quite happy with that.

As you get older you learn to train smarter particularly when drug free. Natural training for me has never been something seen as a short term fix rather a lifestyle meaning I don't go overboard with the weights and the same applies to dieting.

Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: candidate2025 on February 17, 2007, 12:41:21 PM
2 years and 6 months ago while on vacation in northern california by lassen park; i stopped at a safeway out in the middle of nowhere with my parents. this was my first trip with my parents where i was the only kid...up untill then i had my brothr and sister with me as well; both of whom have now moved out.  so i walk into the store looking for something to keep my entertained because i had already watched all of my dvds i brought for the car....i picked up an md....and ever since then i have been hooked.   when i first started workming out; i was 15 years old..and about 40% bf.   now im 17, 11% bf...about 200 lbs.

ill fill in the blanks later..as i have to go to work now. but stay tuned!!
that first MD was the issue with melvin anthony on the cover, and had branch warrens first feature article inside. it was called "new leg freak" or somethng like that....the title doesnt matter, what matters is i had never seen anyone look like branch did in those pictures.  he loked like an nfl football player in pads and cowboy collar and leg pads ..but they were his muscles..     fucking savage .    in the issue, i read many referances to ronnie coleman; but i had no idea who he was. all i knew was that everyone said he was a fucking beast, i wanted to see someone bigger than branch.  that night in the trailer, i went and actually surveyed my body composition for the first time...and wondered to myself why a kid soo smart could not shape his body into something lean, mean and attractive through will power, when these big dumb meat heads could do it.     i went for a run voluntarily(first tme i had ever did that) and did an old arnold circuit training method i had read about after wards.   i got a slight pump...and it was fantastic. for about the ext two months, i continued doing body weight exercises, but did little to no cardio...but the hwole time i was buying every magazine i coud find and reading all the material and research on the human body and how it reacted with food and training.   then i got a gym membership; my brothers actually.  i went every day, even weekends, but my routine was a little bit off. then i switched gyms to train with oneof my moms clients who was a competitive bodybuilder.  he gave me two old weider tapes, and taught me what he knew...he moved to oregon about tw  eeks later, but i got a membership at this more hardcore gym...and cine then; its been non stop lifting 45 mins to  an hour every day even weekends. i do a five day  repeating split.  after a year and a half, i was a 260lb  five foot 10 fucking ogre of a kid. i had been lifting right, been trainaing all my muscles, and been taking in all the right mass bulidng suuplements(protein, creatine, l glutamine), but i ate everything i saw ( i read an article from jonie jackson early in my lifting days where he said "i strongly believe in carbs as a bodybuilder. i dont see how you can recover without them"..and i used that quote as my mental excuse to eat every thing i wanted), and i nevr once did cardio.   so this last july, after doing some rigorous research on the best way to drop fat and maintain muscle mass, i started cutting.        in july i weighed 260 and im guesing i was between 30 and 40 percent body fat, now; february, i weigh 190 and am at 10 percent body fat, while gaining a few pounds oon some lifts, and keeping strength on all the rest.   
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: benjamin pearson on February 17, 2007, 02:11:58 PM
I would like a thread where natties could talk about why they got into bodybuilding and how long they have stayed natural and their choices for being natural. And it is interesting to get to know a bit about our fellow naturals.

If people would contribute that would be cool, as their story could inspire others to 'keep clean' as well  ;D

I got into bodybuilding because my father was a bodybuilder. He was a big dude, 5'9 230 pounds (lifetime natural), and he got me started doing bench presses in the garage when I was 15. A year later he signed me up to the gym and from there on I was hooked.

18-19 have been my best years strength wise. My best lifts were bench press: 315 for 2, but squats I was naturally strong, I think because my father got me doing very strict technique from the beginning. 315x17 and 405x6 were my best at that age.

Sadly, because of injuries and other commitments I haven't been able to get my strength back to that point. But I still continue to train and am not far off there.

I have been training on and off for 8 years having done 5 comps during that time and competed in a federation where 'users' flourish, as the shows are untested. It was good motivation know I would be up against guys who were juicing and I could hold my own against them.

I've stayed nattie because I don't see the attraction of injecting myself and possibly getting an infection, gyno, or risk harming my body in  any way.

OK so thats me, I'm sure there are others with very cool backrounds that would make for Sim interesting reading.... So lets hear ya stories!!!

Good story man keep up the good work
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: buffbong on February 18, 2007, 09:54:45 AM
im going on ten years of training ive started at 16 and im gonna be 26 in a few weeks. my only breaks from training were basic training field time in the military and injuries..
my brother inspired me to workout, we are simliar in genetics. i was very very skinny with a fast metablisom when i started working out but i have good tone and shape. i was very short and still am i was only 5-1 when i start lifting and about 119 pounds.. by the time i graduated i was not much taller only 5-3 my current hieght.. and i wieghed about 150 with 16 arms and could do 235-8 reps on flat.. i did one powerlifting comp before i graduated but didnt know what iw as doing i only selected 250 for bench and 340 on deads. two months after highschool i left for the military. only basic trained stopped my training . by age 19 i was about 160 and ripped and i met a guy who was alot older huge powerlifter 6-5 300, he asked me if i wanted to do some pl shows and i agreed that it would be cool. i always train to get stronger but not as a pl.. so i start doing some powerlifting shows on the weekand so the first show was cool i only tried 280 felt like air.
the second one i was wieghed in 160 and benched 300 and 405 dead nothing great but for 19 raw i won the teenage. that winter i got up to about 170 but becuase i got in trouble in the spring i had to work after work and wasnt aloud out the barrick but for work or to the chowhall. we went to do the military nationals i becuase of the extra work and not being able to eat i lost 9 pounds so i was 161 and hit 310. won that bench class next pl com was next summer i wieghed at 168 and got 320 easy raw. that was the last powerlifting comp i did i got alot stronger but didnt compete again. from there i got up to 180 by age 20-21 still being 5-3 lol luckily i was able to gain wieght year after year without adding fat. after that year i went over seas by age 22 i added another 10 pounds i was 190 i stayed that wieght for a few years. then in 2004 i decided to compete in a bb contest so i always hear the common trend is to diet for 12 weeks so i did 13. after about 6-7 weeks i was looking awsome but by the time of the contest i was way over dieted i wieghed in at 143 i couldnt beileve that was possible so i placed last and was really devasted. after the show as the wieght came back on i start looking really ripped and was like why would i go past this point. so i got back up to 180 and decided that was a good wieght. and i stay that way up to the spring of 2006 when i started getting ready for a natrual show in june 2006 this time i dieted 9 weeks. unfortanly my scale was broken and i thought i was wieghing more than i did. two weeks out i got on and found out i was in the low 150s i was like wtf so i added a bit more carbs and food back in and i wieghed in at 150 i was about ten pounds lighter than i wanted to be but i was training hard so it wasnt that bad. i took second in the novice division i lost to a guy who was taller and wieghed less with no more defition but oh well. so since then ive been eating and training hard and heavy i am competing twice this summer june 16 and june 30th will start my contest prep on may 7. this time i will have the right diet  heavy training and ill make sure i dont lose to much wieght.  my real goals are to finish school to be a teacher and im gonna be the natrual world champ no doubt in my mind.  good size and supieror shape will be my winning sucess...

lol ok i wont bore any of you guys anymore
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: AVBG on February 19, 2007, 07:58:31 PM
great story buffbong.. goodluck at the show!
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: MidniteRambo on February 20, 2007, 01:42:25 PM
Great stories all.  When I was 11 years old or so, I remember writing a letter to the editor that made it into Muscle and Fitness (whatever it was called back then) which basically was anti-steroid and said what was the point of bodybuilding with drugs.  A quarter century later I still feel the same way and admire those that do it the harder way.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: nzmusclemonster on February 20, 2007, 01:48:22 PM
A lot of cool stories coming out.... I knew there were a lot of proud natties lurking around! Makes for some very good reading.

buffbong - see you at the Natural Champs one day  8)
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: AVBG on February 20, 2007, 01:49:35 PM
Great stories all.  When I was 11 years old or so, I remeber writing a letter to the editor that made it into Muscle and Fitness (whatever it was called back then) which basically was anti-steroid and said what was the point of bodybuilding with drugs.  A quarter century later I still feel the same way and admire those that do it the harder way.

That's awesome! did you keep a copy of the mag?? (that shit I'd be framing).

Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: MidniteRambo on February 20, 2007, 01:54:50 PM
That's awesome! did you keep a copy of the mag?? (that shit I'd be framing).

Unfortunately not. My Dad made the mistake that his father did to him of throwing away your kid's stuff.  I'll try to avoid carrying that tradition on to another generation with my sons.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: AVBG on February 20, 2007, 02:02:08 PM
Unfortunately not. My Dad made the mistake that his father did to him of throwing away your kid's stuff.  I'll try to avoid carrying that tradition on to another generation with my sons.

IF I WERE YOU.. I'd contact Scribbler (he's the Creative director of FLEX & MF) he posts on getbig, explain to him about your letter and it being published and its subsequent loss.. There's a chance they may have the story/edition archived!
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: MidniteRambo on February 20, 2007, 02:11:38 PM
IF I WERE YOU.. I'd contact Scribbler (he's the Creative director of FLEX & MF) he posts on getbig, explain to him about your letter and it being published and its subsequent loss.. There's a chance they may have the story/edition archived!

Thanks for the advice.  I would like to track it down now that you mention it.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: AVBG on February 20, 2007, 02:21:39 PM
Thanks for the advice.  I would like to track it down now that you mention it.

No problem (happy to help).

Scribbler is a really good guy, if you give him the details I am sure he'll try help.. (let me know how you go?)
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: overcome on April 14, 2007, 06:52:29 PM
  i started lifting freshman year of high school for football,  i was a fat kid, there is no way around it.  i played lineman so i had no intention of trying to lose a ton of weight, i just wanted to get strong. and i did pretty well for 9 months of lifting, after freshman year i didn't have a coach worth playing for, he drove our team into the ground and i had no reason to roast in the arizona for two hours a day to lose every game come friday night.  i didnt get  weight lifting my second year and was too poor to join a gym, plus i had no way to get there even if i could have.  i tried again my third year and did pretty well under the circumstances, i worked after school till late and worked nights on the weekends, plus i graduated early so i had a ton of homework after all of that.  i rarely got more then 5 houres of sleep, but i was still able to go from a 190lb bench to a 280lb bench and 325lb dead to a 520lb dead lift but was still fat probably around 33-35%, i was 6'1'' and weighed 255.  the end of the year i started dating a beautiful little brunett, but i never wanted to take my shirt off around her.  at the end of the summer i decided to do something about it, i joined the local ymca and started doing circuit training and cardio.  i had lost most of the strength i had from high school so it just sucked starting out, but i didnt want to end up like the rest of my family(oh yeah all but one person in my family is obese, and that one person is still overweight).  i worked out everyday, sometimes twice a day and cut out all sugar and most fat from my diet.  i went from 255 to 208 in about 2 months all the while doing all the research i could on lifting, training, diet and nutrition.  i learned alot but didnt actually stick to one program,  or even idea of taining, i would work out to bulk up but woudnt eat enough to support growth.  i joined the army about 9 months later, i still remember telling the recruiter he was out of his mind when he said they ran 3-5 miles a few times a week.  i started running and joined a golds gymabout two months before leaving, there i met john. john was 52 and put me through the hardest workout i had ever been through he put up 315 8 times naturally.  we just started talking one day and it was a chest day for both of us and he asked if i wanted to work out with him.  he told me about the different phases(bulking and cutting) and told me i would have to stick to one or the other to get drastic results.  i went to basic and dropped down to 198 which really wasnt good.  but in ait(job training) i started lifting again.  i got onto a combatives team and started lifting with DS. Oliver, he was huge and also natural, he pushed us farther then i thought i could have gone.  after i got back i stared going to a local collage for nutrition and excersise science, i had some great teachers there too but i got deployed a month before the semester finished.  i got a little lazy for a while but am back on again, I am currently 220 and about 15-17 % body fat.  i would like to compete one day just to try but for the most part i really just dont want to end up like the rest of my family.

sorry, that was longer then i thought it was going to be, hope i didnt bore anyone.

ps. both my sisters started working out and my dad has lost 40+lbs since i dropped weight after high school, and they all thank me for showing them that they can, that was the best part for me.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: AVBG on April 15, 2007, 06:59:01 PM
  i started lifting freshman year of high school for football,  i was a fat kid, there is no way around it.  i played lineman so i had no intention of trying to lose a ton of weight, i just wanted to get strong. and i did pretty well for 9 months of lifting, after freshman year i didn't have a coach worth playing for, he drove our team into the ground and i had no reason to roast in the arizona for two hours a day to lose every game come friday night.  i didnt get  weight lifting my second year and was too poor to join a gym, plus i had no way to get there even if i could have.  i tried again my third year and did pretty well under the circumstances, i worked after school till late and worked nights on the weekends, plus i graduated early so i had a ton of homework after all of that.  i rarely got more then 5 houres of sleep, but i was still able to go from a 190lb bench to a 280lb bench and 325lb dead to a 520lb dead lift but was still fat probably around 33-35%, i was 6'1'' and weighed 255.  the end of the year i started dating a beautiful little brunett, but i never wanted to take my shirt off around her.  at the end of the summer i decided to do something about it, i joined the local ymca and started doing circuit training and cardio.  i had lost most of the strength i had from high school so it just sucked starting out, but i didnt want to end up like the rest of my family(oh yeah all but one person in my family is obese, and that one person is still overweight).  i worked out everyday, sometimes twice a day and cut out all sugar and most fat from my diet.  i went from 255 to 208 in about 2 months all the while doing all the research i could on lifting, training, diet and nutrition.  i learned alot but didnt actually stick to one program,  or even idea of taining, i would work out to bulk up but woudnt eat enough to support growth.  i joined the army about 9 months later, i still remember telling the recruiter he was out of his mind when he said they ran 3-5 miles a few times a week.  i started running and joined a golds gymabout two months before leaving, there i met john. john was 52 and put me through the hardest workout i had ever been through he put up 315 8 times naturally.  we just started talking one day and it was a chest day for both of us and he asked if i wanted to work out with him.  he told me about the different phases(bulking and cutting) and told me i would have to stick to one or the other to get drastic results.  i went to basic and dropped down to 198 which really wasnt good.  but in ait(job training) i started lifting again.  i got onto a combatives team and started lifting with DS. Oliver, he was huge and also natural, he pushed us farther then i thought i could have gone.  after i got back i stared going to a local collage for nutrition and excersise science, i had some great teachers there too but i got deployed a month before the semester finished.  i got a little lazy for a while but am back on again, I am currently 220 and about 15-17 % body fat.  i would like to compete one day just to try but for the most part i really just dont want to end up like the rest of my family.

sorry, that was longer then i thought it was going to be, hope i didnt bore anyone.

ps. both my sisters started working out and my dad has lost 40+lbs since i dropped weight after high school, and they all thank me for showing them that they can, that was the best part for me.

Thanks Bro. Good info.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: mdgkmg on April 22, 2007, 01:32:10 PM
hey good thread and good stories. i'll share some of mine.

well when i was 13 i got into weightlifting however i couldn't afford any equipment so i wasn't able to start if that makes sense. i had one 40 pnd dumbell that i couldn't do anything with sadly enough. when i was about 14 is when i got into it a little more i had bought 85 pnds of weight at a yard sale for ten bucks i could only bench 75 pnds for 8 reps at the time and i weighed about 130 tops and that was 18-19 percent bodyfat my arms were seriously 12 inches. so i started benching with that using milk crates and a blanket for a bench. the next week i did it for 13 reps. about 3 months later we moved and i bought a pair of dumbell handles with a few more weights. i could bench 115-120 for 3 reps at this time curling 35 for 3. couple months later i got a ton more equipment which i'm still using.

why i started lifting well partially because i'd seen my old brother do it who weighed a good 210 with a six pack and natural at like age 22. partially because i got picked on a lot i knew how to fight and could hold my own even at the time but didn't like having to fight so i figured if ppl feared just looking at me i wouldnt have to worry about it. also partially cuz well i always wanted to look good at the beach or at work and have the girls check me out. a lot of these things have come through ppl don't mess with me girls check me out but i still don't weigh 210.

what keeps me going is when i come here and post pictures and you guys compliment on how well i look for 15 and natural, the pump and excitement of benching a heck of a lot more than any guy my age around here, yea granted i still like the way girls look in that lustful innocent OMG way. but hey what teen doesn't.

where i want be eventually weighing a good 195 maybe a little more ya know 17" arms and a few more inches on my chest. i might shoot for a little bigger but who knows. i'd also like to bench 400 even if its only for one rep currently i can only do about 280.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: AVBG on April 23, 2007, 02:59:26 PM
hey good thread and good stories. i'll share some of mine.

well when i was 13 i got into weightlifting however i couldn't afford any equipment so i wasn't able to start if that makes sense. i had one 40 pnd dumbell that i couldn't do anything with sadly enough. when i was about 14 is when i got into it a little more i had bought 85 pnds of weight at a yard sale for ten bucks i could only bench 75 pnds for 8 reps at the time and i weighed about 130 tops and that was 18-19 percent bodyfat my arms were seriously 12 inches. so i started benching with that using milk crates and a blanket for a bench. the next week i did it for 13 reps. about 3 months later we moved and i bought a pair of dumbell handles with a few more weights. i could bench 115-120 for 3 reps at this time curling 35 for 3. couple months later i got a ton more equipment which i'm still using.

why i started lifting well partially because i'd seen my old brother do it who weighed a good 210 with a six pack and natural at like age 22. partially because i got picked on a lot i knew how to fight and could hold my own even at the time but didn't like having to fight so i figured if ppl feared just looking at me i wouldnt have to worry about it. also partially cuz well i always wanted to look good at the beach or at work and have the girls check me out. a lot of these things have come through ppl don't mess with me girls check me out but i still don't weigh 210.

what keeps me going is when i come here and post pictures and you guys compliment on how well i look for 15 and natural, the pump and excitement of benching a heck of a lot more than any guy my age around here, yea granted i still like the way girls look in that lustful innocent OMG way. but hey what teen doesn't.

where i want be eventually weighing a good 195 maybe a little more ya know 17" arms and a few more inches on my chest. i might shoot for a little bigger but who knows. i'd also like to bench 400 even if its only for one rep currently i can only do about 280.

welcome to the board bro. Another great story 8)
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: dave-boy on May 07, 2007, 02:37:53 PM
i started lifting weights when i was 13. i was in the same bedroom with my bro and he lifted weights so i gave them a try. i only did 30 reps per excercise only did 5 excercies. did that on and off till i was about 15 then i joined a gym that my bro was in. in the gym there were alot of foreigners (romanians, polish, croations) and these guys were all huge so it got me more into bodybuilding. i got the new encyclopedia of bb by arnold and the pics of the bb's in it motivated me to keep doin more and more. i got to love lifting weights around the other huge guys in my gym cause they gave me loads of motivation. i love trying to go heavier everytime i come into the gym even if its only 1.25kg it makes me feel way better.

after a year in that gym i moved to larger one that had more equipment etc. i like it but i still prefer the people in my old gym. i trained about 4 or 5 times a week and began to eat alot. my training became regular and so when i met TheLuke he gave me a programme that was excelent. .my peak time was when i was 17 last year. in about 2 months i gained 8-10 kg's and my max bench was 120kg, squat 120kg and deadlift 120kg and weighed 75kg's at 5 foot 9,(i know thats pretty wierd all 120kg). but i had surgery on my toe and it all stopped. spent 2 months sitting around eating chocolate and getin fat. now its nearly healed im startin back runnin and fitness to build it up for my future job in army. so once im in i will get back into lifting again.

its been brilliant that i am natural and have done so well (i think i have) and i have had people asking me am i takin juice. i'd like to finish with this


Lifting is something i do for me, its al down to me to make progress, and i love pushing myself, and trying to push myself further and harder every session.


i completely agree davie.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: overcome on May 07, 2007, 03:42:12 PM
. now its nearly healed im startin back runnin and fitness to build it up for my future job in army.


what are you going in as?
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: dave-boy on May 08, 2007, 11:24:09 AM
an officer in the irish defence forces. if i dont get the cadetship il try the royal irish guards in england.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Honour on May 24, 2007, 08:48:57 PM
Great stories here guys.

  Here I go....when i was a kid i grew up watching HE-MAN cartoons on TV ;D, and in a purely non-gay way (not that there is anything wrong with that ;)) I just couldn't get over the way he looked and thought to myself, thats what i want to look like when i grow up.
 
Once in high school I was always pretty bad at Football (Aussie rules) as I could run like the wind but just couldn't kick the ball far or straight, which is pretty rare for an Aussie kid. Anyway in my final year at highscool i won a scholarship to go to the USA (Texas) for a year of school on a student exchange program. Once over there I found that being very fast over short distances wasn't such a bad thing (4.4 40yard dash)and they put me straight into the Varsity football team as a punt and kick returner. Hell i didn't even really know the rules, they just said catch it and run Rooboy!

  Anyway while I was over there they showed me my first GYM and I loved it. By the time I got back to Australia most of my family and mates didn't recognise me as i had put on quite a bit of muscle and wasn't the skinny little kid anymore. I will always remember some of the girls I knew drooling over my new arms down the beach  8), well maybe not drooling, but at least they were looking my way now  ;D. After that I guess i knew I'd always love the Iron!!!!

  Then the inevitable happened, I met a great girl, you know what i mean, the kind ya just can't say no too ;), got married and had kids, and although i kept in shape and worked out a few times a week my priority's changed and I had to focus on my career for the sake of my family and future. But over the last 6 months or so since i turned 30, I've been making some changes to get back to doing what I love, being in the gym 8).

I guess I'm kind of lucky that my missus loves the fitness lifestyle as well so it makes it easier. I also don't find it too hard to put on muscle either and am finding that the gains are comming back quite quickly, I guess I would still like to compete someday, and I'm happy to take it step by step till i feel I'm ready to pull on the trunks and have a crack at the stage :).

Peace.....
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: jakeflips on August 29, 2007, 09:35:14 AM
I've always looked up to muscular bodies (bbers, sports athletes, gymnasts, etc.).  So for me, I think the desire to look that way was always there.  However, I was a very small guy in high school (5'11, 140-145), and I never saw it possible.  Well, some friends of mine convinced me to get into cheerleading because I was goofy and outgoing, and the girls weren't too bad a consolation either (by the way, in Texas, guy cheerleaders are quite common and there were always just as many guys on the team as girls, so not like I was the only one!)  Anyway, it was actually really hard to do the tumbling and stunts; not what I expected.  So, I got into gymnastics to help with all that, and I knew that gymnasts were jacked (compared to me).  I figured this would help.  I ended up getting really good at this stuff and used cheerleading to get me scholarships through college.

I tore my ACL junior year, and I started to look at other aspects of staying/getting into better shape.  That's when I turned to bodybuilding.  I used to train for up to 4 hours a day on tumbling, so I was very lean, but never over 150 lbs.  I decided it was time to put on some muscle.  As soon as I started, I knew it was going to be something I would do for the rest of my life.  Two years after starting lifting, I'm now about 185 lbs. and still just as lean as before (I'm very ectomorphic).  I doubt I'll ever lose that gymnast style body, but it's cool because I don't want to be some huge freak.  I aspire towards bodies like Frank Zane's.

I enjoy reading these, so people keep posting your stories.

- Jake
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Tryharder68 on November 01, 2007, 03:46:25 PM
Hello everyone!
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: webcake on November 01, 2007, 05:57:46 PM
I started lifting weights in order to get bigger for footy (Rugby League). I was 16 when i started (now 18). I was probably about 200lbs and about 5'9, not huge by any means but fairly solid for my age. Only down size was that i was about 30%b.f. I was playing prop with my league, and was getting to the stage where the guys i was coming up against were regularly 120+kg (260lbs+).

 I had been a prop since i was 5 years old, and i knew that if i didn't get bigger, i would have to get dropped into 2nd row or worse. The only reason i was playing prop still was i was very quick for my size, and basically i was very good at running into people.

So at first i just started eating shit, i didn't care how  fat i got, i needed to put weight on fast. I got pretty fat to say the least, and my fitness levels plummeted. At the end of the season, i knew i needed to do something. Started running, swimming more (was once a state level swimmer, though you would never be able to tell by looking at me) The i joined my gym ,and thats when i fell in love ;D.

I just loved the gym environment and lifting weights. Before i knew it i was there 6 times a week (can someone say overtraining) I eventually came to the decision to give up Rugby League. I'd simply suffered too many injuries for a young person.

Now, roughly 18 months on, I'm 225lbs, (still pretty high body fat, maybe 20%) and 5'11. Am about to embark on my 1st serious cutting diet and may even consider competing next year. All i know is that weight lifting and bodybuilding have changed mt life for the better, and hopefully i will continue on this path to self improvement for many more years to come.

Sorry for the long story. post some more boys, there all good reads.
Peace.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: mrhighintensity on May 12, 2008, 08:31:13 PM
Check out my story guys!


http://markusreinhardt.com/aboutmr.html (http://markusreinhardt.com/aboutmr.html)


HIT HARD!
MR
www.markusreinhardt.com
Now weekly HIT chats in Members section!
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: jml3001 on August 21, 2008, 03:35:17 PM
My dad was a drunk and smacked his kids around.  I was just kind of a whimp until I was about 18 - and kind of felt like it was my place to be smacked around by my dad.  When I was about 19 he tried to hit me again, and I just stood my ground even though I knew I couldn't take him.  I had just decided I was tired of being pushed around - by him or anyone.  So I got into bodybuilding.  Now I'm the tough guy smacking my kid around...just kidding.  It's just that at 205, I feel much more in control - like I can protect my family in a way that I didn't when I was 140.  Nobody messes with my family.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: jon cole on March 03, 2009, 11:50:26 PM
started training at 19, i'm french so iron sport are marginal in that fuckin country.
weight 72 kg for 188cm, first lift 60kg bench, 30 kg squat (epic fail) and 100 deadlift.i was looking like a girl.
5 years ago i weighed 130kg, with a 140bench, 200 squat and 250 dead.
from 34 to 52 cm arm, all drug free. gallons of milk, tons of various food.
then cut down to a correct 242 lbs body.
then at 26 serious lower back and knee injury.
then 3 years of poor training.

then i'm 30, hungry, back on track, more determinated than ever.
the fire still burning.


i'm 35, i'm not natural anymore. ;D
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Eyeball Chambers on March 07, 2009, 05:43:27 AM
So I got into bodybuilding.  Now I'm the tough guy smacking my kid around...just kidding.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

 ;D
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: 100kg Clint on April 24, 2009, 04:22:24 AM
Hey guys, thought id post here as im going to compete in my first bodybuilding comp this September. Iv always loved weights, i used to watch the comps as a kid. Remember seeing Flex Wheeler and such thinking i wana look like that! Plus He-Man and Thundercats. It seemed all the super heroes were huge and ripped, lol.
Iv done alot of competetive Martial Arts, but always drawn back to pumping hard core iron. Love getting my body into shape and getting a wicked pump. Im 26 now and wish i competed in BB sooner, so this is the year! Done alot of swim wear shoots and calanders so always been in good shape. Iv been blessed with good genetics i think too (thanx dad) lol.
So next eight weeks is continue gaining as much mass a poss then diet time after!
PS, any tips for a first time competitor would be greatly appreciated, haha.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Charlys69 on May 06, 2009, 01:19:49 PM
Training 28 yrs + 5 months, age 45 yrs. + 10 Months  (not a lifetime natural Bodybuilder, did 3 Test-Cycle total of 11 months several years ago...after this worked up to my level without any kind of medicine, and after 4 years off i´m able to beat many of my best lifts
from the time i was "on"  in my late 30´s/early40´s.
and hope to progress further in the next 2 or 3 years...


     unilateral benchpress-plateload-machine, 7 x 20 kg plates (one side)

    1 arm rows 440 lbs equal to hammer-Strength-machine from Gym80






all actual clips from the last weeks/days....

Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: FootballCoach on July 10, 2009, 02:23:56 PM
I started training with weights because when I was 12 I wanted to be  a professional football player. Our varsity coach put us on a pyramid program but I could never hit the increased weight for the prescribed weights. I went to the local book store and bought "the encyclopedia of bodybuilding" or something like that by Joe Weider. it was loaded with great pics and workouts and I was hooked. I was the type of kid who would come home from school, eat 4 peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches and two huge glasses of milk with this horrible soy or milk and egg protein in it...gawd awful stuff back in the 70s-80s. 

In any case, my buds would want to play basketball or wiffle ball or street hockey but I had to go train in my dungeon of  a basement for two hours first. (man I was 12 and i was doing "Arnolds cannon ball shoulder routine" and "tom platz freaky thigh routine" lmao)  in any case, that was ....31 years ago...holy smokes, I have been lifting for 31 years and I have NEVER EVEN SEEN ROIDS let alone tried them. I guess this is the benefit of being mostly an at home trainer.

I was but a mere 98 lbs back then and am a whopper at 284 (too fat) right now.  funny thing, I had 8% body fat when I was in my 20s.
 Ill tell you all this, I saw a bunch of people start lifting, start juciing and guess what? they dont lift anymore and look like hell. i am still at it and more motivated now than ever before.  I dont need to see what science can do for my body, who cares. I want to see what I can do for my body and thats all.
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: AVBG on July 10, 2009, 05:59:53 PM
I started training with weights because when I was 12 I wanted to be  a professional football player. Our varsity coach put us on a pyramid program but I could never hit the increased weight for the prescribed weights. I went to the local book store and bought "the encyclopedia of bodybuilding" or something like that by Joe Weider. it was loaded with great pics and workouts and I was hooked. I was the type of kid who would come home from school, eat 4 peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches and two huge glasses of milk with this horrible soy or milk and egg protein in it...gawd awful stuff back in the 70s-80s. 

In any case, my buds would want to play basketball or wiffle ball or street hockey but I had to go train in my dungeon of  a basement for two hours first. (man I was 12 and i was doing "Arnolds cannon ball shoulder routine" and "tom platz freaky thigh routine" lmao)  in any case, that was ....31 years ago...holy smokes, I have been lifting for 31 years and I have NEVER EVEN SEEN ROIDS let alone tried them. I guess this is the benefit of being mostly an at home trainer.

I was but a mere 98 lbs back then and am a whopper at 284 (too fat) right now.  funny thing, I had 8% body fat when I was in my 20s.
 Ill tell you all this, I saw a bunch of people start lifting, start juciing and guess what? they dont lift anymore and look like hell. i am still at it and more motivated now than ever before.  I dont need to see what science can do for my body, who cares. I want to see what I can do for my body and thats all.

keepus posted
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: ronbrgundy on December 16, 2009, 09:45:28 PM
My dad was a drunk and smacked his kids around.  I was just kind of a whimp until I was about 18 - and kind of felt like it was my place to be smacked around by my dad.  When I was about 19 he tried to hit me again, and I just stood my ground even though I knew I couldn't take him.  I had just decided I was tired of being pushed around - by him or anyone.  So I got into bodybuilding.  Now I'm the tough guy smacking my kid around...just kidding.  It's just that at 205, I feel much more in control - like I can protect my family in a way that I didn't when I was 140.  Nobody messes with my family.

HAHAHHAHAH I laughed at this too
"Now I'm the tough guy smacking my kid around...just kidding."
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Soul Crusher on July 09, 2013, 05:52:56 AM
Im 38 - now - got into BB at 22 after my track n field career was over on a joke by a guy at my school who challenged me to do a show. 


Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Charlys69 on July 29, 2014, 04:34:22 AM
more than 5 Years ago since i posted in that thread....my Bodyweight is act. down to "around" 112 kg/248 lbs, height 6 "2", training now 34 years training, 51 year old, still longtime natural. Last year i was diagnos. 2 tumors, but my therapy went well. i changed my diet and training programm a bit, and now feel good with all measurements in my "big blood picture" are ok. I still hit the gym 4-5 times a week, doing also some cardio-work before or after my workouts, or in the morning before breakfast. I like do diet down to 230 lbs/105 kg (so another 15 lbs. to go.).
Some act. Pics with 112 kg taken the last days...
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Joex on August 23, 2014, 06:23:31 AM
Code: [Select]
Very good stories here, I will take this issue to introduce myself in my first topic in this forum. I started in bodybuilding to be stronger at contact sports but an injury made ​​me stop fighting and the gym became my main sport and a way to keep fighting in a different place. At first I just wanted to get stronger, lift more weight and allways was fat because ate lot of calories, bodybuilding seemed me a fashion show but eventually was liking it and found a middle ground between the way I train and bodybuilding. I´ve training the ultimate twelve years and my goal is to get stronger every year and get a bodybuilder body without roids.
These photos are from my first competition two years ago and my current body now.
(http://i61.tinypic.com/154ydl4.jpg)
(http://i59.tinypic.com/34qocw7.jpg)
(http://i61.tinypic.com/1zf60xg.jpg)
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Charlys69 on October 31, 2014, 10:11:27 AM
finished my offseason last week....go on diet for the next 3 Months and guess i go down to 235 lbs. Starting at 260 lbs. right now.....
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Chaan on December 27, 2014, 07:10:56 AM
I quit other sports age 14 and went to the gym because of a vision I had age 13, that I'd get big and square. I didn't know what I'd look like exactly, but I was thinking something like a lumberjack, maybe bigger. They often have good shoulders, a straight dropping torso outline (not a bb'er V shape), and legs. I reached my goal physique spring 2013 (it took very long since I've been ill), and it turned out to be 100 kilo while fit. Then it turned out, it didn't suffice, so I've continued.



(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B2IrVuFCMAAnr6a.jpg:large)
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Schmoff on December 28, 2014, 04:30:05 PM
I quit other sports age 14 and went to the gym because of a vision I had age 13, that I'd get big and square. I didn't know what I'd look like exactly, but I was thinking something like a lumberjack, maybe bigger. They often have good shoulders, a straight dropping torso outline (not a bb'er V shape), and legs. I reached my goal physique spring 2013 (it took very long since I've been ill), and it turned out to be 100 kilo while fit. Then it turned out, it didn't suffice, so I've continued.



(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B2IrVuFCMAAnr6a.jpg:large)

boy or girl?

 ??? ??? ???
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Chaan on May 29, 2015, 10:46:45 AM
boy or girl?
I prefer a girl. I look like this on the other side.


(http://share.gifyoutube.com/Kklewb.gif)
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: Schmoff on March 31, 2018, 08:07:28 PM
I prefer a girl. I look like this on the other side.


(http://share.gifyoutube.com/Kklewb.gif)

any updates?
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: oldtimer1 on June 24, 2019, 07:44:13 PM
Joe Weider headquarters was in my home town of Union city, NJ when I was a kid. I would stare in the window at all the weight lifting equipment and supplements. Walking with my mom I asked if I could go in and look around. She stood outside as I went in. The guys working there asked me if I wanted a stack of expired magazines.  Walking with my stack I saw Joe Weider walking in. I used to go back and get my free magazine all the time. I was about 8 or 9 years old. I was always the shortest and most incredible skinny kid of all time. My knees were much bigger than my thighs. I have a very slight bone structure. Even today my wrists are tiny.

When I was about 13 my much older brother got a sears bench and sears vinyl weights filled with concrete. Here was my chance.  Looking at the pictures in Muscle Builder and the Mr. America magazines I started to do the exercises. Since I never saw anyone lift I didn't know you had to move the weight. I just stood there till I was blue in the face in the curl position just like the magazine picture.  Had no clue what 5 sets of 10 reps meant. My older brother saw me and after awhile and said what they hell are you doing?

I think because of my childhood insecurities I gravitated toward wanting muscles. I weighed a whopping 118lbs my freshman year in high school. I wanted to play football as a running back but the two running backs on the team both weighed about 205lbs.  The first time I ran a 25 dive I hit the linebacker full speed and after the smoke cleared and the little birdies flying around my head stopped I reconsidered my football dreams.  I then went out for Track. In the beginning I found I had a real talent for it. Stringing together 5 minutes miles was something I could do. I developed a real work ethic from being on the team. The high school track team had 70 members. I still never abandoned the weights. From part time jobs I bought Jubinville equipment. It was cheap and strong.

Around my junior year the weights started working. I weighed 144lbs and decided to compete in the NJ Power lifting Championship. Why waste my time with lower meets?  ;D  I bombed out in the deadlift because the lift stalled briefly on the way up.  If my memory serves me I would have ended up 4th or 5th.  With the lifting I found I developed more potential in the sprints. I kept lifting hard through college and I joined the track team there as a 400 meter sprinter. I was sprinting now at a weight between 155lbs and 165lbs at 5'8". I was muscular and lean.

After graduation I really got into training. I got up to 180lbs and I was really lean almost ripped. I never took a picture because I always felt I would get better.  In my early 20's it was the best condition I ever achieved.  Track and the lifting really aided me in life. My profession relied on my physicality. On a side note I met that linebacker that put me on my ass back in the day. He was actually looked like nothing and I couldn't help but suppress a laugh as I looked in his direction trying to say hello and he kept his head down. It would have been a different story now. I would have easily put him on his ass.  I wasn't the 115lbs 5'8" high school kid anymore. Through the years I have boxed and done jui jitsu during the early days of the UFC when no one knew of jui jitsu.  I had five fights in the ring. Lost only one and it was my first. Decided I wanted to stay pretty  ;D so I stopped boxing.

Through the years my collection of equipment grew. Funny even though moving so many places the equipment stayed with me. I remember giving the equipment to a friend. I asked him many years later if he still used it and he said no. I asked him if I could have it back and he said, sure. I still work out with that stuff that's over 40 years old.

Today I'm retired and work part time. I'm in my 60's but I still lift, run and do strike training. I still wake up everyday and think of better ways to train. I find my body is breaking down. Almost 50 years of lifting and athletics. When I run now it's for distance and easy intervals on a treadmill. Just last week I wondered if I still could sprint like the old days. LOL. I warmed up with an easy mile.  I decided to do approximately 40-50 yard sprints. I gradually picked up the pace for each one. The third one was all out. Damn I still had it. I felt explosive and I know I was moving.  The forth one I had to turn off the jets. Something bad happened. My Achilles was hurting near the insertion. Nothing extreme but I knew I had to shut it down. The next day I was limping around. Must have swelled over night.  For four weeks I tried super slow running. Walking long distances. I only made it worst. My buddy on the training board knocked some sense into me and now I'm resting it. I hope I don't need an orthopedic surgeon to repair a partial tear. I hope it's just strained. Getting old stinks. Thought I was forever young. I'm nearly 190 lbs now and I really want to get down to 175lbs-180lbs. I don't know if that's a realistic goal right now with age and my life now. I'm still fighting the good fight.  
Title: Re: The Natural Profiles
Post by: ponal on June 27, 2019, 08:27:08 AM
Joe Weider headquarters was in my home town of Union city, NJ when I was a kid. I would stare in the window at all the weight lifting equipment and supplements. Walking with my mom I asked if I could go in and look around. She stood outside as I went in. The guys working there asked me if I wanted a stack of expired magazines.  Walking with my stack I saw Joe Weider walking in. I used to go back and get my free magazine all the time. I was about 8 or 9 years old. I was always the shortest and most incredible skinny kid of all time. My knees were much bigger than my thighs. I have a very slight bone structure. Even today my wrists are tiny.

When I was about 13 my much older brother got a sears bench and sears vinyl weights filled with concrete. Here was my chance.  Looking at the pictures in Muscle Builder and the Mr. America magazines I started to do the exercises. Since I never saw anyone lift I didn't know you had to move the weight. I just stood there till I was blue in the face in the curl position just like the magazine picture.  Had no clue what 5 sets of 10 reps meant. My older brother saw me and after awhile and said what they hell are you doing?

I think because of my childhood insecurities I gravitated toward wanting muscles. I weighed a whopping 118lbs my freshman year in high school. I wanted to play football as a running back but the two running backs on the team both weighed about 205lbs.  The first time I ran a 25 dive I hit the linebacker full speed and after the smoke cleared and the little birdies flying around my head stopped I reconsidered my football dreams.  I then went out for Track. In the beginning I found I had a real talent for it. Stringing together 5 minutes miles was something I could do. I developed a real work ethic from being on the team. The high school track team had 70 members. I still never abandoned the weights. From part time jobs I bought Jubinville equipment. It was cheap and strong.

Around my junior year the weights started working. I weighed 144lbs and decided to compete in the NJ Power lifting Championship. Why waste my time with lower meets?  ;D  I bombed out in the deadlift because the lift stalled briefly on the way up.  If my memory serves me I would have ended up 4th or 5th.  With the lifting I found I developed more potential in the sprints. I kept lifting hard through college and I joined the track team there as a 400 meter sprinter. I was sprinting now at a weight between 155lbs and 165lbs at 5'8". I was muscular and lean.

After graduation I really got into training. I got up to 180lbs and I was really lean almost ripped. I never took a picture because I always felt I would get better.  In my early 20's it was the best condition I ever achieved.  Track and the lifting really aided me in life. My profession relied on my physicality. On a side note I met that linebacker that put me on my ass back in the day. He was actually looked like nothing and I couldn't help but suppress a laugh as I looked in his direction trying to say hello and he kept his head down. It would have been a different story now. I would have easily put him on his ass.  I wasn't the 115lbs 5'8" high school kid anymore. Through the years I have boxed and done jui jitsu during the early days of the UFC when no one knew of jui jitsu.  I had five fights in the ring. Lost only one and it was my first. Decided I wanted to stay pretty  ;D so I stopped boxing.

Through the years my collection of equipment grew. Funny even though moving so many places the equipment stayed with me. I remember giving the equipment to a friend. I asked him many years later if he still used it and he said no. I asked him if I could have it back and he said, sure. I still work out with that stuff that's over 40 years old.

Today I'm retired and work part time. I'm in my 60's but I still lift, run and do strike training. I still wake up everyday and think of better ways to train. I find my body is breaking down. Almost 50 years of lifting and athletics. When I run now it's for distance and easy intervals on a treadmill. Just last week I wondered if I still could sprint like the old days. LOL. I warmed up with an easy mile.  I decided to do approximately 40-50 yard sprints. I gradually picked up the pace for each one. The third one was all out. Damn I still had it. I felt explosive and I know I was moving.  The forth one I had to turn off the jets. Something bad happened. My Achilles was hurting near the insertion. Nothing extreme but I knew I had to shut it down. The next day I was limping around. Must have swelled over night.  For four weeks I tried super slow running. Walking long distances. I only made it worst. My buddy on the training board knocked some sense into me and now I'm resting it. I hope I don't need an orthopedic surgeon to repair a partial tear. I hope it's just strained. Getting old stinks. Thought I was forever young. I'm nearly 190 lbs now and I really want to get down to 175lbs-180lbs. I don't know if that's a realistic goal right now with age and my life now. I'm still fighting the good fight.  

Cool Story Bro