Lock Delight at National Success

Beverley body-builder Paul Lock says he’s “absolutely buzzing” after clinching a superb second place in the National Amateur Body-Building Association finals last weekend.

Paul, 37, of Grovehill Road, saw off the cream of Britain’s body-builders in Southport to earn himself qualification for the world-renowned Mr Universe competition.

It rounds off more than five months of the most intense training possible, which saw him shed more than three stone and push his body to the edge of destruction in pursuit of his goal.

Paul told HU17.net: “This makes everything all worthwhile and I am really buzzing about it.

“I’d worked that hard that on the day my feet hurt and it was difficult to sit down because I had lost so much body fat in training.

“It was a great day and it was so well organised. Everyone was looked after and everyone got on, even though there was a lot of tension.

“It feels strange now because I don’t have to get out of bed so early and I can get back to living a normal life. Towards the end I have no energy and I can’t even drive a car!”

In what would appear to be the most individual and selfish of sports, there’s no doubt Paul attributes a massive amount of his success to his partner, Natalie Lee.

The couple bring up their fifth anniversary this month, and Paul was keen to pay tribute to Natalie’s dedication to his cause.

He continued: “We are best friends and are a team.

“If I have a bad moment Natalie is there for me. She is the only person I rely on and she will be very objective in telling me how I am looking and how my training is going.

“There are times when I can barely function and Natalie has to do everything – work in the shop, walk the dogs, do the shopping, everything.

“It can be done on your own, but it is a lot easier when someone is there and I can rely her on 100 per cent.”

Natalie admits there are not many partners who would put up with what she describes is often “him, him, him”.

But Natalie, who met Paul when the pair worked in Princes Quay and knew nothing about body-building at the time, says she would not have it any other way.

She said: “It is a very selfish sport and that’s why so many body-builders are single.

“There are times when I have to take over everything, but it is Paul’s life and it is something I am happy to do.

“It can be very hard work and he can go into a world of his own. But it is my choice, I am happy to do it and when it pays off it is well worth it. We have a really good relationship.”

Now in the off season, Paul is currently enjoying being able to eat what he wants, when he wants, and within four days of the competition he says he had already put on more than a stone in weight.

He is also concentrating on his business – NAR products – which produces his own-recipe, natural supplements to help with weight loss while training.

But he has only given himself a week off before he gets back to his intense weight training, although the diet is somewhat less severe.

He continued: “I hate dieting – everyone would like to eat rubbish all the time.

“This is the time when I do my more intense work with the weights. You need to eat a carbohydrate-rich diet and build up weight, which helps to cushion the joints and make it easier on your body when you do the heavy weights.

“Even in the off season I get a buzz, seeing my body grow again. I can train and eat and grow.

“But then there is the other buzz, when you start dieting and losing weight and see yourself get thinner.

“But I am finished in competitions this year. I am not entering this year’s Mr Universe and am taking my time before getting ready for next year’s competitions.”

Some of the medals won by local Bodybuilder Paul Lock