Take 5 With Joseph Oyatta aka Pippen Jay

Joseph aka Pippen Jay is the competitive body builder who just scooped the coveted pro card in his category in South Africa at the just concluded Arnold Sports Festival (Schwarzenegger’s brainchild) - and he did all of that with minimal local investment in the sport in Kenya. He is also a certified fitness trainer and a wellness and nutrition coach/ influencer.1. You just won the pro card at the Arnold Sports Festival, founded by one of the legends in the sport, Arnold Schwarzenegger. This from the guy who was teased for being too skinny in high school! What does this distinction mean for you?Winning the Arnold Classic Africa and being able to turn pro is a dream come true for me. I was just a skinny 19-year-old lifting weights to put on some muscle and look good. It feels great when all the hard work, discipline and dedication is recognized and pays off.I’ll now be able to compete at pro level, IFBB (International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness) with great athletes all over the world. I hope I inspire more Kenyan athletes to know it’s possible.2. Why do you think there is minimal investment in competitive body building sports in Kenya? Also, how do you manage to attend all these competitions?It’s hard to get sponsors or even support from the sports ministry if there’s no structure in place, and at the moment, we don’t have an active federation (Kenya Body Building Federation). I think they have scandals within and are in court.Competing is hard, the training and dieting is hard, but the financial bit of it is even harder. Bodybuilding is such an expensive sport with not a lot of return. I’m self-sponsored, with support from family and friends, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to compete internationally.It would be great if the government, through the ministry, supported the sport and helped sponsor more events locally and internationally. We haven’t had a Mr/Ms Kenya Bodybuilding Contest since 2018. I’m the reigning Mr Kenya Physique Champion.3. Paint for us a picture of your typical training day. Does your schedule change drastically before you are about to compete? Also tell us if you eat six eggs and four steaks before a competition!

Training is usually in two phases. There’s the off-season, where focus is to improve your weaknesses. I train four to five times a week during this time and eat 5-6 meals, real meals. Like I said, I’m an ectomorph (naturally skinny) and so I struggle gaining weight, so I have to eat a lot.

The other phase is the pre-contest where I train six to seven times a week, twice a day and diet really hard as the goal is to look really shredded on stage with very low body fat (I get to about 5 percent), while still keeping as much muscle mass as possible.

I eat eggs, chicken, fish, a little carbs, usually rice, oats, sweet potatoes, and a lot of vegetables. These are the only foods I eat for about 10-12 weeks. A really boring lifestyle, but it wins you a pro card and you look like a Greek god.

4. Tell us the basics about competitive body building. What parameters do the judges look for that determines a 'good body'?

In my category, men’s physique, it’s all about symmetry, balance, and muscle definition. We’re more of beach bodies, not too big and freakish like the open class category. A physique any normal guy would want and most girls find attractive and admire.

5. Is it ever hard for you to train? It feels like the average person who is not training competitively or for a specific goal like a marathon can find training or exercising boring or difficult. And what do you find important to remind yourself to keep going - or even your clients, as a trainer?

Now it’s not hard. When you start, just like with any new thing, it’s hard and uncomfortable only because you’re not used to it yet, but the body adapts, it’s all in the mind. The most important thing to remember, as I tell my clients, is why you started and why you’re doing this. To keep reminding yourself that it’s worth it, that the pain and struggle pays off if you stick with it long enough. And all it takes is that slight notice of the progress you’ve made - and you’ll never look back. It takes consistent discipline though.