When Tom Heffner sashays on stage, no one notices that his skin is so weathered and his hair so white that he could almost pass as the Man from Glad.
Stripped down to a Speedo, Mr. Heffner is more like He-Man - all eyes are on his massive fake 'n' baked chest, corrugated abs and thighs the size of a girl's waist.
At age 62, Mr. Heffner qualifies for most seniors' discounts. But instead of perfecting his golf swing, the drafting supervisor for the City of Winnipeg spends about three hours training almost every day for bodybuilding competitions. He bench presses 220 pounds, down from 405 pounds at age 55, and leg presses 540 pounds.
Later this month, he will strut his stuff at the world championships held by the International Federation of Body Building and Fitness in Budapest. "I go out there, I do my best and I show what I've got," says Mr. Heffner, who will do his routine to music by Enya.
In the past five years, a growing number of baby boomers have transformed themselves into incredible hulks. Many are goal-oriented professionals who are determined to defy the aging effects of gravity without resorting to steroids.
Unlike many younger bodybuilders, they often have ample time and disposable income to devote to training and coaching services, which can cost up to $300 a week. And their competitive drive is so strong that amateur bodybuilding associations are bending over backward to accommodate musclemen in their 60s, 70s and even 80s.
Last year, the Canadian BodyBuilding Federation followed the international federation's lead by adding a grandmaster category for competitors 60 and up. The grandmaster men's and master men's (50 to 59) are the fastest-growing categories, says Melanie Horton, vice-president of the Ontario Physique Association. "They're typically the largest classes in the national shows," she says.
As contemporaries of 60-year-old Arnold Schwarzenegger - the ultimate manly man - boomer beefcakes say health and appearance are key motivators for their intense bodybuilding regimens.
"People as they get older sag a little more and it helps you tighten up your body," says Bill Friedman, a 60-year-old corporate lawyer and competitive bodybuilder in Toronto.
He began training six years ago, whittling his soft middle-aged form into a sinewy sculpture of veined masculinity.
"Your skin feels like Saran Wrap around your body," he says. "It's a good feeling."
Mr. Friedman entered his first bodybuilding competition in 2003; the next year, he won first place for his age group in the FAME World Championships. But he is best known as the subject of The Bodybuilder and I, the award-winning documentary (now in theatres) directed by his son, Bryan Friedman.
In the film, Bill Friedman grooms himself for competition by tanning at a salon, denuding his body of hair and slathering himself with bronzing cream.
On stage, he flexes to the theme music from Superman while wearing a minuscule blue bikini bottom with a big red S sewn on the crotch.
Parading his near-naked body in public is "a bit embarrassing," he says, but competitions are a great way to get attention. "It's a huge rush."
Muscle-bound grandpas may seem narcissistic at first, says Bryan Friedman, who interviewed his father's pumped-up rivals while making the film. But once you get to know them, he says, "you realize that this is just a pursuit of theirs - it's just a hobby that they've taken to the extreme."
In some cases it can be too extreme, says Nabil Tarazi, a physiotherapist in West Vancouver and member of the Physiotherapy Association of British Columbia. Bodybuilders who take up the sport in their 50s and 60s are vulnerable to repetitive strain injuries of the shoulders, elbows, hips, knees and lower back.
"We always recommend that people do weight training as they get older," Mr. Tarazi says, "but bodybuilding is not recommended unless you know what you're doing."
Geriatric bodybuilding doesn't have to mean aging dangerously, however. "It's a matter of technique," Mr. Tarazi says.
Older individuals should start gradually and work with a certified trainer to avoid injury, he says. On the plus side, conditions such as osteoarthritis may improve with weight training.
Since metabolism becomes sluggish with age and growth hormones start to level off, senior bodybuilders must work harder for the same results, says Laura Binetti, a Toronto-based fitness consultant.
But it's never too late.Her father, 76-year-old Domenic Binetti, began weight training three years ago after bypass surgery. Coached by Ms. Binetti, he won this year's Ontario grandmaster championship.
Spectators gave a standing ovation after he performed his closing routine to The Godfather theme. "It suited him perfectly," Ms. Binetti says.
Daily grind
Bodybuilder Tom Heffner's training regimen isn't for lightweights.
5:30 a.m. Wake up.
5:40 a.m. Bike for up to 60 minutes and do 250 to 2,500 ab crunches for up to 45 minutes.
4 p.m. Leave work.
4:10 p.m. Hit the gym for 90 minutes of weight training for legs, arms, back and chest.
DIET
Eat every two hours - mostly egg whites, oatmeal, skinless chicken breasts, tuna, cod, roast beef, green beans, peas
and broccoli. No alcohol or refined carbs.
Adriana Barton