Zac Aynsley opened up to GQ about his dizzying rise to bodybuilding superstardom.
In a new profile for GQ, Generation Iron’s own Zac Aynsley opened up to Paul Flynn about the unbelievable story of his fitness journey. Born in Northumberland, England, Aynsley was a quiet kid who never saw life as a superstar athlete in the cards for him.
Among the more personal admissions was Aynsley’s recollection that he “was not a happy kid.”
“Between [the ages of ] 10 and 15, I had suicidal thoughts. I’d regularly climb to the top of water towers thinking, ‘Is this the day I’m going to jump?'”
Like so many bodybuilders, Zac Aynsley found himself and his way to personal peace through going the gym and working out. A lot of people outside the world of strength sports don’t understand what motivates these athletes to do what they do; Aynsley puts it all down in words in this exclusive interview, where he basically reiterates that going to the gym is something you do for yourself, not for anyone else.
“I got a gym membership and that was that. I was addicted,” he said. “My priority in life was not money or fame, it was happiness. Simple happiness…In reality, the gym is just a place where people want to better themselves. The gym taught me to become the person I am.”
Like many famous bodybuilders before him, Aynsley struggled with his self-esteem and sense of meaning in life before finding singular purpose in the gym. Since then, he has partied with David Geffen on his private yacht, and even met personally with Oprah.
Zac Aynsley’s life as a bodybuilder is an amazing display of how much control you can have over your life if you put the work in. Aynsley has been vocal on his Instagram and YouTube about past struggles with drugs and alcohol during his time as a DJ, saying he led “an alcoholic lifestyle” and that he “loved getting shitfaced.” However, bodybuilding gave him new purpose and new lease on life, and he’s achieved levels of success in his field that he never would have thought were attainable to someone like him. Bodybuilding has given so many of the greats of the sport the gift of self-control, allowing them to not only dominate the stage, but achieve the mental focus necessary to accomplish their goals.
Now an official Generation Iron sponsored athlete alongside Calum von Moger, Aynsley looks set to continue his career as one of the sports most promising new talents. This interview is a powerful reminder that the physicality of bodybuilding is only the most visible part of the transformation that goes on when you commit to the gym. There’s always a person underneath with a story to tell.
*All images and media courtesy of Instagram.
