Email: k_van_apeldoorn@hotmail.com
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| AGE 16 HEIGHT 6'1" WEIGHT 153 lbs BODY FAT 14% WAIST 30" |
AGE 17 HEIGHT 6'1" WEIGHT 191 lbs BODY FAT 10% WAIST 30" |
Why I Got Started
Before I started bodybuilding, or even thought about bodybuilding, I was quite skinny. I also recently stopped playing soccer and the fact that I had way too much leisure made me think that I had to do something with all that time.
A year before I started training, my older brother got involved with fitness at a gym, which just opened in the neighborhood.
I noticed him making quick gains, which made it possible for him to beat the crap out of me even more (brothers, eh?). The age limit to subscribe at the gym was 16-years old, so I still had to wait before I could start. I knew I wanted to become huge just like Arnold in Terminator and Conan, or like Stallone in Rocky.
They were real men, some kind of role models and in order to achieve aesthetics, I had to begin training. In my opinion, the mind and the body have to be in a delicate balance.
If one grows, the other one also has to grow. I was, and still am, very strong in spirit. My mind was too strong to be interfered with, but the body lagged.
So when I turned 16, I set foot in the gym exactly a week after that day to begin building my body.
How I Did It
The moment I stepped into the gym with my brother, I really had no idea what I was doing. I had read some things beforehand about bodybuilding, but didn't get it because my knowledge about fitness wasn't big enough. I just followed my brother's instructions and I even found training a bit boring.
The day after, I lived in agony. Every single muscle, even muscles I didn't know I had, in places I didn't know about, were hurting. But it felt good. I felt it changed something inside me. Because I still didn't know anything about training with weights, I started to read. And read. And read even more.
Today I still read at least one article about weight training every day, to increase my knowledge. And with my knowledge, my gains started to increase. I realized I wasn't such the ectomorph I thought I was. I gained a lot of pounds of muscle, without adding much body fat. Of course the phenomenon 'newbie gains' occurred, but almost 2 years later, I'm still gaining at a high rate.
Beginning with Rippetoe's Starting Strength program really helped me out. Then I did 2 months of German Volume training and after that I was able to set up my own workouts.
Results; that's my motivation. It is known that people quit their diet or training because they aren't seeing results. Since I'm cutting right now, I'm seeing results by the week which motivates me even more. And, of course, people suddenly say you're huge and that's always nice to hear.
I don't have any plans for competing right now, but I'm training to become a (part-time) fitness model. Making money with the sport you love, that is wonderful. People say I have the potential, so nothing can stop me.
Suggestions For Others
- Believe in yourself: if your mind is strong enough, your body will follow. Don't let anything hold you back. My parents at first didn't like what I was doing, but they started to understand and I even helped them to start with training.
- Eat clean. 'You are what you eat' is true up to some point. Fuel your body with healthy fats and many protein sources to build a good and healthy body.
- Read A LOT. At first you still have no idea what the articles are about, but with time you'll get smarter and understand how the human body works. Use that knowledge to improve yourself. Why would you do something you don't know anything about anyways? E.g., I'm not building a bridge because I don't know how to, sounds logical right?
- Learn how to do exercises properly with good form. It'll help you with getting bigger muscles and reducing the chances on injuries. Youtube is a perfect tool.
- Listen to other people. There will always be people who know way more than you about bodybuilding. Don't get cocky and listen to them. When I'm trying to help people with horrible squat form, they won't listen to me. They just start to break their backs again after I walk away.
- Don't get lost in the world of marketing and promises by supplement companies. You can't gain 20 pounds within 2 months (if you don't want to get fat). Your body can only make about 1kg (2.2 pounds) of pure muscle per month. It will be a bit higher if you just started training.
- Have patience. It takes a lot of time and effort to attain an aesthetic body. Continue your training loyally and results will come. That muscle-guy at the gym has also trained for several years, so take your time.