Fitness | 27-y-o Nicolas Wilson turns bodybuilding dream into reality

Over the last nine years, Nicolas Wilson, Mr Jamaica’s Heavyweight Champion 2024, has never missed a day of doing 100 push-ups and planks immediately after waking up and goes to the gym at least three times each week.

“That’s [my] morning routine. I never missed a week in nine years. When the pandemic was happening, I still worked out consistently because I always had weights at the house, so I never had to go somewhere and work out,” Wilson, who was recently name the Jamaica Amateur Body Building and Fitness Association (JABBFA) national overall champion and winner of the JABBFA Invitational Open Title, proudly told Lifestyle.

The 27-year-old, who began his fitness journey at age 19, is also the overall champion of JABBFA’s national competitions for 2024. This includes being named the Best Bodybuilder in Jamaica, an award he received in September.

Following this achievement, Wilson represented Jamaica at the Central America & Caribbean (CAC) Bodybuilding and Fitness Championships in Guyana on October 19 and 20, where he placed second.

“To be honest, [winning] was a very weird feeling, because losing so much [championships, along with] people doubting you, saying you can’t do it [and that] you’re delusional [or that I should] stop doing bodybuilding, ‘it’s a waste of time, you never going actually win it’.” Wilson, who hails from the parish of St Thomas, said.

He added, “After winning the last competition, it kind of filled in my head that, ‘Yes, I am at the top of Jamaica’. I’ve sealed it. It’s not that I’m dreaming. I’m really that good.”

Regarding competing on an international stage during 2025, Wilson shared that his main focus is to return to the Caribbean Nationals CAC Championships and become the overall winner in the male category.

“That’s the goal next year around September/October time, [but] the preparation starts from this year, because I have to work and make improvements on my weak points [such as] my back and my chest. Basically, when I turn around, it’s not a bad shot, but the bad is always something that can’t be too good. It’s one of those body parts where more is always good, and it’s kind of the same for the chest, but getting more won’t take away from the physique.”

Wilson’s love for fitness started after being inspired by just watching his father, Lawrence Wilson, saving magazines with bodybuilders over the years.

“My father never did bodybuilding, but he actually liked the sport, so growing up he had the magazines and stuff, and I always saw it in the magazines, but my brother took up weightlifting so it became a part of the family; and then I started to work out after a friend of mine asked me … He used to come over and we used to exercise and I developed the habit there, and then I found a community online and they pushed me to do it more and I found the love for it.”

In 2018, a friend invited Wilson to a JABBFA event, where he learned about the competitions and decided to participate. He has no regrets attending that event and following his mother, Ruth Wilson’s advice to compete.

Wilson plans to retire from competing at 40 and is focused on maximising his 20s and 30s in fitness and competitions.

“I think 40 [years] probably is the cut off. I don’t think I will be improving anymore and the body will just going down from there,” he said.

His advice to persons who are thinking of starting body building and/or competing, is to just start.

“Usually after the first year or two of the consistency, it’s kind of a habit at that point. One thing is that you should definitely try to take the dieting [as[ slow as possible. It’s all about learning because as a body builder we have to learn what our body responds to. I know a lot of people when they go on a diet, they try to rush it because they want to see the changes quickly, but it’s a very slow process, and the slower the better, because then it’s easier to sustain over a period of time; and body building is a very slow thing where you’re going to be in the diet for three to four months, so you definitely don’t want to rush it. And, you need to practice your posing! Posing is even more important than dieting. Posing is key,” Wilson explained.

With Christmas fast approaching, Wilson said he will start his diet in June and not worry much this month, given that his next competition will be in September 2025.

ainsworth.morris@gleanerjm.com