25 Years In Pictures - 103 lbs to Natural Pro

EME · 10-16-2009, 05:27 PM

Hey Everyone,

I just realized that this year is the 25th anniversary of the year that I began training.
I have been training consistently ever since!

Over the past 25 years I have had many different goals. In the beginning my only goal was to get bigger so I wasn't the smallest kid in school! As I started to make progress I began competing in Bodybuilding, and then switched to Power Lifting for many years. Eventually I returned to Bodybuilding and earned my Natural Pro Card.

I have had some setbacks along the way, including my full pec tear in 2005 which still affects me to this day. However, weight training changed my life and it's been the best thing that I've ever been involved with. The lessons learned from weight training, such as setting goals and working for them, dedication, and discipline have carried over to every other part of my life. Weight lifting does so much more for you than just building your body.

My main reason for posting these pics is to show the guys who start out really small that you CAN make progress. I am the classic ectomorph, and although I'll never be Mr. Olympia, or even the biggest guy in my own gym, I'm proud of the results I was able to achieve naturally, and I'm still going at 40!

If you're a small guy, or anyone who feels that they'll never achieve their goals, take a look at these pics and hopefully they will encourage you. At the very least you'll have a good laugh at the crazy clothes in the pics over the years.

I hope you enjoy seeing my journey over the last 25 years!

- Michael

Buzz_Lightyear · 10-16-2009, 05:34 PM

Fantastic, man!!

Congratulations on the Pro Card, and for sticking with it all the way through! Pretty cool how you hit up powerlifting for like twelve years, too. Nice.

Great motivation right here.

SuperMax07 · 10-16-2009, 06:12 PM

very inspirational!

flexstyle · 10-16-2009, 06:17 PM

nice job bro, keep it up with the return

redjm · 10-16-2009, 06:21 PM

wow that's inspiration!!! too bad im not natural..... i would love to lift with you. no homo

rep'd

blurrr · 10-16-2009, 07:44 PM

great work man!

Any more pics of your wife/whoever that girl is? (serious)

scott_lycan · 10-16-2009, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blurrr

great work man!

Any more pics of your wife/whoever that girl is? (serious)

From his sig.

www.KendraElias.com

EME · 10-16-2009, 07:57 PM

redjm, flexstyle, SuperMax07, Buzz_Lightyear, and blurrr,
Thanks for the comments guys!

Blurrr, that's my wife Kendra. She's an IFBB Pro Fitness competitor:
www.KendraElias.com

Thanks again, I appreciate the nice words!

- Michael

Roids09 · 10-16-2009, 07:58 PM

This is Awesome man! Keep it up and keep pushing yourself!

EME · 10-16-2009, 08:07 PM

Thanks bro!

- Michael

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roids09

This is Awesome man! Keep it up and keep pushing yourself!

SuperJuiceman · 10-16-2009, 08:18 PM

good work man. pec tears suck and you've made great progress being an ecto. how tall are you?

EME · 10-16-2009, 08:23 PM

Thanks man!
Yes, pec tears do suck! Stretch and warm up... Every Time!

I'm 5' 9"

- Michael

Quote:

Originally Posted by SuperJuiceman

good work man. pec tears suck and you've made great progress being an ecto. how tall are you?

srv543 · 10-16-2009, 08:27 PM

wow great story/transformation.

JpRus · 10-16-2009, 08:31 PM

hmm how did you tear you're pec. What exactly did you do and how did it happen?

EME · 10-16-2009, 08:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JpRus

hmm how did you tear you're pec. What exactly did you do and how did it happen?

Hey JpRus,

This thread details exactly what happened and gives you the details and summary of the first 12 Months after the tear.
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=986528

This thread is the actual log I started right after the tear and kept when I was going through the recovery.
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=661865

The top thread above will give you the quick cliffs with pics a lot faster than I can write out here. The second thread is sort of my diary throughout the whole experience as it was happening - probaby a good read for anyone who might be going through this now.

- Michael

JpRus · 10-16-2009, 08:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EME

Hey JpRus,

This thread details exactly what happened and gives you the details and summary of the first 12 Months after the tear.
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=986528

This thread is the actual log I started right after the tear and kept when I was going through the recovery.
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=661865

The top thread above will give you the quick cliffs with pics a lot faster than I can write out here. The second thread is sort of my diary throughout the whole experience as it was happening - probaby a good read for anyone who might be going through this now.

- Michael

wow dude impressive. You look great and I am impressed. After going through the tear what would you recommened as prevention?

EME · 10-16-2009, 09:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JpRus

wow dude impressive. You look great and I am impressed. After going through the tear what would you recommened as prevention?

Thanks bro. My tear was likely the product of a lot of years of heavy training, combined with a mass building phase where I put on a lot of size and strength quickly after cutting for the better part of a year to do two shows ( when you grow really quickly like that the muscle grows faster than the tendon can keep up with in some instances ), and finally not warming up properly because I was in a hurry on that particular day.

Warming up and stretching better is really the only thing I could have done. I didn't have any real warning when it happened and I wasn't using bad form or too much weight. It was just the combo of a lot of things that finally came together.

- Michael

JpRus · 10-16-2009, 09:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EME

Thanks bro. My tear was likely the product of a lot of years of heavy training, combined with a mass building phase where I put on a lot of size and strength quickly after cutting for the better part of a year to do two shows ( when you grow really quickly like that the muscle grows faster than the tendon can keep up with in some instances ), and finally not warming up properly because I was in a hurry on that particular day.

Warming up and stretching better is really the only thing I could have done. I didn't have any real warning when it happened and I wasn't using bad form or too much weight. It was just the combo of a lot of things that finally came together.

- Michael

bench press was it?

EME · 10-16-2009, 09:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JpRus

bench press was it?

Dumbbell Press actually.
I had felt a stinger a couple months earlier doing heavy incline bench, so I had dropped all barbell chest exercises and switched to dumbbells. I never had another problem so I thought all was fine and started moving up in weight, sticking with the dumbbells. Then one day... wham... ripped the tendon completely off the bone and shredded the pec major muscle also. Details are in the thread ( cringing as I type this, so I think I'll leave it at that! )

- Michael

JpRus · 10-16-2009, 09:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EME

Dumbbell Press actually.
I had felt a stinger a couple months earlier doing heavy incline bench, so I had dropped all barbell chest exercises and switched to dumbbells. I never had another problem so I thought all was fine and started moving up in weight, sticking with the dumbbells. Then one day... wham... ripped the tendon completely off the bone and shredded the pec major muscle also. Details are in the thread ( cringing as I type this, so I think I'll leave it at that! )

- Michael

ok dude best of luck to you.

MegaHold · 10-17-2009, 07:18 AM

Whoa you've come a long way man. And you're multitalented, you made my avi. Lol GJDM.

mediumpimpin · 10-17-2009, 07:52 AM

wow very inspirational

LiftingPeanuts · 10-17-2009, 08:33 AM

Awesome progress. I can't believe how quick you lost muscle after the pec tear. I'm out on chest and tris for a while now and that scares me a bit. At least you built it back up quick.

EME · 10-17-2009, 08:52 AM

Thanks MegaHold! - and glad you like your Avi!

Thanks MediumPimpin and LiftingPeanuts!

LP- yeah - I had to wear a sling for 6 weeks that supported all the weight of my arm, so my left side just went away! I lost more than 3 inches off my left arm in that 6 weeks!
Fortunately, most of the size came back quickly when I could train again - still haven't gotten it all back though, especially in the delts.

Thanks again for the comments guys!

- Michael

shane124uk · 10-17-2009, 09:20 AM

very inspirational. good to see your history. tells a good a story in pictures. well done. you been at it a long time and still seem very motivated to stay in great shape! great job man!

BuckSpin · 10-17-2009, 09:25 AM

Great example of what can happen when you "Eat, Lift, Sleep, Repeat"

You should consider posting this as well in the Teen section so that they can see what is possible with a few decades of work.

MrLJizzle · 10-17-2009, 09:57 AM

Wow thats great man! Congrats.

And i see a Jeep brah pic in there. (aware?)

StressMonkey · 10-17-2009, 10:41 AM

Loved this. Very inspiring! That's exactly what I was like in the 10th grade also.

NextProtege · 10-17-2009, 11:49 AM

WOW

Amazing job and great chest.

00200293 · 10-17-2009, 02:21 PM

First off very impressive! Nice to see you stay with it.

However, I must say the level of deuschbagness in some of the photos is high; especially the superman dude. UGGGGHHHHH..... I laugh when I see this at the gym.