Thread: Teen bodybuilding

I was bullied, pushed around, and was the butt of every joke. Bodybuilding changed that. Looking for a way out of the gloom? Find success and strength with this detailed beginner's training guide!

At 26 years old, I still remember my teenage years very clearly. I was bullied, pushed around, and was the butt of every joke. I had virtually no self-esteem and no feeling of self-worth.

At a certain point I decided that it was time to start doing something about it, rather than spend the rest of my school days feeling sorry for myself. Fortunately, I found weight training and later on found bodybuilding. It felt like a natural fit and I fell in love with it.

Over the years it has enhanced my life in so many ways, mostly by helping me gain more self-confidence and believe in myself. I also remember how confused I was when I began bodybuilding as a teenager.
From the first time I opened up a bodybuilding magazine I was bombarded with information in articles, advertisements, and various other outlets.

The problem was they were all telling me different things! Eat high protein, low carbs. No no no. Eat high carbs moderate protein! Only train low volume. No no no, you need high volume!

I'm sure many of you teens are going through the same thing right now! Who should you believe? What are good sources of information and bad sources of information?

Well I'm not arrogant enough to actually believe that I know everything and that I could not possibly be wrong, but I have devoted the better part of the last decade of my life studying training and nutrition and I'm currently working on my PhD in Nutritional Sciences with an emphasis in muscle protein metabolism so I am going to try and break down what we do know from the available research and how you can apply it to yourself for maximizing gains.

I'm also a pro natural bodybuilder and have been competing for the past 7 years so I've experienced many of the ups and downs associated with bodybuilding and I will discuss these and how to make your bodybuilding experience fun and fulfilling.