CONCERNED that there was no one who would save the sport/art of bodybuilding but aficionados themselves, I put up a body-building competition in the mid-2000s, called “Body Wars”, to serve as another opportunity for bodybuilders and with the hope of stirring things up for the sport.
The inaugural edition of the tournament in 2005 was won by Reynold “Cocoi” Domalsin, a respected figure in the bodybuilding community. At the time, the second-generation bodybuilder was on a tear, dominating almost every competition he participated in.
We became good friends, and, since then, I have witnessed his curl bar of a life filled with ups and downs.
“I basically grew up in the shadows of my father, Nick Domalsin, who was well-known throughout the country during his time. So I started hitting the gym at the young age of 16,” the 36-year-old Baguio-native said at a sit-down in his gym. “By the time I finished college, I took bodybuilding seriously.”
His first win came in 2003 at a competition at Tabuk in the province of Kalinga. Little did he know that this would be the start a four-year landslide of awards.
In 2007 Domalsin left all the glory behind and tried his luck in Kuwait, where he worked as a gym instructor. The transition, he said, had its share of challenges. “Kahit gaano ako kasikat dito, kahit champion ako dito, ’pag punta ko dun ang trabaho ko pa rin was an instructor. We had to be humble.”
Following a four-year hiatus in the local bodybuilding scene, Domalsin came home in 2011 and immediately joined a competition in Boracay that year to see if he still got it. He did, winning first place.
However, more than the reaffirmation that the trophy provided, what Domalsin treasures most from that event is that it was where he met his wife, Leigh Guda, who won in the bikini category in the same competition. “Kaya hindi na rin ako umalis ulit, kasi nakilala ko na siya.”
HIS HEAVIEST CARRY
With newfound inspiration and the high from the win, things were looking up for Domalsin. In 2012, however, the muscleman was presented with a challenge that packed a weight unlike any other he carried before.
“It was May and I was invited to play basketball in our barangay here in Project 4,” he said, confessing that playing hoops is also close to his heart. “Then, while playing, I felt something strange in my right leg. I reached for my Achilles and I couldn’t feel it there but then I didn’t feel any pain.”
Concerned, Domalsin went to the nearest hospital. They initially thought it was just a muscle pull but when the doctor checked for his leg’s reflexes, his right leg was unresponsive. “Dun nakumpirma ng doctor na I tore my Achilles.”
This type of injury is infamous for long recovery periods, and Domalsin’s case was no exception. He wore a cast for almost seven weeks following surgery and when it was removed, he recalled that due to the lack of activity, his right leg was half the size of his left. “I was crying, thinking, ‘Wala na, tapos na ang career ko.’”
Still, he refused to let the setback hold him down, and Domalsin went straight to do leg press on his right leg. “I was so eager to recover that although the doctors said I could only do squats after six months, I was already doing them after three months.”
Then, in manner of most inspirational comeback stories, Domalsin pushed himself back to competitive form and won the prestigious Mr. Philippines competition on the exact day he was operated on the year before.
“It was a long road to recovery but it was really worth it,” he said, citing patience and determination as key values. “After 2013, sunod-sunod nanaman [yung mga panalo ko].”
THE BIG STAGE
Domalsin’s momentum carried on to the earlier part of this year, when he competed in the highly regarded Arnold Classics of the International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness, or IFBB, the governing body of bodybuilding and fitness. The tourney is a step up to the grandest stage in bodybuilding: Mr. Olympia.
With no support from the government, I financed the participation of Domalsin, who was representing the country. I trained him, as well. Usually, he takes three months of preparation time for a competition but for this one, he took five.
He ended up bagging fourth place in the Men’s Open Light Middlewight, which is no small feat considering the top-caliber of the participants from all over the world. Now, Domalsin said that he’s just focused on his family and the business he and his wife started in 2012, Maximus Den Fitness Center, a gym and a dance studio in Project 4, Quezon City. The center is named after their 6-month-old son, Maximus Gabe.
In June Domalsin will start on his diet for the competitions he’s eyeing this year, including the Amateur Olympia tourney in Hong Kong in November.
As his mentor, I can say that humility has played a no small role in Domalsin’s long and successful run in the sport. He may appear physically intimidating but the big guy has a good heart.
“One’s attitude toward the sport, toward other competitors, toward gym-mates is important. If you stay humble, mas tatagal ka,” he said, adding that muscles should not be only what’s big in bodybuilding but virtues, as well. “One should do what he has to do without bragging. Being humble is a big virtue in bodybuilding.”
With JT Nisay