Incredible bulk
Garwin Phillips’ friends call him House.
It’s easy to see why.
Bodybuilding helped transform the Bermuda Police Officer into 248lbs of solid muscle.
Pc Phillips used that to his advantage in a competition in Barbados last Saturday. He won second prize in the Darcy Beckles Invitational Classic Bodybuilding Championship.
“I went with the notion that it would be a tough competition but I would do my best,” the veteran bodybuilder said. “I’m at a stage in my life [where] I go with the intention of doing my best and pleasing [the audience]. I tell the athletes that I train, ‘You are only in charge of what you put out on stage’. I’ve not always had every decision go the way I think it should, but it’s part and parcel of sport.”
Pc Phillips started bodybuilding about 20 years ago, shortly after he joined the police force in his native St Vincent. Since then, he’s won Mr St Vincent/Grenadines seven times and has been named Mr Bermuda twice. The 43-year-old has also won several other regional championships.
“When I joined the force there was a woman who said I had a good physique and asked if I’d ever thought of bodybuilding,” he said of his initial interest.
He hadn’t, but the idea stuck. He began training but, on learning there was a competition on offer, realised he didn’t know how to pose.
“Four days later I went into a show and came second,” he said.
“After that, I never looked back. For me it’s beyond a sport, it’s a lifestyle. I’ve done a lot of other sports — cricket, football ,etc. This is an extreme sport, but there’s nobody beating you. Lifting is something you can do to enhance your physique and well-being of your body. It makes it the mother of all sports.”
He moved to Bermuda in 2005 and promotes the Island at every overseas competition he enters.
“I wasn’t picked for the Bermuda team this year,” said Pc Phillips, who placed second in the Bermuda Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation’s Annual Night of Champions in August. “But, I represent [the Island] and the Bermuda Police Service and St Vincent at every competition.”
Bodybuilding is now a way of life for Pc Phillips who believes a little bit of vanity is a healthy thing.
“If you can’t find some sort of pleasure looking at yourself, don’t expect anyone else to,” he said.
Asked if he thought he’d still be lifting weights aged 70, Pc Phillips said: “It’s like asking do you plan to eat [forever]? If you do something that’s so fulfilling and so enriching and it’s to your benefit, why would you stop?”
It’s called the House of Pain and about 30 officers from the Bermuda Police Service willingly subject themselves to it.
Garwin Phillips’ workouts aren’t for the fainthearted.
Each lasts about an hour and training is four times a week.
“It’s called the House of Pain because of what they experience when they train with me,” Pc Phillips explained. “My nickname is House.”
The veteran bodybuilder started training at the police gym shortly after he arrived on the Island in 2005.
A few people asked if they could train with him — and then the requests grew.
Although the group can’t all fit in the gym to train together, social media has proven a huge asset.
Pc Phillips creates a workout which he shares with the group the day before. Those who can’t physically train with him are then able to partner with others in the group to enhance their workout.
“I usually train Monday through Thursday but once in competition mode I train Fridays and Saturdays [as well],” he said.
Having at least one rest day is important.
“Recovery is a key factor with how the body copes with exercising,” he added.
