how scrawny were you when you started bodybuilding?
At age 13 my shoe size was 13.
My calves, quadriceps, and glutes could not fit comfortably into any pair of fashionable pants since I was in the 8th grade.
At age 15 I weighed 15 pounds.
By the time I graduated high school I had wrestled and powerlifted in the 189 pound (maximum bodyweight) division.
My senior year in high school I was ranked the 9th strongest kid in Virginia's high school powerlifting circuit.
At age 19 I began to take my training very seriously, and paid much attention to nutrition, cardio, and rest - that year I weighed 195 pounds.
By age 20 I weighed 205 pounds sticking to the same routine 5 days per week, religiously - high volume training, lots of drop sets/super sets, forced negatives, and reps to failure.
On my 21st birthday I weighed 215 pounds.
When I was 22 I dropped out of college for a multitude of reasons, but weighing in at 225 pounds - and solid.
Now, 16 years later, I am still the same height
(6 feet tall) but weigh 265.3 pounds
(according to my physician's scale).
Despite having three shoulder surgeries and a spinal fusion operation almost one year ago; each time I have re-engineered my routine and moved forward accepting my new constraints as the cost of doing business.
I have maxxed out my frame; it is not possible for me to build any more mass, so now it is time to re-focus and do what is necessary to keep as much bulk as possible but shred out to about 245 pounds; I am comfortable at that weight.
Bodybuilding is the only pursuit in my life that I have given undisputed, persistent devotion to.
I enjoy it beyond what many could ever imagine from such a simple endeavor.
For some reason, to me, the feeling of total physical exhaustion and fatigue is blisssful rest.
-Halla74
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