Although phil heath's time has passed, there is no denying that he is the best bodybuilder of the last decade. He deserves to be called "The king".
But who knew he was a professional basketball player in his earliest days? The fact that he went from a 70kg basketball player (phil heath is only 1.75m tall) to a 107kg mr olympia champion in the last 20 years is an inspiration to anyone who loves bodybuilding or is working towards their goals.
Today we look back at how he went from being a small basketball player (1.75m is short for basketball) to becoming one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time (7 times mr. Olympia champion)
One thing you must know about bodybuilding in this day and age is that phil heath is one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time. However, gaining such accolades hasn't always come easy to him, so let's take our time.
With seven mr olympia titles to his name, heath's reign over the sport is undoubtedly very iconic and has been the subject of many documentaries.
While the future of phil's career is now somewhat uncertain, it is clear that he remains passionate about the sport. Although he didn't get the victory he wanted from his return in 2020, he has the respect and admiration of audiences around the world.
However, achieving all this did not come overnight. He had to work harder to build and maintain that body, to become one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time through constant victories.
Recently, he decided to look back on his journey of transformation and took to social media to reflect on his own changes. Here, he recalls how he started as an 18-year-old high school student and continued through to his first defence of the mr olympia title.
In march 1998, at the age of 18, phil heath was sweating it out on the state championship circuit in golden domes, seattle, washington, when he was just 70kg.
And by september 2012, at the age of 32, phil heath was in las vegas, successfully defending his mr olympia title. At this point he would have weighed 107kg. This seemingly easy defence of his title took more than 10 years of hard work.
He was once a kid full of ambition, desire and passion! As a young basketball player he was the kind of kid who could shoot open threes, while he was so passionate on defence that he had five stitches over his right eye in the last minutes of the game. He came back after changing his jersey because of the bleeding, hitting a free throw and grabbing a crucial rebound to help his team win the game. The final score of the game was 44 points for phil heath's rainier beach over 40 points for "Olympia" High school! This seemed to be a sign that he would beat everyone at olympia.
While defending his title in 2012, he also finished filming his first documentary on the man who seems to be relaxed, phil heath is actually as nervous as he was on the basketball court more than 10 years ago, eager to win. He managed to apply the grit, passion and aggression that he once showed on the basketball court to bodybuilding when he hadn't yet established himself in the position he is in now, but he knew he was on the right track for himself. He was always happy to hear the crowd cheering, but it wasn't until he calmed down that he embraced the role of champion. He won the race and it made him more confident and humbled because he knew he was competing against the best and hardest working people in the world, all giving their best.
Phil heath was once in two different worlds. But that basketball-loving boy created the best man in the world of bodybuilding. He kept the beginning, always performing better and reaching higher levels.
Phil heath's experience is so inspiring because after all these years, we now understand what kind of men these two were. Looking back on their journey full of ups and downs but also celebrating their moments of triumph.
All of us can reflect on our own journeys in life to celebrate even the smallest of victories, as they can give us great encouragement in dealing with new adversities. Do not hinder yourself from exploring a new self and becoming a person full of perseverance and gratitude for life.
