Matthew North
WPM's Inspiration of the Month/ Featured Athlete - August 2011
Interviewed by: Mike Hall
Nominated and Photos by: BBPics
After placing first in his class, while being the youngest competitor in the NGA Potomac Cup Natural Bodybuilding show, Matthew North has stuck being true to who he is. Most people display their trophies in a very visual setting to show it off, but Matthew, though very proud of it, does not display his for all to see. It is kept in his room to remind him to pursue his training goals and to always remain humble.
Not meaning to sound cliche, but Matthew remembers being the smallest kid in his grade. “I was one of the weakest and struggled to bench 115 pounds”, says Matthew. He never gave up and used everyone’s negative jokes against him to push him even harder to achieve his goals. Transforming his body was never intended to impress anyone. It was a personal goal of his to be the best that he could be.
When Matthew was younger, he had a very bad stutter. He went to speech therapy all throughout elementary school. The problem persisted through middle school and to the beginning of high school. Just like his ability to transform his body, he was able to overcome his speech impediment. “Through transforming my physique, I knew anything was possible. I gained more confidence and no longer stuttered. It was very embarrassing”, states Matthew.
There is much more to life than just the gym for Matthew. He is now a college student at the University of Mary Washington, majoring in Business. “I consistently hold an A-B average. I will obtain my degree in two short years and hope to have a successful job to be able to raise a wonderful family”, he says. He currently commutes to school 4 days a week, which is about 50 minutes each way.
Matthew has overcome so many obstacles in life but, he remains progressing and becoming better. His message to all of our readers is, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" Philippians 4:13. Never give up!
"...As I walked on stage, I made myself remember why I was there. It was not to expect to win, but to do the best that I could. No matter what the outcome, I still got to experience it and see what kind of shape I could put my body in. When I came into the show I had low expectations, but was shocked with the outcome. I placed first in my class, and lost by ONE point in the overall!"
WP: Welcome Matthew. Let’s begin with you telling us a little about yourself.
Thank you! I’m glad to be here. First, I would like to thank you, World Physique, for giving me the opportunity of exposure into the fitness world. It has been a dream of mine to have my accomplishments recognized by a reputable company like World Physique.
WP: You are so welcome! We are always happy to bring out new talent and great stories of accomplishments such as yours. It gives up hope and inspiration. You started training very young, didn’t you?
I did! I have been training since my sophomore year in high school. The "bug" bit me and I haven't stopped since. I am still training at my local high school gym where it all began. Where I train is a part of me. It stands for who I am. It is nothing fancy, but the personalities and the environment there inspire me, and keep me on track everyday when I walk through that door. The gym reminds me of who I was when I first began my training and keeps me on track mentally; no matter where I might go physically. I am always willing to help other members at the gym; I feel it is my responsibility to pay it forward.
Outside of the gym and competing, I love to just hang out. I am always with my friends or with my family. We all like to kick back, relax and enjoy life. When I am not at school, I work for The Home Depot in the summer. I played football since I was seven years old and loved every minute of it. I loved the camaraderie between all of my teammates and wouldn’t give it away for anything.
WP: What was it that made you know without a doubt that you wanted to go into bodybuilding?
This is a hard question. I knew I wanted to transform my body and see how far I could push it. Once I started seeing results and started training every body part, rather than just the “beach muscles,” I really took a liking to the sport. It was a huge change for me. What people outside of this industry don’t realize is that bodybuilding is a lifestyle. It is something that you have to stay dedicated to 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You have to have extreme dedication and will power to put yourself through the countless boring meals and the hours spent in the gym. Bodybuilding is something that I love, and do not do it for anybody else but for myself. It is a sport where you can always set new goals for yourself, achieve them, and then make new ones.
WP: You won first in your class in your only and first competition? Tell us a little bit about your experience while competing.
Yes, I have competed in only one show with the NGA. It is an all natural federation that is based mostly on the east coast. I went into the show with low expectations. I was competing against myself, not anybody else. Everyone works extremely hard to get their body in shape for the day of the show. All of the competitors deserve recognition for their hard work; whether they place or not. While backstage, everyone treated each other like family. The camaraderie is like no other. Everyone treats each other with respect and even though they are your competition, they can still find the heart to give the other guy a compliment on their hard work.
I went into my first show weighing 154 pounds. When I began dieting, I weighed around 175 pounds. Since this was my first show, I decided to compete in the Men’s Novice Lightweight Division. I was the youngest to enter in the show on that day. As I walked on stage, I made myself remember why I was there. It was not to expect to win, but to do the best that I could. No matter what the outcome, I still got to experience it and see what kind of shape I could put my body in. When I came into the show I had low expectations, but was shocked with the outcome. I placed first in my class, and lost by ONE point in the overall! I could not have been any happier with my performance and couldn’t have done it with out the Lord behind me every step of the way. Now that I got my feet wet, I plan to compete in the open division and obtain my pro card from the NGA.
More interview under picture.
WP: What a great story! Do you have any advice to people that wish to improve and/or transform their body?
Yes, dedication and perseverance. I can not express that enough. When bodybuilding, you have to remember it is not a sprint, it is a marathon. Results do not come to you overnight. It is something that you have to work on and believe in for months to achieve the type of goals you desire. The first thing that I recommend is to get your diet down pat. If you do not have a steady diet then you will not grow. Think of your body as a car, you need gas to make it run. Just like food, you need quality food to make yourself reap the benefits. I like to say that diet is 80% and training is 20%. You can only lift for so long in the gym, but diet is 24 hours a day. There is no miracle solution out there, just hard work and dedication.
WP: Spoken like a true champ! Talking about how important diet is, give us a break down of your diet.
Ok, to me this is the most important aspect of seeing results. My sample diet is as following:
Meal 1: 4 whole eggs, 1/2 cup of oatmeal
Meal 2: 1 can tuna, banana, 28 almonds
Meal 3 (Lunch): 150 g. chicken breast, 1/2 cup brown rice, 1 cup of broccoli
Pre-Workout: 2 Scoops Scivation Xtend, 5 g. Creatine Monohydrate, 8 oz. grape juice
Post-Workout: 2 Scoops Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey Gold Standard, 8 oz. grape juice with 5 g. Creatine Monohydrate
Meal 4: 1 can tuna, 1/2 cup brown rice
Meal 5: 150 g. chicken breast (or other lean meat), 1/2 cup brown rice, 1 cup broccoli
Meal 6: 1 Scoop Optimum Nutrition Casein, 1 tbsp. peanut butter
This is only a sample. This is my diet that I stick to year round, but not for competing. I follow this as much as I can, but don’t get me wrong; I still like to go out to eat with my buddies.
WP: It’s impressive to see you taking grape juice with your Creatine. First person I have seen do that since I’ve been interviewing, that I can recall. Well done! Do you allow yourself a cheat day? If so, what is it that you usually eat when you do?
I like to call it a cheat meal. I do not go the whole day eating whatever I want. I like to go out to the local Chinese restaurant or just go out to the grocery store and get something loaded with sugar! As with anything, keep everything in moderation. It doesn’t have to always be so strict; we all have to live a little.
WP: What supplements do you take? Are there any outside what you mentioned above?
We all know there is no miracle supplement out there that will make you gain 10 pounds of muscle in 2 weeks, so I stick to my “bread and butter” supplements. I use Optimum Nutrition’s Gold Standard Whey and Casein, and also their Creatine Monohydrate with some added BCAA’s. I throw in a multi-vitamin and call it a wrap. The rest is up to you in your diet to achieve the amount of gains that you desire.
WP: Who can you thank for getting to where you are now?
First, and most importantly, I would like to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I am nothing with out his help and guidance.
Also, of course, my family and wonderful grandparents has helped me so much. They have such a huge impact on my life and would do anything for me. I would do the same for them no matter the circumstances. They have been supportive through out my entire road to success. I don’t know what I would be without them.
Lastly, I would like to thank my Coach, who I would like to call part of my own family, Coach Jim Pulchine. Coach has been such a huge impact on my life and has been with me ever since I started my journey in bodybuilding. Coach taught me the ropes and guided me every step. I learned a lot from him and wouldn’t trade it for anything.
WP: You should be very proud of your transformation! How do you keep the physique you have? What is the hardest thing for you to maintain in your physique?
Good question. The hardest thing for me to maintain and keep up to par are my abdominals. If I stray away from my diet for too long, I tend to lose them. That is the first area that I begin to see the fat pile on. I am going to try to stay leaner year round and not worry about the “bulking stage,” which basically means put fat on rather than quality muscle.
WP: Tell me about your future projects. Have any in sight?
I would like to say my accomplishments so far are just the beginning. I hope to have more opportunities in the future to bring this sport to life and use my character to show the positive aspects of the bodybuilding industry. My dream would be to one day get published in a magazine so I could influence others like they have influenced me to get into the sport.
WP: Give me a sample of your workout.
Monday
Supersets:
Tuesday
Wednesday
Superset:
Thursday
Superset
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
WP: If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
To be honest; I wouldn’t change anything. I am blessed to be who I am. I have been blessed with great family and friends, and wouldn’t trade them for the world!
WP: I understand you worked with John at bbpics.com; which submitted you as a feature. What was it like working with him?
Yes, I have. John Mitchell is the reason why I got this grand of an opportunity to work with your company. John is professional at what he does and put me on the correct path in this business. The experience was like no other. I couldn’t expect anymore from him. He went above and beyond my expectations. During our shoot, he let me shine by letting me make decisions and being open to all of my questions. John is an incredible photographer and can make the pictures look amazing no matter what the conditions are outside. John definitely knows what he is doing and would love to work with him again in the future. He has been very honest and very pleasing to work with. I would recommend him to anyone that would like to further their fitness career.
WP: Are you currently in a relationship or have any plans for the future?
Well, I am currently single and still looking for the “one.” I cannot wait to meet that special girl that I can share my life with. Meeting that someone is very special to me and is nothing taken lightly. I am excited for what is in store for the future. I hope to have a wonderful family and raise my children with the same values that I was brought up with.
WP: I’m sure you have women all around you! Ha-ha! But, I wish you luck on finding that “someone special”. Is there anything else you would like to add? Now is the time!
I think I have said just about everything! I really appreciate your time and for giving me this opportunity to show who I am. I am very excited for what is in store for the future. It has been a pleasure working with World Physique.
WP: You have been a pleasure to interview! Thank you for your time and good luck in your future bodybuilding endeavors!
