SPOTLIGHT: Ill. man still bodybuilding at 69
Date: 13-10-2010
Posted by: Anabolic Info TeamUnited States |
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Here's an update on bodybuilding champ Murrell Hall.
In June 2007, his physique was as awesome as ever: bulging biceps, taut triceps, rock-hard stomach, deeply carved abs.
More than three years later, no change. He's 69 years old, weighs 170, is still training at Club Fitness and is still competing.
In August, he received a lifetime achievement award from John Hansen, a former Mr. Olympia and Mr. Universe who promotes bodybuilding competitions in Bolingbrook. It was the first such award and will be given on a yearly basis. "You'll probably win next year, too," Hansen told Hall.
The award is the climax of Hall's 30 years as a competitive bodybuilder. "I've competed in more than 100 contests and won more than 75 percent of the time," he said. At Bolingbrook, he won in the 60-and-over division, was third in the over-50 division and was third in the middleweight class. This was in the American Bodybuilding Association Natural North America bodybuilding, figure and fitness championships.
"I'm usually in the top five," he said. "I can still beat the youngsters."
His next competition will be in the over 70 division in the American Bodybuilding Association nationals in Pittsburgh, Pa., next year.
Will he ever retire?
"I'll keep going until I get too many wrinkles," he said. "I don't care about trophies. I like to show people how good you can look with the proper diet. My skin doesn't sag. I have good skin."
Hall is a personal trainer and teaches a body-sculpting class at the Decatur Indoor Sports Center. He has more than 20 students. "Some have been with me for seven or eight years," he said.
How does he stay in such great shape?
"Diet is important," he said. "My biggest meal is breakfast, my lightest meal is supper. I eat small amounts every two or three hours high protein, medium carbs, low fat. My body knows what it's getting."
He has changed his workout routine a bit, putting together his own style.
A retired physical education teacher and coach at Warrensburg-Latham Middle School, and a former paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division, Hall said he has been lifting and working out for 47 years.
He has been called the "master of muscle." At Club Fitness they call him "amazing" and "unbelievable." Ironman magazine's tribute is: "Murrell Hall is what bodybuilding is all about."
