Name: Benny Elzweig Before Stats Age: 23 Height: 5’4″ Weight: 170 lbs Body fat: 22% After stats Age: 23 Height: 5’4″ Weight: 140...
Name: Benny Elzweig
- Age: 23
- Height: 5’4″
- Weight: 170 lbs
- Body fat: 22%
- Age: 23
- Height: 5’4″
- Weight: 140 lbs
- Body fat: 8%
I’ve always struggled to be more like the average person, whether it is academics or physical appearance. Learning disabilities led to countless hours with tutors. While my friends were hanging out, I was still at school meeting with teachers. At one point in high school, I was up to seven tutors per week. This took its toll on me in many ways. I was drained of all my energy and had little time to address my physical appearance. I stood 5-foot-4 and my metabolism was below average. Even my parents yearned to help me avoid the hardships of my small stature. After many months of painful shots of human growth hormone, I took it upon myself to find another way to feel large in life—bodybuilding. I reached my goals and the transformation left me confident and empowered. Life became more enjoyable and sports were easy. Even though I lacked talent and experience, I pushed through guys who were a foot taller and ran circles around those who weren’t subjected to five interval sprints per day. People respected my accomplishments and yearned to understand what it took to achieve similar goals. I developed the knowledge and expertise that attracted and impressed those I once longed to be. Now, going into the workforce, I plan to apply the same principals while maintaining my healthy lifestyle and work ethic.
2. What was your exercise routine like?
My exercise routine was constantly varied but always intense. I Switched the specific excercises I did every week but hit the all the muscle groups of the body to stimulate growth. I am a huge fan of using heavy weights and doing high reps, I believe it is the best way to to get stronger and force the muscle to grow. Stretching before, during, and after the workout is a great way to avoid injuries but also the best way to increase blood flow to the muscles in order to get the nutrients where they need to be. In terms of cardio, whether it was on the treadmill, at the track, or on the rower, short bursts of intense work followed by a moderate pace to recover helped me to burn fat and increase my ability to cope with taxing cardiovascular workouts.
Photo Credit: Todd Shapera
My diet was a pretty consistent formula that I rarely strayed from. Eating 5-6 small meals a day helps to rev up metabolism and burn fat. My diet consisted of a large portion of protein, some fat, and a couple days a week would include some carbohydrates. I ate each of these meals about 2-3 hours apart which also helped me not to binge eat and kept me on a strict schedule. After eating my lunch which was the biggest meal, I would fast for a bout 3-4 hours before an intense workout. After the workout I would refuel with mainly, arginine, creatine, and glutamine with vitamin C, followed by another large meal.
4. Any mistakes you made during the whole process
There are always speed bumps like injuries, social and dietary temptations, and illnesses. I struggled with a hernia, pulled muscles, and late-night food cravings. I overcame my injuries with less intense workouts and rest. To address the cravings, I went to sleep early or filled up on water. Mistakes are a natural part of learning but with every mistake you make you learn from it and add the reconstructed lesson back to your regimen.
5. Recommendation for people who want to get into shape just like you.
It doesn’t matter where you start, there are always ways to improve and transform into a better you. Stick to a policy of simplicity. Eat clean, high protein, moderate fat, and low carbs. Always stay in the gym and constantly vary your workouts, never be satsified with your results and always keep tenacity in the gym. I no longer strive to be average; I try to be the best I can be. I will accomplish my goals and so can you.
