On today’s podcast, we had IFBB Pro Bodybuilder Antoine Vaillant. We share a connection in the recovery/sobriety community and are extremely grateful for his time. As a kid, he had this feeling inside himself that he was not good enough. Fear. Fear of not being good enough. He wanted to be better, to be stronger. The only thing he could control was that. To get bigger and stronger. He started doing push ups and sit ups at a young age, and felt like he could control those results by putting the effort in. He kept doing it, and doing it…
Then he saw the bodybuilding magazines. 2003 Mr. Olympia reviews – he was amazed by the physiques of these Olympians. He researched on the internet using an old PC with a dial up connection. He found the bodybuilding message boards, and learned and learned.
He decided to compete in bodybuilding. It was 2004 and he did not even train in a gym before. Just one dumbbell in his bedroom. He joined the gym and told the owner he wanted to compete. A year later, he competed at 16 and won his class. He kept going.
Fast track to 2012, He won my IFBB pro card at the Canadian Nationals. Coming out of a bad relationship, and victorious, he decided it was time to party and celebrate. He chose the wrong people and the wrong things to celebrate with. Drugs, alcohol and bad influences. This is when his drug addiction began. Needless to say, he hit many rock bottoms and lost everything more than once. He ended up homeless, in the streets and on welfare. It took him near death experiences and many rehabs to get out of it.
He came out of my last rehab in 2017. He was driven with nothing but hope, he started training for his come back. He wanted to come back on stage and prove to myself and the world that it wasn’t over for him. He teamed up with Dorian Hamilton and Team HD, moved to Burlington Ontario and put in the work. He learned to live like a champion again, but this time around, to the MAX. His comeback show was the 2018 Toronto pro show and he ended up placing 4th. The comeback was real. He was proud of myself… Then he got back to work!
The goal is now the Olympia stage for Antoine.
His story will not only inspire you, but show you we all struggle with demons and overcoming those is a very real thing.
*As a disclaimer, this episode discuses Anabolic Steroid use and details of drug use.
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Connect with us on Instagram
Host Brad Jensen – @thesoberbodybuilder
Co-Host Justin Mancuso – @jmancuso91
Guest Antoine Vaillant – @antoinev87
Key Nutrition – @keynutrition
