Born with only my left leg, you would think that what I have never had I'd never miss.  Nothing could be further from the truth. 

Does it get me down? Of course it does.I'd be lying to you all if I said it didn't.

What gets me through the dark times?  My family and my bodybuilding.

Ok., so I'm sitting here thinking of how to start a bio as I have never thought of doing it before.I'm beginning to think I should have before now.  I suppose the way to go about it is start from my earliest memories and what I have learnt about my youth as I have gotten a little older.

I have photos of me as a young child, in my dads arms watching the trains in Cumbria.  Although I cant actually remember this, I have been told that my dad loved to carry me everywhere.  And although I didn't get on particularly well with my uncle..since his death I have learned that he was the one who pushed me to walking with a prosthetic.

My childhood, was, now I look back and have learned from others, quite sheltered.  Whilst not wrapped completely in cotton wool and my parents were very keen that I was given no special treatment at the schools I attended, my wife and now my son have led a more active childhood and teenage years than I did.but to me, it was normal, so I was happy.  I was, sort of bullied at school.not physically, more mentally.you know how cruel children can be and I wont go into details but I am sure that you all can imagine?

Just being left out of things, sports-wise would disappoint me, yet I could also understand it from the other childrens point of view.I would have hindered their team. 

As my teenage years progressed, I found that I was getting more emotional about not having two legs, although very active on my prosthetic, walking without any aids etc.  Not until recent years (last 4, have I needed assistance).  I did some weight training (I wont call it bodybuilding as looking back to what I was doing then, compared to now, it was just exercise) when I was around 15 and although I didn't gain much, it took a little of my frustrations away.that and the powerful source of music.

When I met Dawn, my wife, I had very little confidence. and when I finally asked her out..one of the first things I said was "You DO know about my leg, don't you".

I had not wore shorts at all, always hidden my legs, never been swimming since I was about 8 or 9.  My wife at the time was working in a Leisure Pool and asked me to go for a swim one day.  I was very embarrassed but that was the start of things to come as, it has been Dawn that has given me the confidence to be where I am today.

From that shy 18yr old, I am now 37 and not only do I still wear shorts but as you can see from the video below I occasionally wear a lot less!

I now am unable to wear my artificial leg at all as my hip on the right is crumbling and there is nothing decent there to attach a false hip to.even if the surgeons used Japanese parts, apparently there is not enough decent bone structure left to secure the parts to me.  That said, I am actually more active now, not wearing my prosthetic than I ever was.  With the leg on, I would quickly start to bleed and my hip and back was sore.  Now, I can go for miles on my crutches without any problems.

There is not a bodypart that I don't train and one of the things that gets me through the dark times is "There is always a way".Can I squat ? you bet your life I can.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9xi5hH10Ms ..there is always an alternative exercise and I want to project that to other less abled athletes.

I train twice per day, 7 days per week..I cardio 1^st thing in the morning, include some posing in that too.  I train one bodypart per day after my shift at work.  My diet is strict all year round, tightening and cleaning it up 12 weeks from a show.

Anyway, the reason that I am on this site is top promote me as a bodybuilder and encourage and help others in any way that I can. 

I am a freelance actor currently undertaking work from a company called Trauma FX

Quality casualty simulation is the key component to providing realism in medical training and Trauma FX are the UKs leading provider of realistic simulations for all training needs and requirements. Our aims are to provide a consistent, professional and reliable service, resulting in valued, effective and realistic simulations accessible to all within the medical and training services.

We do this by supplying specialist simulation make-up artists and prosthetics, simulated training packages and Trauma FX simulation kits along with casualty actors and amputee actors. Our specialist teams are readily available to provide high quality casualty simulation, our expert make-up artists are familiar with human anatomy and medical terminology, our casualty actors are trained and experienced to react to any given situation

(information taken from Trauma FX Simulation Services website Feb 2011).

Since my first appearance at the English Lakes Classic Bodybuilding Show on 9^th May this year, I have done another 3 "guest appearances" and entered Britains first ever wheelchair class in the UKBFF British Finals.  I placed first in this and have the title UKBFF British Champion 2010.

I train at and am sponsored by Powehouse Gym in Whitehaven, Cumbria and train with either my wife, Dawn, my son Michael or my good friend and mentor Shaun Watson.

My target for 2011 is solely in the first instance, try and put on some size and secondly, go for the British Finals again in October.

Please feel free to email me and ask me any questions.  If I don't know, I'll do my best to find out for you.

Bodybuilding Achievements:

2010 UKBFF British Finals - 1st