In an interview with Sky Sports News' Gail Davis, former England international Phil Vickery discusses his bodybuilding transformation and living with his diagnosis of probable chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a brain condition associated with repeated head impacts... The picture was nothing short of astonishing. At first glance I joked it must be AI, but behind that moment on stage in Hull and beyond the bodybuilding poses and two tons of fake tan is something far more eye catching.
Phil Vickery has rebuilt his body, but he has rebuilt his mind too. Along the way he has found something to help fill a little of the void left behind after retirement from rugby in friendship, community, a sense of belonging and - perhaps most importantly - the feeling of being valued. All of which matter immensely as he faces an uncertain future.
The hour or so I spend with the 50-year-old former England captain is one of extreme emotions, from laughing about his chosen shade of mahogany and his inability to get the most out of his glutes on camera, to the sadness and frustration when he talks about struggling to remember simple things. There's no bravado, no hiding the difficult moments, just a determination to show up and live his best life. Which right now looks very different to a few years ago.
"I'm not really a bodybuilder. You know, I'm the wrong size," jokes Vickery. I've got a massive rib cage.
It began six or seven years ago when I was struggling. I was in just a really bad spot. I just looked at myself, and I thought, well, look at the state of you.
Do something about it." Vickery's life changed when he stepped into the Wolfpack gym in Gloucester and the hard work began. He goes on: "I just loved just being in that environment again." His coach Chris Bradley guided him through the good and bad days of training. After Vickery's initial and dramatic transformation he suggested he should enter a bodybuilding competition.
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