Building a lifestyle
Date: 17-02-2007
Posted by: Anabolic Info TeamUnited States |
|
Jerome picked up body building 13 years ago. Lisa has run with it.
It was well after 9 p.m. on a recent night, and Lisa Hamm, fresh from the gym and in workout clothes, stood in front of two of her three George Foreman grills in her kitchen.
On one grill, Lisa, 39, was searing a flank steak. On the stove, she had egg whites in a pan waiting to be cooked. After her day that included a full schedule at the office and a 112-hour workout, there was still plenty to do at home, including eating dinner.
As Americans of all ages continue to get doughy, six-pack abs and killer biceps might seem elusive. Not for Lisa and her 43-year-old husband, Jerome Hamm.
They are teetering on the extreme when it comes to fitness and diet. The Hamms, who have been married for 16 years and have two children, are serious about looking good, keeping their muscles tight and staying healthy. Their pursuit is bodybuilding, a sport in which they have won trophies for their physiques.
"It's definitely a lifestyle, not a hobby," said Lisa, who still retains qualities from her 20 years of runway modeling. "It's as simple to me as brushing my teeth."
To catch up with the Hamms, a person would have to put forth a near tunnel-vision effort, balancing work, play and a rigorous schedule of healthy living. The Hamms are disciplined, and their lifestyle is governed mostly by healthy eating, dieting and old-fashioned iron pumping.
It started with Jerome, who competed for the first time when he was 30.
"I've always wanted to stay in shape," said Jerome, whose "fighting weight" is 175 pounds. "Back in my day you had to have the presentation if you wanted to get the belle of the ball. I'm vain. I'll tell anybody that. When you take your body on that journey you find out so many things."
With his competitive streak, he figured he would train hard and compete. He became hooked.
"I tend to subscribe to the philosophy: 'Why not?' " Jerome said. But his real pursuit is tennis, which he finds more rewarding than bodybuilding.
Lisa's venture into the sport came in 2003 after seeing other women compete. She figured she could do it. Lisa had a big season in 2005, winning a pro card, which allows her to compete for money and a trophy, at the Mount Rogers Drug Free Bodybuilding & Fitness Figure Championships in Roanoke. Jerome's year was in 2006 at Mount Rogers, where he picked up Best Poser, Men's Open Lightweight and Men's Masters Lightweight for over 35.
For the Hamms, who were both students at William Fleming High School, there are no excuses for missing workouts or getting fat.
Jerome, whose nickname is Hollywood, works in sales at Verizon in Roanoke. He coaches his son's basketball team, hits the weights at the Kirk Family YMCA three days a week (it's off season, after all), plays tennis once a week, and, at the gym, trains a client two to three times a week. Plus, he oversees an area tennis camp for kids. He won't be appearing at a bodybuilding show until later this fall.
His wife has a slightly different story. Lisa, who has competed in Florida, North Carolina and Chicago, is planning to enter two competitions in the summer, and one in November.
Despite her seven weekly hours training at Gold's Gym, Lisa works a full-time job as the assistant vice president and branch manager of Valley Bank on Hershberger Road, trains clients at the gym and attends a Radford University class to finish up her bachelor's degree in business management. She competes in the women's open heavyweight or light-heavyweight divisions as well as the women's masters division for over 35.
While they work out at different gyms, Jerome and Lisa are each other's biggest supporters, especially during the grueling weeks of dieting before a show, when the slightest tweak in a diet could mean a first-place finish.
Jerome's humor, Lisa said, can get her through the hard times during the dieting process. He'll joke that she should have a cookie. Of course, that's a big no-no.
"You see your wife doing all that stuff, and it motivates you," Jerome said.
"He's been really encouraging to me," Lisa said. "I wanted to see him succeed."
No matter how crazy her day might get, she said, "I'm going to juggle it and get in there" for a workout.
In their relationship, Lisa is the one who will stick to her diet. She'll eat her food cold and food that she doesn't really care for to consume "clean" protein, which has low fat and low carbohydrates, while Jerome doesn't mind "taking a hit" once in a while, meaning a McDonald's meal or an ice cream cone from Chick-fil-A.
"They are beautiful people inside and out," said longtime friend Dawn Thompson, who owns Roanoke-based SportzFit USA Clothing Co. with her boyfriend, Tom Shrader. "They are always willing to help other people and share their knowledge."
Thompson has known Jerome since junior high school and befriended Lisa at Gold's Gym six years ago. Best of all, Thompson said, they understand what each other is going through to get ready for a competition.
"They know the emotions and the diet, which is fluctuating as you are going down," said Thompson, whose Web site, www.sportzfit.com, features photographs of Lisa and Jerome modeling sportswear. "It makes it a lot easier when the two of you are working together for the same goals. You have a better understanding and better support."
Betty Jane Hickam, chairwoman of Virginia's National Physique Committee, met Lisa at Gold's Gym a few years ago. The two work out together about four days a week.
"She's a focused individual," said Hickam, a registered nurse who competed in masters figure event at a bodybuilding competition in North Carolina. "She motivates me. She's a good true friend. She's honest with her clients and workout partners. She's the one who says, 'Yes, you can.' "
Back in the kitchen, the broiled salmon, spinach, steak and liquid egg whites were cooked and ready. Lisa had to prepare six meals for the next day. In plastic containers she placed chicken breast and pineapple, egg whites, spinach, and oatmeal -- all of which she'd eat throughout the workday to increase her metabolism and ensure her body is getting protein and carbohydrates.
Moments later, Jerome and their 16-year-old son, Jared, came home after a basketball practice. The Hamms' daughter, 23-year-old Shara Webb, lives on her own.
At the Hamms' house, everyone eats a different meal. Lisa planned to eat tuna and asparagus spears after she packed her meals. Jerome decided he'd indulge in "a cheat meal" -- fried seafood from Long John Silver's.
"Anyone want a lobster bite?" he asked, laughing. Lisa continued cooking.
"She does way more cooking that I do," Jerome noted.
"He does way more cheating than I do," Lisa said while continuing her food preparation. For Lisa, a recent cheat meal consisted of a lean hamburger on wheat bread and sweet potato fries.
"She does way better than me on the off season," said Jerome, who keeps a journal of his weight so he can make comparisons from season to season. "I used to eat not that well. I've always been a cat who can eat what he wants and can burn it off fast."
Lisa and Jerome keep long hours that start by 6:30 a.m. and end after midnight. "If you're accustomed to sitting on the couch all day that's what you'll do," Jerome said.
But will there be an end in sight, a moment when they'll sit back like a growing percentage of Americans, and have cake and talk about the good old days?
"When it stops being fun, I'll do tennis," Jerome said. "I still plan on playing tennis when I'm 70."
"I'm like him," Lisa said. "When it becomes not fun, I'm out."
Perhaps then bodybuilding as a family sport will move to the next generation. Having been to several of his parents' competitions, Jared knows firsthand what it would take to succeed and how to go about dieting and working out for the main event.
"It makes me want to do it," Jared said between bites of his Long John Silver's dinner, "a little bit."
