Living with a 59 Year Old Mesomorph

In March 2008 I talked my then 58 yr old mesomorph husband into getting his body fat measured by a local trainer just out of curiosity. He comes home with paperwork showing his skin-fold measurements and a body fat calculation of 10.4%. I knew he looked good, but living with someone walking around at that body fat without even trying almost made me mad!

The trainer, Chris Caudy, who also specializes in body building, gave Jimmy all the information on an upcoming body building competition. He told him if he wanted to do it, he could get him ready. Jimmy decided to give it a try. Why not? He liked him and wanted to train with him even though he'd never thought about bodybuilding.

His training brought about amazing changes in his body. He had been guilty (like most of us) of gravitating to his favorite workouts and not shaking it up enough. Well, in literally 2 thirty minute sessions a week Chris shook him up alright. He worked his tail off, tightened up his diet and competed the first time (just 10 weeks later I must say) in June 2008 at the NPC Southern Classic, just under 8% body fat. Jimmy had never even seen a bodybuilding competition, much less thought about entering one. He ended up doing 3 competitions total last year and here's how he ranked:

• 2008 25th Annual NPC Southern Classic, Jackson, MS: 4th Place, Grandmasters (men over 50)
• 2008 Battle on the Bluff, Tunica, MS: 3rd place, Grandmasters; 4th place, Men's Jr. Middleweight
• 2008 NPC Tennessee Championships, Murfreesboro, TN: 1st place, Grandmasters

Not bad for a newbie starting in his late 50's. It was an interesting process to say the least. We had to learn about entering, the weigh-in, mandatory posing, shaving, tanning, developing a posing routine and the flow of the competitions from pre-judging to the final show. I must say the most interesting and somewhat traumatic part of the process at first was figuring out the tan. This pic was taken in our hotel room, so you can see the difference in what the tan looks like in normal light vs. on stage (above).

This year he will compete in the following:

• NPC Battle on the Bluff, Saturday June 27, 7pm at Sam's Town Hotel and Casino in Tunica, MS
• NPC Teen, Collegiate and Master's Nationals, July 17/18, Pittsburgh, PA
• NPC Tennessee Championships, August 15, Murfreesboro, TN

He turns 60 in July, so the Pittsburgh and Murfreesboro events will be Grandmasters Over 60.

It's fascinating to watch his body change. He's still as lean in terms of body fat, but has put on several pounds of muscle in the last year. Not everyone has a God-given mesomorph body type, but it just shows that it's never too late in life to get started. A lot can be accomplished with hard training and balanced nutrition. I will continue to post our adventures along the way this year.

Chris Caudy of Next Level Training in Memphis is Jimmy's trainer in-season. Jimmy is a member of the NPC for competition purposes. Please see my disclosure statement.