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Keith Williams
The Professional Frame Of Mind
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By Marie Escamilla
Photography by Jason Mathas
It’s hard to achieve a goal if you set about the task without knowing too well which road to take. But when you know exactly what you want, sooner or later you’ll meet your target.
This would be the case of Keith Williams, who aims to become a professional bodybuilder.
If you know down to the very last detail how to make it to the top in a sport and do battle with other professionals, bodybuilding will seem like a walk in the park to you. Armed with this experience, if you practise bodybuilding and aim to step up onto the Mr. Olympia platform some day, regardless of the time and effort it takes, you’ll more than likely succeed. Keith Williams, from California (US), is on the right track, even though he started late competing as a bodybuilder. He was an Olympic athlete and a professional American footballer, so he’ll undoubtedly possess the mindset of a professional sportsman— the only thing he has to worry about now is fulfilling the requirements that judges are seeking: symmetry, conditioning and physical shape.
BodyFitness: Why did you leave professional American football to become a bodybuilder?
Keith Williams: After I retired from American football I needed to set myself a new goal. Weight training wasn’t enough for me, for when I combined it with my American football, I found it extremely tough. I’m a competitive person by nature and found that the transformations the body is capable of are incredible.
BF: It would appear you didn’t start competing as a bodybuilder until 2002. So at what age did you start weight training?
KW: I can see you’re well informed, and it’s true that I didn’t weight train to build a physique for competing as a bodybuilder. I started weight training when I was 14 years old to improve my performance in the other sports I did in those days.
BF: Did you do other sports?
KW: Yes, I played basketball and practised wrestling and boxing. I also competed in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, but then I devoted my career to American football, first at university and then professionally.
BF: Your sporting trajectory is impressive, but do you think you might have excelled in another sport if you hadn’t opted for bodybuilding?
KW: Maybe boxing or wrestling, since I’d already made it to the top in athletics and American football.
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Anthony de la Garza
And His Routione for W-I-D-E Shoulders
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By Marie Escamilla
Photos by Jason Mathas
The small town of Laredo, right on the border between Mexico and Texas, is becoming a small Mecca of bodybuilding lately. One of the main reasons is because Anthony de la Garza and his better half Bernadette Galvan live there.
Anthony’s career recently took a turn, as he has gone from competing on stage to largely becoming a sponsor and organizer of competitions. In fact, the man has had a relatively short but intense competitive career, and while his most significant role now is as the organizer of the Texas Bodybuilding Championships, he hasn’t ruled out getting back up on stage completely.
The truth is that this man is one of the most prominent amateur bodybuilders in the southern United States, and at any time could win a national event and earn his pro card.
The Early Days
Anthony de la Garza was born and raised in the Lone Star State of Texas, USA.
“I was born on New Year’s Day in the city of Corpus Christi, Texas, a few decades ago,” he confirms.
He says he was the only rebel in the family that became a fan of the iron and converted bodybuilding into his sport and profession, and since the moment he first touched a weight when he was just a teenager knew immediately that this was his thing.
“Back then I was nothing more than a kid learning to discover how the body and muscles worked.
“Before bodybuilding I had tried American football but the truth is I just was not particularly good at it, so I don’t think I would have had a career as a footballer or anything even if I hadn’t discovered bodybuilding.”
Like most guys he was not initially intending to get into competition, but after he had been training for while, one day some other guys saw him working out and asked why he did not compete, to which Anthony thought, “Well, why not?”
This is a guy who trains basically for fun and because the sport is his life, and his ultimate goal is not to turn pro but just make sure that training is a part of his lifestyle and if brings anything else than that will be like bonus.
On Training
Anthony trains in a small gym in Laredo, Texas and generally does so alone, without a partner, since that makes it easier to adapt his schedule and program without having to depend on anyone else. He admits, however, that he sometimes trains with his girlfriend Bernadette, who is an IFBB Pro Figure (Body Fitness) athlete.
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