Episode 39: Kyler Jackson - The Larger Calling of Muscle Building

Over the last 9 years, Kyler Jackson hasn't missed a workout. When he started the journey, he was a depressed teen looking to bulk up to protect himself. Today, he's an up-and-coming coach, YouTuber, and the newly crowned Bodybuilding.com Spokesmodel Contest Winner. He shares his story with us.

Highlights:

- How he found his place in fitness, and found refuge in the gym

- On his first few workouts: "I remember an empowering feeling, a feeling of having control of my own life or an aspect of my life."

- "Once you actually get into it and you start, it becomes very clear very quickly that you have control over this thing, and you can become who you want to if you really put the effort in."

- On the loneliness of his early days in the gym, and how he found community there

- The most popular T-shirt in his clothing line? "Leave me alone."

- The struggle and thrill of being an introvert onstage in bodybuilding

- "The first time I [set foot on stage, I] definitely blacked out, and then kind of glimpses of it came back to me over time."

- On how fitness helped him control his depression and "balance out extremes"--and how he became a little too extreme with his own fitness

- What he would tell his teen self now: "That he could enjoy his life a whole lot more."

- Why he feels like pre-show water depletion is a ritual that needs to end

- On his experience with an early version of the Super League training competition

- Post-Super League: "It felt like stepping off a football field, like you just gave something your absolute all, and your brain is gone, your adrenaline is pumping like no other. It was just a different feeling, but it was really cool."

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