STAR STATS
COVER STORY
IRON MAN : How important was fitness for you growing up ? Brandan Fokken : I came from a really tough background . I moved around a lot , we didn ’ t have any money , etc . So for me , fitness was a way to belong , to fit in and to make friends . Along with that , due to my upbringing , from an early age I equated muscles to not being hurt , which was attractive to me because I was put through a lot . I looked up to Superman , Arnold and Hulk Hogan . They were all big and strong and in my mind couldn ’ t be hurt . So I wanted to be just like them .
HEIGHT : 6 ’ 1 WEIGHT : 215 pounds AGE : 37 LIVES : Sioux Falls , SD PROFESSION : Wellness Director of POET , Owner of Fokken Strong Training , Sponsored Athlete , IFBB Pro SPONSORS : Dymatize , Team Bodybuilding . com Athlete , Icon Meals , Smart Shake , P28 Foods , Fitmark Bags WEBSITE : www . BrandanFokken . com FACEBOOK : www . facebook . com / BrandanFokkenFitness INSTAGRAM : @ brandanfokken YOUTUBE : www . youtube . com / user / brandanfokken TWITTER : @ brandanfokken
IM : Tell us about your journey into bodybuilding competitions . BF : I started weight training at the age of 14 . I was tall and skinny and not strong whatsoever . Over the years I slowly improved and , by my 20s , I was really pushing big weights and physically was about as muscular as I could get . I , however , knew very little about diet and or competing . At the age of 30 a friend of mine who was a coach and longtime competitor talked me into doing my first show . I didn ’ t have a clue what I was doing , but took the things he told me and implemented it into my plan . I ended up competing and loved it and have been hooked on the lifestyle ever since .
IM : How important is giving back to the community for you ? BF : It ’ s huge and a big part of who I am . I say that positivity and good karma are cousins . The more positive you are , the more good karma comes back into your life . I believe that if you are able to help , you should . So , between working with many charities , speaking at school or corporations , bringing awareness to various institutions , mentoring and always looking for different ways to give back , I feel that I am paying back from an industry that has given me so much . As I mentioned , I didn ’ t grow up with much and now that I am where I am at in my life , I want to help others do good in our community , find their own “ great-
28 AUGUST 2017 | ironmanmagazine . com