teen collegiate and masters bodybuilding
championships in Durham North Carolina
and we're speaking backstage here with
teen competitor in the heavyweight
division Jay Cutler Jay it's very nice
to have you in the contest today I want
to particularly mention that you
impressed us as being a real natural at
this sport and you really come a long
way in a few short years you've been
training did bodybuilding come naturally
to you or was it a tough struggle all
the way bodybuilding has been pretty
easy for me I mean it's just I think
mainly a focus and to be something it
takes a lot of time but undead acade and
it's brought me quite a bit of attention
so far anyway well it's gonna bring you
an awful lot more attention after this
evening because undoubtedly you plays
very highly in the show tonight you're
going to be up against some tough
competition in the general pose down but
since you have such a limited class
there won't be too much difficulty
probably in winning your class do you
have any particular strategy that you've
got planned for the overall pose down
basically I'm just gonna do as well as I
can do I mean I came into the show it's
my second show I I done the best I can
right now for what I got and I just hope
to do well that's all you mean you've
written only one other contest before
tonight one other so I I want another
show just to qualify for this and it
brought me here and so I can't I can't
you know it's a big stepping stone for
me just to be here well it certainly is
and considering the fact that you're not
very experienced in competition that you
act as if you've been doing this for
quite a long time how did you get to
that stage I mean did someone coach you
through this yeah I fed I've worked with
Chris Macedo a little bit and he's
helped me out a real lot and I just had
a lot of support just a basic just
family and friends and I just had the
right support just enough to get here
and hopefully within the next couple of
years I'll be able to be in higher
places well we expect you will and did
you have to get coaxed into using
weights or did this come naturally I
came naturally I was always decent-sized
so it was kind of something that was
inside of me and I just exploited and
just really got into it so would you say
there was one thing that influenced you
more than anything else
to start training and not really I just
I wanted to be something that no one
else was and where I come from this
not too many national level bodybuilders
and I just wanted to be something that
no one else was well you come from a
state with a lot of great bodybuilders
not the least of which I think has
influenced you it's Paul to me or if I'm
not mistaken yeah he impresses me quite
a bit yeah
I respect what he's you know what he's
become well he's secondly done
sensationally well and continues to do
very well has he actually helped you
with training advice no I haven't had a
chance to meet probably I will soon I'm
planning on taking a trip to California
and I hopefully get to speak with them
just because I'd like to coach stay in
California for a while if I can but just
for a vacation anyway yeah and actually
your legs remind us a lot of Paul Tamayo
did you ever notice that similar yeah
yeah that's what everyone says so I
don't even have to train them anymore
it's not a bad comparison to make yeah
it's not too bad not too bad what does
the family back home think of the
progress that you've made in this sport
they did give me a support they give me
support but you know it's just like any
other family they just want they care
about my health and you know I tell them
you know they like me getting the
experience you know being being in front
of crowds and you know meeting different
kinds of people and I just you know they
they think it's a it's a good thing to
do right now you know you take a lot of
courage to get up there the first time
in your first show no I I feel pretty
comfortable on stage you know once if
the crowds loud I like I feel
comfortable is that what you like most
about competing yeah probably the
audience reaction as long as there's a
good audience here well this is what
your second audience it'll give you a
good chance to judge that yeah it's
interesting
Jay when we looked at your physique the
first time on stage there were
tremendous similarities between your
body and another great bodybuilder who
comes out of the Middle West
his name is Matt Mendenhall you both
have the same kind of size you both
broke on the bodybuilding scene at a
relatively young age
and the kind of thickness and legs that
you've got are very similar to
especially in the calf region has anyone
ever mentioned that to you before yeah
I've had you know a lot of people say
well you got great potential you got
great potential but you know the only
one that's gonna do it is me and that's
all you know I know that and that's why
I just got to focus on higher things
that's all now obviously you want to go
higher on this and you've got the
potential to do it do you see yourself
on a game plan for any number of years
where you're gonna hit it to make it to
the top two years two years I like to
step on stage at about 2:30 2:30 I'd
like to compete at and you know she
shredded shredded what's your current
body weight tonight 215 tonight so as
you know I'm still a teen I'm still
mature and I'll be able to pack on the
mass the next couple of years hopefully
what are the sports have you played so
far I played football in high school but
knee injuries you know kept me from
being real good at that but that's
probably what brought me into
bodybuilding anyway do you believe in
using training partners when you train
are you a loner when it comes to
training in the gym basically I'm a
loner because where I come from people
aren't serious enough really to train
and I don't think you have to go real
crazy heavy to get the size I mean I
train light light and strict and night
can get sighs so and when you say light
and strict for you what would be light
say in the benchpress light 225 max you
know 10 reps you know today it's real
strict this real strict was that a
method you taught yourself or you read
about or someone told you that's where
all my potential gains have come from
basically basically light and strict and
you know a lot of intensity a lot of
intensity and wish you the best of luck
this evening and we know we're going to
be seeing a lot more in front of our
video action cameras of Jay Cutler in
the years to come