A Great Bodybuilding Story For Those Who Have Not Seen It

He was a quiet guy. The type of guy you pictured one day taking a gun out and going on a shooting rampage. He never spoke, just came to the gym in his dull, dingy attire and quietly lifted. From what I saw he was a forty something year old guy, who was overweight and worked out somewhat to keep in shape.

Although he never bothered anyone I noticed that he was the butt of many insults and jokes in the gym, most the members had given him the name ‘Pigpen’ since no one seemed to know his real name and he never conversed with the members of the gym.

He was quite simply an enigma in the gym.

I was young, had been lifting for about 4 years or so, thought I knew everything, thought steroids were evil, but I was enthusiastic and trained harder than the average gym goer. Our gym, although well equipped, was at the heart a fitness club. Most the members were more concerned with their hair, and clothing, being coordinated for the gym social scene.

Pigpen simply stuck out like sore thumb, I thought many times that he may know the things people said about him, it was obvious to me so I figured he must pick up on it. The members were cruel, a snicker here, a pinched nose there, all in jest of the quiet guy in his drab, baggy clothing. I didn’t see it as funny, more like insecure bullying, but Pigpen simply ignored it and kept on.

The owner was a friend of mine named Chris. He and I had worked together at another gym, he had been a competitive bodybuilder, but had since gone into the gym business and had a side business refurbishing homes. I usually spoke to Chris a couple times a week when I saw him, usually on the way out after I had finished my workout.

One such evening I was at the front desk talking with Chris and some of the front desk staff. Pigpen was walking by us to leave the gym, as he grasped the handle for the door, one of the staff made a coughing gesture and under his breath said “PIGPEN!”.

Pigpen didn’t ever flinch but I saw his eyes cut to his right, and I knew he definitely heard it, he walked out the door without even a hitch.

As the door shut, the girl at the front desk said to Chris “I don’t understand why you even let him workout here.” Chris looked at her with a glare and said calmly “As long as I am owner he will always be welcome here…do you understand?” she replied sheepishly “yes”.

Chris wasn’t finished, and I could tell he was pissed, but he kept his cool and looked at the two of them and said “That guy has been through hell and back, you need to show some f*cking respect.

Just because your mommy and daddy pay your bills doesn’t give you the right to judge someone you cannot understand!”. They looked completely astonished, and embarrassed, and they should have been.

I asked Chris what Pigpens deal was. Chris told us that Pigpen had been a successful guy at one time in his life, good career, was a competitive bodybuilder and had pro-potential. So I asked “what happened?” Chris replied “Life.”. As Chris went on to explain he had been raised by his father, he had no other family, his mother had died when he was only a toddler.

His father had developed a rare type of cancer, he had spent every penny he could trying to get medical care for his dad and keep him comfortable, in the end his father passed and he lost a good bit of money, his wife left him, and he had to quit competition.

He went through a struggle financially after that, and never really recovered, and then about five years ago he was in a car accident and he was nearly killed, he was in a coma for several months. The insurance settlement was enormous enough to help pay for his rehab and get him financially set for life, but not to the point where he was living on the high hog, just enough to live off.

We were all floored, I was speechless, I didn’t even know what to say. Chris looked at me and said “if you ever want to know something about bodybuilding…that’s the guy to ask”.

For several weeks after that, when I saw Pigpen at the gym, I really felt bad, I didn’t even know how to look at him anymore. People still poked fun at him, and it made me upset, but I just kept my head down and trained.

Then one day, I was doing chest, and Pigpen was right there doing some seated dumbbell curls, he was only using 30’s, never made sense to me how the guy looked like he was big, overweight, but big shoulders and chest, he must have weight near 280-290.

So I saw Pigpen pull up his long sleeve to scratch his arm, guess the big fella had an itch, but what I saw was one of the biggest f*cking forearms I have ever seen on a man, it was lumped with a system of hose veins. I was simply captivated by it.

So I walked up to Pigpen after his next set and said “Scuse me”. He turned slowly too look at me, almost as if there was something wrong with his neck, I felt nervous so I extended my hand and said “My name is Jay”.

He just looked at me, his face was almost expressionless. Chris had said he had gone through all that hard time, but he didn’t mention if he was still mentally all there.

Then he spoke. A gravely voice said “Craig…my name is Craig”. It was as if, he hadn’t been asked his name in so long that he had almost forgotten what it was-then he shook my hand with the most callous of hand I think I can ever remember shaking, he had a strong grip and his hands were as muscular as his forearm.

I asked him “How did you get your forearms so developed?” Craig told me he went to another gym to train heavy, that it was an old powerlifting gym and most of his forearm development had come from heavy deadlifts, rows, and shrugs. He asked me if I had ever done deadlifts, and I had but not on regularly, he looked at me and said “Gotta do deads kid”.

So you can understand as I was young and impressionable that the next back workout I hit deadlifts right away. I was weak at them, I thought 315 was going to break my back but I hung in there and pushed, or should I say, pulled.

I noticed Craig had been watching me while I was doing them.

After many months of practicing I got very good at them, I was up to 475 on deadlifts and my shoulders and traps were growing and people kept mentioning my forearms. I was so impressed by the results from one simple thing that I went to Craig frequently to get advice to him.

His advice was always so simple, seemed like it was always too easy of an answer, but it was always solid advice. People in the gym still treated him like sh**, but I was always cool to him, he had helped me out with great advice on many occasions and in the last year and a half I had gotten not only bigger but much stronger too, I was beginning to have the look of an actual bodybuilder. And it was mostly due to the enigmatic man who no one spoke to, except me.

Continues on page 2 …

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45 Comments

  2. Oh my God…I read the whole story and I can tell you for sure,it’s the most amazing story I’ve ever read…I ended up in tears. .

  9. The description of this Craig dude reminded me so much of Ronny Coleman! Or Kai Greene!
    It was so sad in the end it made me cry!

  10. As I read this story it motivated me to make sure that I don’t personally judge anyone. I’m in tears right now.

  12. Thank you for sharing. This motivated me to try my hardest at work, gym and life in general. RIP Craig.

  13. it was a story which stook me from inside
    I respect that man who had lost solo much in his life … the pain felt but still didn’t quiet …. respect

  16. wow…great story. Thank you for sharing. it just showed that we shouldn’t judge people by the way they look or cover of the book. You’re a good guy and you deserved it <3

  17. Craig … i would like to know his full name … I aint easy to impress but this …. Jeez buddy … made me cry …. would like to frame a picture of craig and hang it on my wall … please let me know his full name ill research him to hell and back if needed so to find a pic of him….

  18. Awesome Read!!! Very inspiring and great encouragement for positive hope. We should always lift up others as in this story, never hate always congratulate…. Now I am going to hit them Deadlifts!!!

  20. I read this the tears poured out from my eyes, a journey of sadness lifted by a simple gesture, hope turned from despair. Craig is a part of you now and always, respect for you, for the respect you showed him.
    So many in the gym have the attitudes that you pointed out, pre-judging someone, before you now them is a bad part of human nature.
    All the best for your pro career, take Craig to the top with you!

  22. It’s touching I’m here droken down now at work like I’ve known this guy but I lift daily but I love this story and hope to compete one day and my life

  23. Damm, this GODDAMM air is so polluted that my eyes start to make water run down from them, what a great story, only someone that has put their headphones on, know’s how it (story) feels….Respect!!!

  26. i m not a body building enthusiasts or gym goer but story touched me deeply and inspired me thanks for sharing such meaningful storry

  28. The story is touching but if only he got born again and gave himself to Jesus, he would have found more meaning to life than just developing the perishing body. Craig may your soul rest in piece.

  34. Am i looking in my future?? Cant tell…
    But life is never easy… tommorrw never comes.. untill its too late….
    Touched me…

  35. We meatheads who enjoy this type of stuff can’t help but tear up when you get all they way though. This needs to be made into a short movie somehow. It’s too good of a story . Much respect thanks for the story.

  38. Craigslist was the f***ing man!!! Every time I read this story, it motivates me to keep pushing. Life is hard, but that bar is just a thing.

  39. I’m so sorry for your loss and I am so thankful that you’ve known this man and helped him in a very small but soul touching way. Wishing is for the young and gullible but I really wish (with everything inside me) that things could have worked out differently. Mourning for both of you.

  43. I stopped about a paragraph in on page 3 — got the gist of it. SHAME on the gym members for singling out this guy just because he didn’t fraternize with the other gym members. Here’s my message to you: IT’S A GYM, NOT AN ICE CREAM SOCIAL. If you think yakking with strangers at a gym is so important, then GO TO PLANET FITNESS. “Pigpen” was there to WORK OUT, not butter up to you arrogant snobs. And that desk girl who asked the owner why he “even let him work out there,” … WHY NOT? HE PAYS HIS DUES. WHY NOT, BIMBO ??? I’m one of those gym goers who never speaks to anyone unless someone speaks to me first. I’m a woman. I swear, if I ever heard some floozie insulting me behind my back, I’d march straight over to her, force a 45 pound plate into her arms and challenge her to lift it overhead — 15 times, because that’s exactly what I can do. I’m there to get strong, not buff up my social skills. Don’t like it? TOO BAD. Go to Planet Fitness where everyone yaks and yaks and doesn’t take muscle building seriously.

  44. amazing man… this story motivating me right now i have tears on my eyes.
    thank you for this inspiring real story

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