A
bodybuilder who suffers from a crippling bowel disease has defied by
winning his first fitness competition - while wearing his colostomy bag.
Blake Beckford, 33, beat hundreds of hopefuls to be crowned the champion of a national male fitness modelling competition.
He
had been left devastated when he was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis
in 2003, just as he was preparing to compete - and his condition forced
him to quit.
Over the next decade, he was treated with a variety of different drugs to keep the chronic bowel disease under control.
He
was forced to stop his strict training regime - which had included
two-hour gym sessions six days a week - and lost two stone in weight as
his muscle wasted away.
He
thought he would have to give up his dream of entering fitness
competitions because his condition meant he was unable to keep his
sculpted body in shape.
He
lived with the debilitating disease for 10 years until a flare up at
the end of 2012 left him constantly fatigued and needing to go to the
toilet 20 times a day.
By last October, his health had deteriorated so much that he required surgery.
The
father-of-one was admitted to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford for a
sub-total colectomy, meaning his entire colon was removed.
Doctors then performed an ileostomy, where the small intestine was diverted through an opening in the abdomen.
Mr
Beckford - who also needed a further two operations to help him digest
food - was then left with a stoma bag on the outside of his body.
He
was discharged from hospital at the end of November and told by doctors
that he would never be able to train at the level needed to be a
fitness model.
Doctors warned the father-of-one after
surgery that he would never be able to train at the level required to
be a fitness model - but he decided to try anyway
WHAT IS ULCERATIVE COLITIS?
Ulcerative
Colitis (UC) is a condition that causes inflammation and ulceration of
the inner lining of the rectum and colon (the large bowel).
In UC, tiny ulcers develop on the surface of the lining and these may bleed and produce pus.
The
inflamed colon is less able to absorb liquid and this can lead to a
larger volume of watery stools. Also, because the colon cannot hold as
much as usual, sufferers may have very frequent bowel movements (six or
more a day).
It’s estimated that Ulcerative Colitis affects about one in every 420 people in the UK.
Viruses,
bacteria, diet and stress have all been suggested as environmental
triggers, but there is no definite evidence that any one of these
factors is the cause of UC.
Undeterred,
Mr Beckford - who weighed 11st 12lbs when he left hospital - started
going to the gym in January this year and slowly increased his training
schedule.
In
July, MailOnline reported he had managed to relaunch his career as a
fitness model against the odds, and become a personal trainer.
Less
than a year after his surgery, he has now beaten off hundreds of other
men to be crowned the champion of a male fitness modelling competition.
Mr
Beckford came first in the male transformation category at the Pure
Elite event at the Winter Gardens in Margate, Kent, on November 2.
He
posed in nothing but a pair of trunks with his stoma bag visible as
judges compared his impressive physique to a photo taken just after he
left hospital.
Incredibly,
he was also placed in the other two categories he entered by coming 4th
out of 20 in 'tattooed muscle model' and 5th out of 40 in 'fitness
model under 75kg'.
Yesterday,
Mr Beckford said he hoped his success in his first ever modelling
competition would inspire others with serious health problems.
The personal trainer, who lives with his partner in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, said: 'It was my first ever competition.
'I was just starting to get into it over 10 years ago when I was struck down by the ulcerative colitis.
'It
was absolutely amazing to be able to go to a competition and compete
against and beat people that haven't had to go through what I have gone
through.
'I placed in
all three categories that I went in, it was really rewarding bearing in
mind it was 12 months since I had my last surgery.
'There
is two ways you can react to a major health problem. You can either
think it's game over or you can do what I did and say I think I can do
it and give it your best shot.
'I
just want to inspire others and I get so many messages from people who
have had surgery saying they want to get back into their football or
other sports which is great.'
Mr Beckford was warned by doctors to give up his dream of becoming a fitness model after having the stoma bag fitted last year.
But
incredibly, after leaving hospital weighing just 11st 12lbs, he has now
bulked up to 13st and has appeared in 'Men's Fitness' and 'Muscle and
Fitness' magazines.
Mr
Beckford, who has a son Louie, 12, now plans to give his body a rest
before entering another Pure Elite event and the Miami Pro competition
in the UK next April.
He added: 'When I came out of hospital it was the first time I had in weeks to get used to having a stoma.
Mr Beckford achieved his sculpted body less than 12 months after having surgery to remove his colon
'It took a while to build my confidence again, to talk to people openly about having a stoma, to show anyone what I had.
'But
over time I realised that this is me and the operation made me feel
like a new person, my energy levels were much better and I could enjoy
life more.
'I asked the doctors if I would be able to train and they said there was a risk of hernias and other problems.
'They said to start lifting weights and training to be a physique model would be very unattainable and unlikely.
'But
I just thought I am going to go in there and train and see what
happens. You know you're own body and I just found myself being able to
handle it.
'I
did my first photo-shoot at the end of April and after that people
began asking more about the bag and I was able to talk about it.
'I am determined to show people and society that having a stoma doesn't change who you are.
'It
doesn't mean you're not normal. It means you can achieve anything you
want to do, you can be attractive, and you can lead a normal life.'
Source: Dailymail
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