Flex Lewis

Lewis' interest in bodybuilding began at the age of 12 after discovering a book on Tom Platz. It was Platz's legs, he claims, that inspired Lewis to join a gym and start bodybuilding. Arnold Schwarzenegger was one of Lewis' biggest idols as a child.

One day, when Lewis was home alone, he had scouted his father's shed and came across plastic weights, that his parents wouldn't allow him to use. Despite his parent's prohibition, Lewis would take the weights and hide them under his bed, performing various exercises every night with them, before his parents found out and took them back. This was his introduction to weight training.

At the age of 15 Lewis stepped into a gym for the first time. He had played rugby at a high school level and he needed to gain some size for the sport. After coming across a local bodybuilder by the name of Steve Naylor, he was told that his physique had great potential. He took heed in the advice and trained with Naylor for a year, before he entered his first bodybuilding competition, the Junior Mr. Wales, which he promptly won.[2]

Lewis had a tattoo printed on his left arm at the age of 15, which he claims had stretched and morphed itself completely around his arm as they grew in size. Rugby also introduced Flex to weight training for increasing super power and he consequently has the ability to lift an enormous weight and hold it for long periods of time. He is superbly confident, greatly enjoying self-admiration and showing off his physique which is the result of a strict diet.[3]

Lewis' nickname, 'Flex’, originated on the rugby pitch instead of the weights room. Lewis was noted for flexibility during his years playing elite level rugby in his native Wales, and this allowed him to avoid any number of tackles.

At Lewis' first competition, he met International Federation of BodyBuilding & Fitness (IFBB) Pro Neil Hill who convinced him to try the Y3T method of training. Hill helped Lewis master the rigors of diet planning and he won the Junior Mr. Britain title just four weeks later. After establishing himself on stage in the UK, Lewis headed to the U.S. where he trained at Gold’s Venice and Milos Sarcev’s Kolosseum Gym. As a seven-time winner of Mr. Olympia 212, Lewis is recognised as possessing the world’s greatest 212 physique.

Lewis began to train seriously as a bodybuilder after his graduation, and made rapid progress.[4]

• Official website
• FLEXOnline