At first I started so I could get stronger and faster at rugby as I had just came back from a training camp with the Glasgow Thistles in Perpignan. They had us basically living the 24hr athlete regime for two weeks in these warm weather conditions. So I came back from that in the middle of June and started going to the rugby club gym with a boy who was also in that camp. We followed the sheet they gave us and we saw some tiny gains in strength but nothing that people would recognise. I went to the gym a few times at the start of 2011 but it was kind of a mess about as we as "kids" had no clue what we should do and just stuck to the good old bench press and bicep curls (obviously no gains were ever made). So going to August 2011 I properly started to get committed and get a grip of what we should BE doing. My friend Jonny and I went 3 times a week after school and on the weekend. We got a basic regime. Split workout but we never did squats or deadlifts for the first few months (quite regret this). So over Aug - Nov we saw improvements, our friends saw improvements and confidence came with this. But we were not doing the full regime just yet. So with the internet at our disposal we turned to gurus on YouTube such as The hodge twins, Scott Herman and Scooby. They gave us a really good insight since we were still amateurs. We then discovered the world of squats and deaflifts. This made the world of difference. We started these exercises in later December and the improvements were significant!! Our size grew as well as our strength and confidence. We were no longer the small ones, we now started to stand out. Deadlifts being the exercise that stood out the most started to rise and rise week after week. From 90kg last December which we started out to us lifting 210kg. We were impressed with ourselves. With a bit of commitment and motivation we started achieving what we thought sit ups would do (how wrong I was). I look back on what I used to be like and can even imagine it. The change has been crazy! It has changed me mentally and physically. The benefits come as well with. I went through the patch of doing it for the females so I could attract them but now I am definitely doing it for myself and I could not imagine what my life would be like if I did not go to the gym. **** probably! :D

The mentality and the way people view what they have achieved. Ego's do not get involved. It is you with your calloused hands and the bar. No one else. You strive to better yourself. The scale of you knowing if you have achieved better is how many filthy, rusty plates are on that bar and how many times you can push it or pull it up. I love working out because it has grown a part of me. Life would not be the same without it.