- I don't want to walk down the street
and people are like, oh, he goes to the gym.
I want to walk down the street and people like
what the hell is that?
- I don't look ideal to how others think.
During high school I had a growth spurt
and I turned into a big tall, skinny lanky white boy.
And I was always known as that,
that took a toll on me.
- A lot more young men, they're here every day,
just trying to maintain the image
or the body that they want.
So keep, keep up with your Instagram.
(upbeat hip hop music)
- [Phillip] What it means to be a man
in New Zealand is changing.
There are more of us talking about our feelings
and being open about our lives.
This is a five-part series that looks
at the issues affecting young men in New Zealand.
I'm Phillip and I'll be chatting with my mates,
Liam and Teowai.
This is one for the boys.
(chilled electronic music)
(heart beat)
- [Announcer] And all the way from Auckland,
we have our first competitor, and his name is Jared Guy.
- When you get into bodybuilding
it becomes a very selfish sport
because it's about, you know
when you're eating, when you're resting
when you're going to the gym.
- [Phillip] Jared is among thousands
of young men feeling the pressure to look good.
He's training for his first bodybuilding competition.
He goes to the gym three times a day, five days a week.
- I guess I was just unhappy with myself as a,
as a person.
I've been on both ends of the scale.
I've also been really, really skinny with no muscle mass.
And I've also been quite large with no muscle mass.
I was probably just down to the,
just the fact that I didn't like being overweight.
And I guess I assumed that people would judge
all the time because of it.
And maybe that internal self doubt played a big part
in the, you know, self-esteem issues, confidence issues,
all that sort of thing.
So I started losing weight
and maybe seeing a little bit of the abs come out
or maybe quads growing.
And I was really, really good.
And it motivated me to go more and more and more.
That's the thing is that as a dude,
you come here for the ladies,
but it's just the dudes that compliment you,
not the ladies (laughs).
- [Phillip] More and more of us are here in the gym.
Memberships have grown by over 50% in 10 years
and under 25's now make up half of those.
- [Jared] My first competition coming up
and yeah I'm looking forward to it.
To be in an area with lots of bodybuilders
that have the same sort of mindset,
it's going to be amazing.
I got my posing trunks the other day.
I was a bit mortified at trying them on
and realizing that there's literally nothing left to hide.
You're just fully exposed.
- [Phillip] And at this point in his training
Jared's body fat is so low
it's hard to measure accurately.
- I've never had much of a social life.
I've always been quite introverted,
but now it's pretty much dead.
And yeah, it's just the life of eating,
sleeping and training.
And my current partner, she's done shows before
she knows the drill.
I will take my own meals to a restaurant
that allows it, some restaurants don't like that.
Otherwise I just stay home because I don't,
I don't need that distraction during this time.
I heard someone say a long time ago
and it sort of stuck with me as you know,
I don't eat for pleasure, I eat for a purpose.
You know, so I don't, if it tastes like shit
you just chew it and eat it, you know.
How it is.
- [Phillip] I spoke to my mates Teowai and Liam
to hear their own experiences of body image.
- There's a little bit of like intimidation going to the gym
for me in the current state that I am.
- You feel extremely vulnerable
the first time you go to the gym.
Cause you don't really have much information on anything.
So you're just learning.
But then you see like these big as bodybuilders in there.
And like, they just like stare at you
because you're like the newbie.
Like you don't know what you're doing--
- Like it's entering some kind of clique--
- Exactly.
- And you haven't really been a part of it all.
- Exactly.
- I don't go to the gym.
I do like calisthenics at home.
It's way easier on the wallet and time.
It's the reason I got into the gym was,
I was, like I weigh the same I do now
as I did at the start of intermediate.
So when I was younger, I was real overweight.
I wasn't, I thought I was real overweight.
I was really just a bit real chubby.
But in my head like that was,
I looked at myself in the mirror
and I was like, oh,
I didn't like the way I looked.
And then taking those first steps
and seeing that improvement really gave me
like the courage
and like the self-belief
and like, literally like I can do anything
now that I've done something I thought I couldn't do.
(chilled hip hop music)
- [Phillip] Olly Fata works for Les Mills
where he trains young guys
trying to achieve the ideal bodies.
- I've been a trainer for 15 plus years.
I tried a little bit of a bodybuilding show
and yeah it was quite hard case actually.
I had to drop about 25 kilograms
to be in weight group that I wanted to be in.
I'd say I was pretty proud of myself.
I didn't place or anything,
but at least I looked good (laughs).
- [Phillip] Back in 2001,
he was also in the reality show, Strip Search.
♪ I've got a little something for ya. ♪
♪ I've got a little something for you. ♪
(Olly laughs)
- The youth of today are more aware
of body image and the way that they look
and a certain way.
I suppose that comes under Instagram
and the social media that is available now.
They train to look good and, you know,
and also feeling good.
But I suppose mostly just to try
and look good for the girls, really, you know?
Having that six pack when it comes around to,
you know the summertime hitting the beach
and making sure that they're updating their Instagram
with some good photos, you know?
- [Phillip] There's now a million Kiwis on Instagram.
We know what comes up can effect how we see ourselves.
And even how we want to look.
- Definitely plays a big part, it's like
if I load up my Instagram now
and go into my search algorithms
it's either full of gym memes
or just bodybuilders, that's it.
And you know, like what I used to see six months ago
to what I see now is the same
but the people are bigger and more shredded.
So it's almost like it adapts to what you're doing.
- I honestly think most people don't understand
how hard that shit is.
Even getting like toned abs and shit is ridiculous.
Like the amount of work you have to put in.
- Or the bodybuilders themselves
I have a lot of respect for them.
I just feel sometimes
some of the advertisement around bodybuilding
can be a bit degrading to the not so buff man.
Or on the TV adverts or online
where it will just be, oh, this person--
or it will be like, before and after.
Six week, you try.
- Yeah.
- I see a lot of impact with mainly Instagram.
I see people with physiques that are unmatchable, really.
- Just following these big personalities.
They had like the dream body
and the body that like everyone would want.
I would like see photos that have been taken of me
and I'm like, nah, fuck it.
I don't look--
I don't like how I look in that whatsoever.
- Yeah, yeah.
- And then like, I would always aim
for like specific angles.
Now I just, I just post whatever I want
because it doesn't matter, who cares.
(car engine rumbles)
- [Jared] I'm pumped.
I'm ready to go.
Ah not-- I was more excited.
I was actually like, I couldn't sleep properly
because I was like, fuck I can't wait to get on
the stage and like show off.
I guess I went into the gym
wanting to build that sort of confidence.
But now I do it for me because I love the sport.
Not for showing off or, you know,
everyone's got a bit of an ego,
but you gotta put that in the back door.
- [Phillip] The national championship of New Zealand's
largest amateur bodybuilding competition.
Jared is one of the 71 competitors this year.
(hand claps)
- My name's Jim Pitt.
I'm the president of the Nabba New Zealand.
That's what we're here for the national championship.
Well, we're looking for the well balanced physique,
making sure that it's muscle development.
When you're under the heavy lights
if you don't have any tanning on,
you just look very white
and you can't see the definition in the muscles.
(slow electronic music)
- [Announcer] And all the way from Auckland
we have our first competitor.
And his name is Jared Guy.
(crowd cheers)
(thumping bass music)
- Ah, really good,
yeah really nervous for him.
But he's doing well.
He looks really good, I'm really proud of him.
- [Jim] Thank you gentleman, well done.
(crowd cheers)
- My lower left cramped up
(sighs) fuck.
Good though.
Good.
[Producer] Feeling good?
- Yeah, I love it.
Yeah, I'm done.
You can't even explain the feeling when you're up there
like onstage in front of everyone.
It was just amazing.
- It's actually quite strange.
Like I'm a lot more confident in like,
I feel more secure about myself and stuff,
but it's also taught me to appreciate
that not everyone's going to do this lifestyle,
not everyone's going to do it.
And like, if you are happy in your body
just live a, a happy, healthy life.
And I wished I had that mindset back then.
Just bring on next year
and I'll snatch a first place for me.
So, but as far as I'm concerned, I'm pretty stoked.
♪ They say toughen up and be a big man. ♪
♪ All my brother's want to become. ♪
♪ Everybody's like an actor ♪
♪ But what's it mean to be a real one? ♪
♪ Put my worries in my palms ♪
♪ Trust that I cannot remain calm. ♪
♪ No I'm not the only one. ♪
♪ I know I'm not the only one. ♪
(chilled hip hop music)