David Graham

I’m a big fan of bodybuilding, I suspect it was Arnold Schwarzenegger films that got me into it along with Jean-Claude Van Damme and Sylvester Stallone. Needless to say, I’m a big fan of 80s and 90s action films. But also I’m a big wrestling fan, and grew up watching Shawn Michaels, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, The Undertaker, Triple H and all the others from the Attitude Era battling it out with their monster physiques.

But it was not just seeing these Goliaths on film and TV battling it out that got me into the gym, it was also my experiences at school. I was a tall and superslim teen, and was bullied frequently as a result, which meant that I wanted to build a physique and ability to protect myself.

And I wanted to not just be able to protect myself against one person, but many at the same time. One of the main reasons I was bullied was because I was always ganged up on. You can’t fight back when there’s a group pack on your back.

I wanted to be able to. This is what led me to prefer the lean, mean soldier body, not big, but agile and able. Pound for pound very strong.

To achieve this goal, I first hit the gym when I was 16. I joined the local gym just down the road from me, named Springs. I knew absolutely nothing about training so just started using machines. I would spend endless hours in there and it went well to start with, I was getting stronger and stronger by the way, then I put my back out doing press ups and spent my entire summer as a 17-year-old barely able to walk before physio got me back on track.

Yep, a lesson learned there. You really need to know what you are doing before you start gym training. Part of me wonders whether the reason I’m so injury prone is that I was so depressed during that summer when I could barely walk, that I barely ate and this stunted my growth somehow, making me more susceptible to injuries.

Who knows. Anyhow, I got back on track and to avoid the same mistake, started learning about training and the more I learned about training, the more my love for bodybuilding grew. The discipline, the commitment and dedication, the sacrifices that top end bodybuilders showed, I could not help but form an unbelievable amount of respect for them – even if I didn’t want to be a bodybuilder myself.

What impressed me was the sheer amount of knowledge that was needed about training techniques and diet, and the sheer commitment to both that was needed to succeed. The way I saw it, they were turning their bodies into works of art, which to me makes bodybuilders artists, and their bodies are their canvas.

I wanted to be the same, but with my own goal of building a body that was agile and able – and that looked good.

Sometimes I have achieved this despite my injuries, other times I’ve struggled because of my injuries. One thing is certain though, training and exercise is a way of life for me. Eating well as well. The way I see it, a healthy life equals a healthy mind and body, and with all the injuries I have, I need the healthiest mind and body I can get!