The Butcher Slices Up Thighs

Leg training with brett wilkin

- By Ron Harris. Photography by Ned Mataraso

HE NEVER WORE BOARD SHORTS!

Before we even start, something needs to be cleared up about Brett. He began competing in 2017 in the Classic Physique division and earned his pro card the next year. “Fake news somehow circulated that Brett had turned pro in Men's Physique, a division he never competed in. In other words, you could always see his legs. It's easy to be mistaken because he never competed as a pro in Classic. To date, he's only been on an IFBB Pro League stage three times, the first two as a 212, and last summer at the Chicago Pro in the Open class. There, at 244 pounds, he pushed Hunter Labrada to the very brink and nearly beat him. Hunter had him in the shoulders and arms, but Brett certainly stood toe-to-toe with him when it came to legs. They were full, thick, deeply separated and etched with detail.

PEOPLE GIVE UP ON THEIR CALVES TOO EASILY, BECAUSE THEY WILL GROW IF YOU WORK THEM HARD AND OFTEN.

FROM WHENCE CAME THE WHEELS

Like so many of the champion bodybuilders I speak with, Brett fell in love with weight training as a football player. While playing college football, he majored in Exercise Science and worked for the program's Strength and Conditioning department. Once his football days ended, he redirected his focus toward using the weights to sculpt his body rather than improve athletic performance on the field.

I knew all the basic movements and had a good grasp of the various muscle groups and their functions, he tells us. It was just a matter of shifting my training toward hypertrophy and learning how nutrition, supplementation and recovery all play roles in building a physique.