Compete in a bodybuilding competition.

“I couldn’t see their faces. It was mostly a blur. You are on stage for only a few minutes before the judges determine the placings of the competitors. And to this day, I will never forget my number (№ 87) being called out as the winner of the men’s amateur bodybuilding competition. [...] To my surprise, lightning struck twice! I won first place in the Rising Star division! I hadn’t completely come to terms with the first win, let alone the second. A feeling of elation and disbelief swept over me. I was in complete shock!”

“Competitor Meeting: The morning of the show we had an 8:30am competitor meeting before the show started at 9am. During this competitor meeting we were barked at by the promoter and some of the judges, saying this was a big show and we would only have 15 seconds per routine. Absolutely no t-walks, and if your routine exceeded 15 seconds you would be asked to leave the stage (I was told later this was indeed enforced). We were also told that there was incredibly limited space backstage, with only certain areas along walls where we could put our stuff, and to make sure we didn’t bring too much stuff backstage. Also, the air conditioning in the ballroom was broken, on what was forecasted to be a 95 degree day.”

“To be brutally honest, I spent so much time pondering the decision to compete! I was so nervous to make a firm decision. The idea of standing half-naked in front of hundreds of strangers and a row of judges, just didn’t sit well with me. I repeatedly asked myself: “why am I wanting to do this?” It wasn’t until the end of 2016, I decided that getting on stage meant pushing myself outside of my comfort zone. It wasn’t to win but, rather, to see what I was capable of.”