"Now in his mid-40s, Neal Hamilton is taking a crack at being Mr. Olympia.The Brookswood bodybuilder and personal trainer plans to retire after taking part in the 2009 INBA Natural Olympia competition in Queensland, Australia next November.
Hamilton, 44, qualified for the event after placing second at the INBA nationals in Vancouver in August 2007.
He fell just short of a world natural bodybuilding title back in 2005, when he placed second at the FAME World Natural Sports Organization (WNSO) Bodybuilding Championships in Toronto. Back then, Hamilton flexed to second place in both the masters (40 years and older) and advanced divisions.
Looking ahead to 2009, Hamilton, a three-time western Canadian champion in natural bodybuilding, said he will give it "110 per cent."
"I want to be number one in the world," Hamilton said. "I'm planning on probably retiring so I think I'll give it one more shot, to see if I can become world champion."
By natural bodybuilding standards, Hamilton is a veteran, but he's far from a greybeard.
"Competitors are anywhere from 30 to 45," he said, "because it takes that long to get that muscle maturity. I'm getting up there, getting to the top age. It gets harder on your body as you get older. Your joints start getting a little sore, and being older, your metabolism is a little slower."
Hamilton's first competition was more than a quarter of a century ago, in 1982, a year in which he finished fifth in B.C.
He said the sport has evolved meteorically since the days of Pac Man, Magnum, P.I., and E.T.
"Back then, they didn't have any natural competitions," he said. "As far as I know, around 1990, they started having tested shows, in which they test for steroids."
A personal trainer as well as a bodybuilder, Hamilton speaks to high school students about the pitfalls of steroid use and abuse.
"There is always a little temptation to get bigger, but I know what the bad side effects are," Hamilton said. "[Steroids] are not a quick fix sort of deal. In the long run, when you get older, you'll have the bad side effects and something will happen."
Steroids are a ticking time bomb, Hamilton warned, noting that the muscle-enhancing drugs can lead to such life-altering - and in some cases life-threatening - ailments as kidney and liver complications and severe depression, just to name some of the laundry list of side effects.
"One person that I know is on a kidney dialysis machine because [of steroids]," Hamilton said.
Living an honest lifestyle, without the use of muscle enhancing drugs, takes sacrifice, a trait Hamilton is very familiar with. Prior to his second place finish at the 2002 world event, Hamilton shrunk from 235 pounds to 178 pounds over a four-month period, living on chicken, fish, brown rice, and potatoes while drinking the equivalent of several swimming pools full of water.
And leading up to events, Hamilton said that he trains five days a week, one-and-a-half hours per day.
"This is what I know my whole life. Bodybuilding is a passion of mine. It's an addiction to stay in good shape. There are some days when I feel more tired than others, but I always push myself," Hamilton said. "I think that's what made me become a champion - to go that extra mile."
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Source: http://www.canada.com/langleyadvance/news/sports/story.html?id=72bf76b9-d376-4c52-a2cb-22207c4ba0f0