Investment banker in London documents his 12 week body transformation at The Spectator

If you’re struggling to get in shape and blame your long working hours, one investment banker is keen to prove you wrong. 

Nick Deakin, 28, an investment banker and a former medical doctor in London, decided to see if he could make a difference to his body and become more ‘buff’ in just 12 weeks – and the results are impressive. 

A few years ago, you were far more likely to find bankers proving their stamina by seeing how much they could drink and how long they could stay out. Now, you’re much more likely to see them down the gym bragging about how much they can bench press. 

Nick wanted to join them – and documented his challenge in The Spectator.   

Nick Deakin, 28, pictured, left, before and, right, after the twelve week challenge has certainly gone from ‘scrawny’ to ‘brawny’. Here, he shares exactly how he did it

Nick says he is one of 65 per cent of men who believes their chest, arms and stomachs are not muscular enough, nor measure up to the likes of Daniel Craig.

While he didn’t want to slim down, he wanted to bulk up, so he sought out the help of Andy Pilides, a fitness instructor who specialises in ‘transformations’ and works from the City and Guildford.

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These, he says, ‘are typically twelve-week, intense programmes where a personal trainer works in the gym and with your lifestyle to kick-start you into a fitness routine.’

They are traditionally used as weightloss programmes and by people who want to slim down for their summer holiday or wedding, but are increasingly being used by the cash-rich professionals who want to get a good body in a short amount of time. 

Speaking about the challenge, Nick said: ‘Surprisingly, as I found out, with relatively little time commitment – three hours a week and some thinking about your food – it is possible to achieve astonishing results.’

Overall, after twelve weeks, Nick put on a total of 3.6kg of pure muscle, his body weight increased by 2kg to 67.4kg and his body fat percentage decreased from 8 per cent to 5.6 per cent (he is pictured top row L-R: March 2, March 11, March 18, March 21. Bottom row L-R: April 1, April 7, April 21 and April 26)

Nick, on the left, sought out the help of Andy Pilides, pictured on the right, a fitness instructor who specialises in ‘transformations’ and works from the City and Guildford

At the end of the twelve weeks Nick, pictured above, put on a total of 3.6kg of pure muscle and increased his body weight increased by 2kg, to 67.4kg

Nick says at first he didn’t notice any difference when he looked in the mirror but after about a month, his clothes felt tighter around his biceps 

Here Andy watches over Nick as he attempts to make his body more ‘buff’

Nick says he is one of 65 per cent of men who believes their chest, arms and stomachs are not muscular enough – something he was willing to work hard to change

He fit in three sessions before work a week and Andy built a 12-week programme focused on resistance and weight-training. 

This used both free weights, such as dumbbells, and his own body as resistance, such as in performing chest-presses and chin-ups.

For the first few sessions, Nick and Andy focused on improving posture and building coordination. 

Nick explained to The Spectator: ‘Andy focused on developing good technique, and explained which muscle group we were building during each exercise.’

Initially, he says, it was slow and he didn’t notice any difference in the mirror. 

After about a month, though, he began to notice a change and although it was subtle at first, his T-shirts began to fit better and were tighter around his arms. 

The twelve-week fitness programmes are traditionally used for weightloss and by people who want to slim down for their summer holiday or wedding

Nick says they are increasingly being used by cash-rich professionals who want to get a good body in a short amount of time

Nick fit in three sessions before work a week and Andy built a 12-week programme focused on resistance and weight-training

For the first few sessions, Nick and Andy focused on improving posture and building coordination

He also quickly increased what he could lift and by the end, found himself comfortably lifting over six times the weight he started with.

The training sessions weren’t all about exercise; they also included tips on nutrition.

Nick says Andy made him record his diet and it transpired that he was having far too many calories from fat and carbohydrates. 

They gradually re-adjusted this over the first few weeks so that it was more balanced. 

‘Nick was assessed on day one of his transformation program and asked to complete a food diary using the my fitness pal app on his smart phone,’ explained Andy. ‘From this I pulled his average caloric intake over the week and discovered he was underrating, particularly for someone who was looking to put lean muscle mass on in the gym. 

‘So we set the bar straight from the offset by setting out with some guidelines to his nutritional plan. He was asked to eat set calories and macro nutrient ratios but had the freedom to eat a variety of foods of his own choice. Of course, he was encouraged to eat lots of lean meats and fish whilst consuming complex carbohydrate sources and various veggies. 

‘He did have allowance, however, to have the odd sweet if he craved, as long as it fit in with his overall targeted intakes.’ 

Nick also quickly increased what he could lift and by the end found himself comfortably lifting over six times the weight he started with

The training sessions weren’t all about exercise and also included advice on nutrition

Nick, pictured above working out, says Andy made him record his diet and it transpired that he was having far too many calories from fat and carbohydrates

Together, Nick and Andy, pictured above, gradually re-adjusted his diet over the first few weeks so that it was more balanced

Overall, after twelve weeks, Nick put on a total of 3.6kg of pure muscle. 

His body weight increased by 2kg to 67.4kg over the course of the programme and his body fat percentage decreased from 8 per cent to 5.6 per cent.

Speaking after the challenge, he said: ‘My arms, chest, calves and thighs all increased in width – due to increased muscle mass – whilst my waist reduced in size – bringing me that V-shaped silhouette I had longed for.

‘Just 12-weeks of tailored exercise and eating lead to countless compliments from work colleagues and friends. I’m now able to join the gym-fit people at work, and what’s more, I feel more confident and assertive – which is really important in finance.’

Nick says the benefits didn’t just end in the office and that his newfound ‘brawniness’ also meant that when he was mugged on the way home late last week, he conjured up the courage to chase after the man on a bike and threw him to the ground.

He added: ‘I asked him to return my phone, which he did, and he rode off. A result.’

Andy Pilides offers transformations packages, group classes and on-line training. His latest book ‘More Than Physique’ and contact details are at morethanmuscle.co.uk 

ANDY’S TRANSFORMATION TIPS FROM THE SPECTATOR

– Set aside 12 weeks when you’re not on holiday

– Be honest with the trainer about what you eat, how much you drink and what you want to achieve

– Find someone who specialises in transformations and has got results on their websites

– Part of the programme will be teaching you correct posture and technique – this is vital ground work and not a waste of time

– Transformations are more about resistance work and weight lifting than cardio because cardio on its own isn’t very good for physique work

– Be prepared to change your diet and be open minded about what you’re told to do – many of the changes will be temporary to help get you kick started