5 of 11

Yes

Write now Article Tools

I think this debate cannot be given a straight answer. I am about to turn 21, and I currently stand at 5" 11', and weigh 16.5st. I started weight training from the age of 12. When I was young, I played all kinds of sport, football (soccer), rugby, basketball, cricket, as well as many athletic sports. Before I partook in these sports at a competitive level, I was very skinny, weak, the runt of the litter, but I first started bodybuilding at 12, when I was bought some dumbells for my birthday.

After 6 months of training I could feel the difference. I had muscles starting to form on my arms, my legs were already powerful from years of playing football, but with the extra weight behind me, and the power in my arms, I could charge at my opponents, and it would take repeated efforts to bring me down. I was a very fast sprinter, so playing foot ball became much easier. I had a greater sense of balance, and I felt much more confident in myself.

I continued bodybuilding with increasingly heavier weights until I was 16. By then I weight 14 stone. I had a little puppy fat still, but I was easily the strongest in my year. I had to leave the basketball team due to a badly sprained ankle, and my stature no longer suited the game. I had to refrain from contact sports for a short while too, and during this time, I had started smoking. From there my sporting activity dwindled, and I stopped playing for sports teams altogether. I still continued to weight train, however this was only with the equipment I had at home, and much less often than before.

It was October 2004 when I was attacked. They are known as "Chavs" in England, but I guess teenage thugs would be the best way to describe them. They confronted me in town, late one night with no one around. They demanded I give them my phone, but after having a bitter row with my girlfriend just moments before, there way no way that I was going to submit. Two of them grabbed my arms, while the other pulled out a blade, and plunged the knife into my chest, cutting across and slashing my arm. Fortunately for me, the blade wasn't incredibly long. I threw the two men off my arms, and I do not remember much of what happened subsequently, but the next thing I remembered all three men were on the floor, one holding his face, the other two crawling away.

I doubt if I hadn't trained my body up to be as strong and as fit I would have come out on top, or had been able to defend myself at all. That is why I feel the way my body is formed is invaluable.

Of course, bodybuilding is not for everyone, but I feel that young people should be encouraged to at least give themselves a good start to keep themselves in good shape. It can be a big factor is self-defense, something which seems to be a growing necessity in today's world.

Learn more about this author, Ben Whyman.
Click here to send author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about Should bodybuilding be made compulsory for students??
We want to hear your view. Write now!