FOCUS
ON THE
GOOD
HEATH TALKS
ABOUT THE
FUTURE OF
BODYBUILDING
AND HANGING
OUT WITH
OTHER PROS.WHAT DO YOU
THINK OF THE
FUTURE OF
THE SPORT OF
BODYBUILDING?If you listened to what
David Pecker said at the
last Olympia, he was
stressing that everyone
who has an interest in
the sport needs to
stop being so negative.Stop the hate that
comes after someone
wins. That negativity
is dragging us all
down. Everyone who
competes and wins
should be exalted.
Everyone likes to say
that bodybuilding is
dying. It’s growing! It’s
growing in so many
ways! Be positive about
that fact. This is all
David Pecker’s way of
saying “I’m all in—show
the world that you likethis sport. Don’t let the
Internet drag us down.”DO YOU HANG
OUT WITH
OR TRAIN WITH
OTHER PROS MORE
WHEN YOU TRAVEL
FOR CONTESTS?
You know what, not as
much as I think I should.
I’m always game for
either of those things,
but the others, for
whatever reason, not
so much. If I’m in
Moscow with Dexter
Jackson, I’m going to
say to him, “How about
we train together? How
about we go check out
the city?” Because
those are the memoriesthat are going to last—
that time I worked out
in Russia with Dexter,
or that time we drove
around Moscow
together. When it’s all
said and done, we’ll
have photos that will
lead to stories, more
than just memories of
planes and stages. In
the movie Pumping
Iron, they held genuine
relationships. I don’t
understand why more
guys don’t take me up
on the offer, on the road
or at home. When you
have a champ offering
to train with you, why
not? I relished the
opportunity, myself,
when I had the chance.FLEXONLINE.COM 55ASK THE CHAMP
PER BERNAL
BY PHIL HEATH
SIX-TIME MR. OLYMPIA (2011-16)