Natural bodybuilding - clean to peak performance part 1

Faster, bigger, broader: according to estimates, at least 200,000 Germans turn to performance-enhancing drugs in order to abnormally increase their muscle mass. Substances such as anabolic steroids are a popular shortcut to an impressive physique – and often end in death. Berend Breitenstein, too, was faced with a choice. The Hamburg native chose life over quick success – and has dedicated decades to the fight for clean bodybuilding, or natural bodybuilding.

When is a man a man? As early as 1984, Herbert Grönemeyer posed the fundamental question that people, particularly men, have been debating for millennia. If one takes the ancient ideal, which envisages a defined physique, then Berend Breitenstein is the prototype of a man. In his photos from training, barbell at the ready, or with artificially tanned skin and red briefs on the competition stage, one sees one thing above all else: muscles. What a sight. This man must surely turn heads wherever he goes!

Strikingly inconspicuous

When the silver small car pulls into the car park of the Gastwerk Hotel in Hamburg-Bahrenfeld, nothing stands out. Only the logo of the Association for Clean Sport, which he founded and which is displayed in the national colours on the side door, catches the eye on second glance. Very few people realise that a true pioneer of fair play is sitting at the wheel – the lot of the niche athlete is a tough one. When the driver gets out, there stands an ordinary person in the car park: no tan, no mountains of muscle, no briefs.

“I like to wear loose-fitting clothes; that way you don’t stand out so much,” says Berend calmly, glancing down at his stretchy grey jumper. He speaks thoughtfully, weighing up his words. The Hamburg native dispels the preconception that bodybuilders have nothing in their heads in a matter of seconds. It is probably this clarity that dopers lack: the understanding that you have to work on yourself, and when in doubt, sometimes take an unpleasant path in order to make progress. Berend was told as early as the age of 15 that without doping he had no chance of winning the title of “Mr Hamburg Junior”. He stayed clean and came fifth in his first competition in 1979.

Superpowers thanks to Batman

The fact that Berend is telling this story 40 years later is thanks to Batman. He used to devour the comics and wanted to be just as muscular. But how? In one issue, the hero in the bat mask was shown doing weight training, and it was clear to Berend: that must be the key to success. At the age of 13, he persuaded his parents to buy him an adjustable weight bench for his bedroom. Two dumbbells and a barbell sparked something in Berend that no other sport had managed to achieve.

A year later, the budding athlete swapped his comics for muscle magazines full of training and nutrition tips. It soon became clear: you don’t become Batman in your bedroom. Together with his father, he set out to find a gym. An odyssey, “the gym scene in Hamburg in the 70s looked very different back then”. No 24-hour gyms on every street corner advertising with glossy flyers. A fitness centre near the main station finally opened the door to the world of sport for the teenager, after his father took responsibility.

Better unsuccessful than dead

From then on, he worked out on the machines every day. “That was completely wrong, because muscles don’t grow during training, but during the rest period afterwards,” as he says today.

Yet the sensation of resistance from the weights was addictive. Nevertheless, unlike many others, Berend stayed clean and did not resort to banned substances. Whilst some bodybuilders experienced the downsides of anabolic steroids and the like – such as extreme nosebleeds, severe acne and genuine bouts of aggression – Berend came to terms with the idea that he would never achieve major sporting success.

So, following the “Mr Hamburg Junior” competition, there was a 16-year break from competition. After finishing school, military service put the first dent in his hitherto rigorous physical development – his training routine was disrupted, and the army isn’t exactly known for taking dietary habits into account. After his time in the armed forces, Berend began an apprenticeship as a retail salesman specialising in health foods and subsequently studied nutrition.

Read the second part to find out how another turning point in his life brought Berend to peak condition, why his parents declared him mad, and how an unexpected encounter paved the way for a successful career in natural bodybuilding on stages around the globe.