Good question. For me I admit as a kid I wanted to be bigger but I always wanted to be powerful. I looked up to all the famous powerful guys like Ted Arcidi( first man to bench 700 pounds), Bill Kazmier( former world record holder) Ken Lain and a few other powerful guys. One guy in particular was a powerlifter I always saw in the magazines and he was also a world record holder at bench press. Fortunately my brother, my cousin and I got the opportunity to see him at a gym and train with him, he more less gave us pointers and advice. I remember seeing him bleed from the nose while squatting 900 pounds for reps. Say what you want to about his lifts and bodyweight but the guy was strong as hell. As a young 20 something year old kid he intimidated me without a doubt but he was the nicest guy ever and very quiet. I learned a few things from him and a few others that I didn't get the opportunity to meet. I was just a kid with a dream. Being an athlete this route took me far ahead of alot of other athletes I competed with. Anyways thanks for posting this. Memories

EDIT: I tell kids to follow your dreams. I surely did. No one can tell you your destiny.

I started training when I was locked up- picked up on a warrant for violating felony probation. Had been on the run, failure to appear before my PO, homeless for around 6mos winter of 07’. IV drug user. Heroin, crack, coke. You name it. Did 6mos, took a program, and a half way house after. Stayed sober one day at a time and Substituted training and the gym and a new routine/way of life for using. Made a lot of mistakes along the way but never went back to using. Fitness changed my life. I will be forever grateful for that time spent incarcerated.

I started to work out when I was 12 because of severe CPTSD. I’ve been working out one way or another ever since. I’m 50 now and I still hit the gym three times a week religiously. It’s my therapy so I can’t stop or I’ll end up being locked up again.

Reason I started was beccause my father was big into Olympic lifting. Winning State Championships when he was 16yr olds, then setting a bunch of state records once he was older. Winning National titles, and winning Pan American. Elgibal for Olympics. It was just a natural thing for me to be curious what he does. Its hard finding gyms that allow Olympic Lifting around me in MD. He is 83yr old and still lifting. Still ribbing me how he can lift more than me.Ill be like him lifting until my grave.

Started training in high school. Early 20’s started drinking and partying, stopped training. Drank hard liquor everyday for roughly 15/16 years as some of you already know. Watched my life spiraling out of control, along with my wife who drank every day with me. Decided to get my life back, stopped cold turkey like it was nothing. She had a harder time than me with it and continued to drink even after being diagnosed with cirrhosis. I had around 1 year of sobriety as I helplessly watched her drink herself to death. Right when it seemed all hope was lost, she miraculously put the bottle down for good. Here we are today 7 years sobriety for me and close to 6 for her. I started training again and completely transformed my physical and mental to what it should have been. It’s an amazing feeling to be able to get something back that you thought was gone forever.

Fortunate I had an older friend who was pretty jacked all natty and got me into training, taught me how to lift. He read Arnold's encyclopedia of bodybuilding so I'm indirectly a product of that.
As I've stated getting up in age I just had the realization, there's no excuse, I should be in the best shape of my life. To me, there's no higher calling as a man. Being in shape feeds into motivation, wealth building, success with women, friends and life in general.

to get bitches

Fanny

Left the military fair few year ago, currently a paramedic, nothing really scratched my 'physical needs' itch outside that life, hit the gym and haven't stopped since!

My mom started training me.when I was 14yrs old and now I'm training my mom at 65 yrs old

Started due to American HS football, sedentary office work is what now drives me to work out / be very active.

I had a, very regrettable, girl i dated for several years in my mid 20's who did a hell of a job playing me against a guy who was "just a friend" and him against me. I was kinda fat, drank way too much and didn't really have much in terms of goals. I cut out the alcohol, reduced the portions of my meals, reduced my snacking and started exercising. And it was all because i wasn't going to let that fucker win. While i certainly learned some important life lessons from that failed relationship. It was not a pleasant experience.

These days i do it because i like the results i get from it. I'm not particularly in love with the process. There is something enjoyable about surpassing my old limits though. I just want to look and feel good though. I look around at other guys in their early to mid 40's and at least half of them or more are overweight or skinny fat. I don't want to be like that ever again.

I started when I was in high school because I couldn't get a girlfriend. I was 6'2" and 140 lbs. I got made fun of and some people would try to pick on me. However, I knew how to fight because of BJJ and Taekwondo so it didn't work out too well for most of those people. Around the age of 25 I started getting bigger and women started to notice me. From that point I got hooked on being muscular looking. Fast forward to 2018, a woman I really loved broke my heart and I went of the deepend into depression and contemplated suicide a few times. Never tried but thought about it. Got fat that lead into health issues. Then my grandmother passed away. That's when I looked at life through a different glass. I started eating right, counting my macros, went into a defficit, did cardio daily and pushed off a lot of that fat. Now, I still have the pudge, and I am working on getting that off. It's mainly in my belly and love handles. everything else is almost paper thing. Including my face became a little gaunt looking. So, I am eating 5% above my maint calories with more protien than carbs. I still do cardio and I workout for 2-4 hours a day, depending on the muscle group. I am working my way up to 190-200 and then plan on cycling again. I did get a above average clean bill of health since getting back into some what of shape. I'm going to treat my cycles like I did when I started. Starting with Test then slowly progressing from there. Once I get to where I want, I will stop cycling. I am not going to be blasting and crusing. Just bump, 16 weeks off, bump, 16 weeks off. I am in my 40's so this path is a whole new road for me.

Idk I’m addicted to it so I have to work out otherwise I slowly start transitioning into a vagina.
It started when I had a cellmate who was a bodybuilder and I was like the only kid in my town who had gone away to jail and I just thought how cool I’d look if right when I got out I went to a party or something and was just jacked as fuck and fresh out. And then I just have been like obsessed ever since. I never could stay out of trouble tho and could never stick to it for more than like 2 months until the last few years. But I’m just obsessed and idk why

Started lifting as a football player in Like 7th grade but never super serious then after I graduated I got tired of looking at that 140lb guy in the mirror who always got picked on beat up and rejected and started again then became addicted for the next few years. Got married and stopped for several years but then got back in in 2010 and never stopped again. My body has fluctuated based on depression and life but I always at least carve out 1 hr per day to at least work out. Until covid hit then it broke the streak and I got real fat and real depressed got up to 270lbs at one point because no gyms and being back in the dating world until one woman I was dating texted another dude that I was unattractive and disgusting and dumped me so I got back in serious again and pulled back down to 218 with abs and have never been happier

Got picked on my whole childhood when I was old enough to get a membership to start working out I did. I told my self I would get be enough that know one would want to fuck with me.

Wasn’t really even a conscious thought. Dad left the picture when I was an infant, so it was mom and the grandparents. Grandparents were the Staff Sargent and Second Lieutenant, fitness was encouraged from a very young age. As I grew up it simply progressed. Always felt natural though, there were a couple beasts in my family.

Training was mandated upon me by my elders