Rising Star - POD 'Golden Era' Hektor

FLEX MET UP WITH Rising Star Pod Hektor, one of the leading classic physique competitors for the UKUP (Ultimate Physique) Federation.

- Darren Nicholhurst

Pod boasts a look that has stemmed from the Frank Zane era of classic lines and height to weight proportions.

So, why did he find himself training as a bodybuilder, and where did the desire for size and strength come from?

“I first started to get into weight lifting after years of playing football in my late teens,” Pod explains. “I was very fortunate that I had the opportunity of a tryout. It was for a team in America called the Seattle Sounders. Unfortunately, this didn’t go as well as it should have,” he says. “I was gutted. I was so excited by the prospect of becoming a football player for a U.S team. But sadly at the time, I was overpowered and out muscled by the others in my league.”

When Pod returned to the UK, he decided to join a gym in an effort to pack on some size and strength for football. This was when he started to lift. But little did he know that eventually this decision would spur him to adopt a complete change in direction.

“Before long, I’d developed a fascination with the old school style of bodybuilding,” Pod recalls. “I would say from the first moment