A 26-YEAR-old bodybuilder says he was “mentally exhausted” training for his most recent competition – but is happy to have qualified for the World Championships.

Daniel Roche, from Wigton, trained for more than three hours a day and dieted for more than five months to prepare for this show.

He said: “Competing is something I had always wanted to get into, even from as young as 16. It was my dad who got me into training and showed me the ropes when I was about 14 years old, and I fell in love with weights instantly.

“When I was 22 I had built a decent amount of muscle and thought I’d give a show a try in a smaller category – physique. I got second place and competed in another two where I did not place.”

This spurred Daniel on to go away and add more muscle. He then came back a year later in a different category – muscle model – winning a Scottish championship and coming third in another show at Sheffield.

“I then decided that to win these shows consistently I would need more muscle again and to be even leaner,” explained Daniel.

“I trained for another year, working hard to gain more muscle.”

He then entered the same show in Sheffield this year, winning second place, followed by first place at the Cumbria show at Greenhill Hotel.

And only one day after winning the Cumbria show, Daniel went on to win a show in Hull run by the PCA Federation which meant he qualified for the British finals.

“I then decided to do one last show which was a big one, the European Championships, at an Expo called Bodypower at the NEC in Birmingham,” added Daniel. “I won! I couldn’t believe it. I was expecting top three at the most, but to win felt unreal.”

After a short break, Daniel got straight back into training and dieting for the British finals.

He said: “It wasn’t the result I wanted but it was enough to qualify me for the World Championships in May 2020.”

“I don’t really know where I want to go with this at the moment. All I know Is I love the sport and would like to earn some kind of income from it one day, whether that be from show winnings, sponsorship or be it just from growing my personal training and online business.”

If anyone would like to work with Daniel online then get in touch through Instragram - danielroche93 or Facebook - Daniel Roche Personal Training.

He also offers personal training at Lifestyle Fitness, Carlisle and G&S Fitness Wigton.