Flex Wheeler is one of the most famous bodybuilders in the world of bodybuilding. Star climbing from championship to championship, muscle proportions, training programs have made him an idol of modern bodybuilders from beginners to professionals. The performance history of Flex Wheeler is impressive. But what is the athlete’s reckoning over the years of fame, titles and magazine photo shoots, and are Wheeler fans ready to go his way for success and awards?
Wheeler Anthropometry
Huge round muscles, incredible proportion and symmetry in the muscles allowed Arnold Schwarzenegger himself to once call Flex the most promising bodybuilder. Of course, simple genetics of mind-blowing results cannot be achieved; steroids are necessarily involved. Together, nature and pharmacology led to the following figures:
- Flex Wheeler height: 179 cm;
- competitive weight: 116 kg;
- off-season weight: 127 kg;
- biceps: 56 cm;
- waist circumference: 70 cm;
- chest: 142 cm;
- hip: 79 cm.
Wheeler Biography
On August 23, Flex Wheeler celebrates his birthday. Kenneth (this is the athlete's real name) was born in California in 1965. When Kenneth was a boy, his parents filed for divorce and decided to leave the child to raise their grandmother. Thanks to her, Ken did not fall under the influence of the hometown of Fresno, which was famous for crime and robbery. However, at school, Kenneth felt embarrassed, mainly because of his subtlety.
The atmosphere of his life and the city tended to constant self-defense, so Wheeler engaged in karate and began to attend the gym. Flex Wheeler in bodybuilding has found a lot for himself. Martial arts, amazing stretching and flexibility brought him success in this sport and a new pseudonym - Flex, which will become known very soon. At some point, Flex has to make a choice: a kimono or a gym.
Bodybuilding
Any professional sport requires considerable cash injections, so Wheeler needed finances. He went to serve in the police, but regarded work only as a source of funds. Having worked a bit as an officer, Flex Wheeler decides to devote himself entirely to bodybuilding and competitions. The first competition that Wheeler held at 18 did not bring him the proper result. The reason was insufficient muscle volume.
Proper nutrition and regular training yielded results, but this was not enough for ambitious Flex. It is during this period that the athlete decides to add steroids. The effect was not long in coming, and already in 1989, Wheeler participated in the NPC competitions and won the title “Mr. California”. By the way, during the preparations for bodybuilding competitions, Flex also participates in karate championships, but 1989 becomes the last in the history of the Wheeler-karate.
To Olympia
Mr. California brings wheeler confidence and stardom to Wheeler. Flex storms all new prestigious championships and becomes the first at them. In 1991, participation in the US Championship brings him first place and a professional athlete's card. 1992 - victory again and Mr. USA. Already in 1993, Flex Wheeler participated in Mr. Olympia and took silver. Such success is becoming almost the most outstanding in the history of bodybuilding. Well-developed and symmetrical deltas, a massive back and legs with a narrow waist, multiplied by flexibility and some grace in posing, all on the lips.
Wheeler is becoming a favorite for many beginners who dream of conquering professional bodybuilding. Flex leaves Ironman Pro, Arnold Classic, Grand Prix of Germany again with a gold medal, and this only happened in 1993. Success and universal adoration makes Wheeler’s behavior in competitions more arrogant, self-confident. Irritability and temper appear, the fault of which is a hard training process and pharmacology. Favorable offers of sports and profile companies are pouring in from a cornucopia, everyone vying to try to conclude a contract with a bodybuilder, photo shoots are replaced one after another and bring a lot of money. Everything is going better than ever for a bodybuilder, but the triumphal procession of Flex Wheeler is interrupted in 1994.
Car accident
June 9, 1994 turned Wheeler's life upside down. At a speed of 250 km per hour, Flex crashes in its Mercedes. Injury to the cervical spine. Doctors predict Wheeler the new status of a "living corpse", as they are sure that the athlete will not only finish sports forever, but will generally remain paralyzed. Despite pessimistic doctors, Wheeler slowly began to get to his feet and begin training. During the rehabilitation, the bodybuilder seriously lost weight, so I had to resort to drugs again.
While the "star" was in the hospital, no one visited her from the world of bodybuilding. Outside the hospital ward, the bodybuilder was waiting for an unpleasant, but expected surprise. The Vader Bodybuilding Association has reduced Flex's contract by 75%. The bodybuilder took a lot of effort to return the contract conditions to the previous level. In 1995, the bodybuilder became the first at Ironman Pro, the second at Arnold Classic and only the eighth at Olympia. The victory at the “Night of Champions” helped, which returned the terms of the contract to the previous level. However, Flex Olympus won no victories for Flex Wheeler. In 1996, fourth place at Olimpia, in the favorites of Dorian Yates.
The following year, Flex Wheeler refuses to participate in Mr. Olympia, explaining this by a hand injury. In 1998, Yeats decided to leave the race, which gives Flex confidence and he already sees himself as the winner. Flex relies on relief, clicks on diuretics. However, he is again a silver medalist.
Hospital bed again
If it arrived somewhere, then in another place it necessarily decreases. Serious kidney problems are being added to the return of eminent athletes, established financial affairs. Since 1997, the bodybuilder constantly goes to hospitals, each time deciding to tie up with pharmacology. But Wheeler's season and stubbornness bring him back to taking the pills again and again. In 1999, the athlete was diagnosed with segmental glomerulosclerosis - a disease that the athlete himself explains by heredity.
This fact still interrupts the use of drugs. Wheeler is helped by his nutritionist friend. It supplies the athlete with mineral supplements, but this reduces the competitive weight of Flex Wheeler and hardly brings places in the top ten finalists in the cups.
In 2000, Flex was the bronze winner of Olympia, and in 2002 - only the seventh.
A series of operations and a kidney transplant in 2003 put an end to the athlete's competitive career.
Flex Wheeler today
The athlete is married, has three children. He continues to train, but does so solely to maintain physical fitness. The bodybuilding legend gladly accepts invitations to various international cups and championships, participates in the status of a “star” at exhibitions of sports nutrition and bodybuilding.
After completing his sports career, he returned to martial arts. He recently described his Flex Wheeler biography, where, without a cut, talks about his life, competitions and drugs. Flex Wheeler is Executive Director of All American EFX, a sports nutrition company.
Flex Wheeler Workout
The athlete, preparing for the competition, adhered to the basic principles. Flex Wheeler’s training consisted of several approaches, the first approach being carried out with maximum weight, which decreased with each approach and ended with pumping with a limit of repetitions. Flex did not do leading exercises for biceps, as, for example, with large muscles. He loved to train the deltas in the Smith simulator. Cardio almost did not, just before taking pictures, when you need to be dried and embossed.
To date, Flex has a five-day training breakdown into muscle groups with a preliminary warm-up. Each exercise is done in 4 sets of up to 20 repetitions in each:
- Chest (bench press, bench press and dumbbell on an inclined bench, crossover, bench press in the "Hammer").
- Back (pull-ups, pull of the vertical block and draft in the slope with a narrow grip).
- Shoulders (press from behind the head with a direct and reverse grip in the Hammer, shrugs in the Smith machine, the layout of the dumbbells in the slope and the layout on the blocks).
- Legs (extension in the simulator, leg press, superset from information-breeding in the simulator, flexion in the simulator, extension in the simulator, extension with each leg lying down).
- Hands (superset from biceps flexion with dumbbells and triceps extension, French bench press, biceps on the bench with each hand and triceps in the simulator).
Additionally, a shin exercise is included twice a week.