Center Stage Magazine August-September | Page 146

fitness Breakthroughs Every superhero has their weaknesses. Superman is always weakened by Kryptonite. The Incredible Hulk is tamed every time he sees Betty Ross. Every individual has their weak and soft spots. Sometimes man is vulnerable too. We are challenged because of heartbreaks, failures, discrimination and rejection that often times lead to deterioration. But those hindrances along the way should not stop us from achieving our vision, goal, and mission. We must set these challenges as motivation to work our way up just like what Jeff Seid did – who was the youngest IFBB professional. He was born June 12th, 1994 in Renton, Washington, United States. He began playing sports at the age of five and was considered as essentially the beginning of what has become an epic journey. Jeff has always been very active and athletic kid growing up. He soon realized that being physically strong and in great shape helped and gave him an even greater advantage over his competition. This desire and overwhelming passion to be different than everyone else inspired him to begin lift weights at the age of twelve. It was this passion to be unique that gave him the drive and motivation to be the best and accomplish all that he can so that one day, when he dies, his name and legacy will live forever. During his senior high school, Jeff was an All-American wrestler, All-State football player, and had set multiple records in track. He had multiple full ride scholarships for football and wrestling and pretty much planned on having his college education paid for through sports. But sometimes life doesn’t happen the way you expect. During Jeff’s first football game of his senior year, he tore his ACL and was on the verge of shattered dreams. “It was a pretty depressing time in my life. Not only was my dream pf playing sports in college shattered but all of my scholarship offers were gone, leaving me with no way to pay college.”, Jeff explained. He tore his ACL second-time couple of months later after the first injury he got. “I thought my life was over.” Jeff laughed. A few days after his first surgery, he was on the bodybuilding website and he stumbled across the new bodybuilding category called Men’s Physique. Jeff had been training consistently for six years at that time and he knew that this was his calling. Needless to say, a month later after he tried it out and won the overall title at his first show. Exactly a year after his first competition, he went on to win the Jr. Nationals competition which made him the youngest IFBB Professional in history! Two months after becoming an IFBB Professional, Jeff won his first Pro show that qualified him to step on stage at the first ever Mr. Olympia Men’s Physique Showdown. “This is just the beginning of my journey that has taken me to various parts of the world and has introduced me many incredible people. I’m very excited about this new chapter in my life and to see what this world has in store for me!” Jeff said optimistically. “Train Insane or Stay the Same.”