Bodybuilding competition highlights muscles, drug-free lifestyle

Ely Pinter saunters across the stage in her green-sequined bikini, twirls to the right and hoists her arms for a pose. The crowd cheers wildly.

“Go number 14!” a woman yells as Pinter stops to offer a smile.

For Pinter, a Swiss fitness trainer, it’s taken 500 hours of exercise, 360 servings of vegetables, 200 protein shakes, six months of preparation and a transcontinental flight to reach this moment.

Pinter, 38, was one of 65 competitors in Saturday’s Southern Natural Bodybuilding and Figure Championships held at the Douglass Theatre in Macon.

More than 300 people packed the Douglass to watch steroid-free bodybuilders from across the nation — and world — flex their muscles and show off their physique in sync with the sound of fast-paced pop music.

As a sponsored annual competition of the International Natural Bodybuilding Federation, the show strictly prohibits competitors from using steroids or other performance enhancing drugs.

Competitors are required to take a lie detector test to prove they’re clean, and the winners agree to have their urine sent in for drug testing.

Show organizer Alli Kerr, a Macon fitness trainer and gym owner, has been hosting the competition in Macon for three years now.

She said it’s a good way to promote both physical fitness and a drug-free lifestyle.

“Natural bodybuilding is so much better than the non-natural alternative. It’s a lot more laid back and less cutthroat. Women don’t look like men, and competitors don’t look like freaks. They just look like people who are really in shape,” Kerr said.

Kerr said this was the biggest show she’s organized yet, with participants ranging from as young as 19 all the way into their 60s.

“That’s one of the best things about bodybuilding. You’re never really too old to be in shape,” Kerr said.

C.J. Daniels, a 48-year-old Marietta grandmother of five, competed in the Female Masters category of the show, which was composed of women older than 40.

“My grandkids love to watch me on stage. They’ve started doing the bodybuilding pose in the mirror because they’re so proud of me,” Daniels said.

Daniels said she’s a bodybuilder because it’s a good way to stay in shape while doing something fun. And she said steroids just aren’t for her.

“I like my health too much for drugs,” she said.

Lance Harden, a firefighter for the Macon-Bibb County Fire Department who body builds on the side, said he’s been preparing for the competition for the past five months.

“They encourage us to get exercise at work so we can be better firefighters, so I’ve been getting up every morning at 5 o’clock for this,” Harden, 34, said. “It’s a fun hobby.”

But for Pinter, the trainer from Switzerland who competed in the Female Figure Tall Class, bodybuilding is more than just a pastime. It’s a way of life.

“I haven’t eaten a big meal in months,” Pinter said. “But tomorrow morning after the competition’s over I’m going to have a big egg white omelette for breakfast and Mexican food for dinner. I can’t wait.”

To contact Telegraph writer Carl Lewis, call 744-4347.