Bodybuilding is the art of sculpting one’s own body with patience and discipline. It’s about learning to get up every day, even when your muscles ache. For Neoclides Fernández Ramírez, that world was a refuge, a dream, and a way to prove to himself that limits can be challenged, even when life throws obstacles in your path.

“I always watched my older brother doing all kinds of barbell workouts. I remember one day I went up to him and something fell on me, but despite that bad experience, I was still curious,” says Neo.

In his neighborhood, there was a house with a home gym. As a child, he would sneak over there to watch people train. He was just a boy of about ten, very skinny, and although he felt a little self-conscious, deep down he longed to train like them.

By the time he was in elementary school, he was already clear about his two passions: sports and drawing. He chose the latter, graduating years later from the Holguín Academy of Fine Arts, but he never strayed far from sports. He played soccer and pelota, and at school he always stood out for his physique. Doing push-ups and running was his thing.

Like almost everyone who starts, Neo didn’t know anything about workout routines or the techniques that would help him build the muscles he dreamed of.

“At first, I didn’t know how to exercise properly, and what I wanted most was to have a good chest and a six-pack, like almost all men do when they start at the gym. I did the same routine every day; I didn’t have set days—I just went whenever I could. When I reached a point where I’d improved a little, I didn’t know what to do next.”

In his sophomore year, a friend from school took him to a real gym. There, he started training his legs for the first time in his life, and that’s where he began to fall in love with the world of bodybuilding.

Due to poor technique during his workouts, he now lives with scoliosis, which causes him frequent pain and makes certain exercises difficult. At the time, I didn’t even know what had happened; I just felt pain that kept coming back over and over again.

When he saw the call for entries for the competition in Las Tunas, he didn’t think twice. He had always followed bodybuilding through videos and dreamed of competing someday.

“The day I decided to sign up, I said, ‘Well, I’m going to ask if I can compete.’ A few days later, they told me I could, that I had to go every Saturday for practice, and that’s how it all began.”

“Actually, I prepared in a short amount of time, because there was only about a month left before the event. I barely did three or four practices,” he recalls.
He wasn’t afraid to compete; however, the stage, the lights, and the crowd made him a little nervous. But his real fear was something else: that his spinal injury would play a trick on him.

“Even though the kids from the neighborhood and my teammates cheered me on a lot, there was a chance I wouldn’t win, since there were other competitors in excellent shape.”

“I stick to my training routine: I train five days a week in intervals and rest two. As for the duration, it varies, but I almost always train for an hour and a half to two hours.”

Diet is a bit of a tricky topic, because it’s hard to stick to a diet, but hey, you do what you can. I usually eat whatever comes my way during the day. I know some foods are better than others for gaining muscle mass—for example, eggs, which are a good source of protein, and pasta, like spaghetti—and I always switch it up between these foods,” he tells us.

Neo tells us that he started taking supplements a while back because they’re hard to come by. He says he got creatine from a friend, but he received the protein as part of the prize for winning the event.

Standing 1.77 meters tall and weighing nearly 70 kg, he competed in the 1.75 and up category and says he was one of the biggest in his group. He acknowledges that he should weigh a little more given his height, but he’s holding his own nonetheless.

“Compete again? Of course. I’m looking forward to participating in another competition or posing event.”
“My advice to young people interested in this sport is, first, to do their research when training and consult a professional to avoid injuries that could affect their quality of life; and second, not to be afraid of competition —it’s always enjoyable.”

While he waits for his next event, he continues to train, watch his diet, and dream of stepping back onto the stage. He learned to pick himself up, time and time again, with the same curiosity as the child who once sneaked off to watch others train. And that—more than any trophy—is what makes him a true competitor.