He is now set on becoming the world’s number one fitness athlete. His love for health and fitness grew as he became a teenager and now, at 24, has amassed several trophies, medals and titles in just over two years, representing T&T locally and abroad in bodybuilding.
Last month, Lindsay, who lives at Enterprise Street, Chaguanas, brought home a bronze medal, his most recent accolade, after participating in the International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB) Diamond Cup-Men’s Physique category held in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
He is also preparing to defend his title in the national seniors championship of the T&T Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation (TTBFF) Men’s Physique category later this year.
Lindsay, whose community has been making negative headlines recently, praised his mother, a 43-year-old single parent, for “all the licks” he received as a child and for keeping he and his twin brother, McAnthony, grounded.
Lindsay and his brother are members of the T&T Coast Guard. Lindsay is attached to the Squadron Department and is also a certified trainer, gym instructor and fitness consultant.
Disappointed by the violence and gang activities taking place in his community, Lindsay, who was born and raised in Enterprise, said parents needed to be more responsible for their children.
Shaking his head, he said he was “very much disappointed.”
“I wish the Government could do more but there’s only so much it can do. It all goes back to parenting. Parents needs to focus more on their children, be more observant.”
He said although parents were working they needed to be involved.
Licks kept me on the straight path
Asked why he entered the sport, he told the Sunday Guardian: “To be honest, one of the reasons I entered the sport is really to show the youth that there are positive things they can get involved in...there are other ways out; you don’t have to lime on the block or turn to a life of crime.”
Lindsay grew up without his dad and his mother, Welete, a small business owner, was the disciplinarian.
“I never had my father around and so, my mom stuck with us in terms of guidance. She was mother and father.
“It was licks. I think the biggest mistake society made was getting rid of corporal punishment because at the end of the day, if she didn’t do what she had to do to keep us on the straight path we probably we have ended up like some of the other youths, but she held on to us.
“My mom just turned 43 and she did it on her own.”
His advice on the crime situation in Enterprise and the entire country was for parents to be more involved in their children’s lives.
“Know who your children’s friends are, friends lead you astray. If you don’t stand for anything, you’ll fall for everything, right?
“People need to stop blaming the Government and start taking more responsibility.”
Asked if he would remain a resident of the Enterprise community, Lindsay said there would come a time when he’d want to start a family.
He said: “I would not want to hear that my son or my daughter getting home from school and end up picking up a stray bullet. I will not know how to bear that so I do intend to leave the area at some point.”
But he won’t leave without giving back to the place where he was born and raised.
“I will not leave the area without giving back. I want to do something for the youths.”
‘To be successful, model someone’
Lindsay’s trophies and medals are neatly placed on a shelf at Raw Fitness and Health Club in Gasparillo, where we met for the interview.
Lindsay said his affinity for fitness started at the age of 14, but it was only when he was 19 he started to train at a gym.
He said, “I started to train at home but not lifting weights. I didn’t like it.”
Before 20, he was already certified with the International Sporting and Conditioning Association.
He said as his training progressed people encouraged him to get into bodybuilding.
“They said I would do really good.
“A guy kept at me with it and I eventually decided to take part in my first show which was in November 2014.
“I placed first in my category and second overall. Then, in June 2015 I decided to compete at a national level and placed first in my category and second overall at the juniors.
After that, I took part in the Sports World Classic. It’s a regional show. I also placed first in that.”
The Raw Fitness-sponsored athlete said his goal was to become a pro-IFBB athlete.
Lindsay puts in about 90 minutes training a day and said he works out up to six days a week, following a strict diet.
He credits his discipline to being a cadet during his secondary schools days at Asja Boys’ College in Charlieville.
Asked about his role models, Lindsay said: “To become successful in an area, you need to find somebody who has done it and model that person and don’t be afraid to ask questions. I have asked a lot of questions along the way.”
He said he was not easily influenced and has a strong mind.
“If my mind tells me no, it is no.”
His role models are his coach—Quincy Winklaar, professional bodybuilder, army veteran and former police officer from the Netherlands, and Quincy’s brother Roelly Winklaar.
His role model in his category of Men’s Physique is Jeremy Buendia—currently an American IFBB professional Men’s Physique competitor.
His most recent victory was the Men’s Physique Mr Olympia 2016.
Lindsay said: “I knew that somewhere and somehow something good was going to happen but I didn’t know what.
“In terms of fitness and being a successful person, I wanted to become one of the world’s number one fitness athletes.
“I never knew anything about Men’s Physique and it just happened that that’s the category I fell into.”
There’s no stopping Lindsay. He said in the next five years, he sees himself as a pro-Men’s Physique athlete.