COLUMBUS, Ohio — Rep by rep and lift after lift, Kel Haines has built the body of his dreams.
“I was a sculptor to my own body,” Haines said. “I chipped away at this body for years. I chipped away on that StairMaster. I used these iron plates, and we made it happen.”
But just like many other fitness journeys, it didn’t come easy, especially being a transgender man. Haines came out in 2017, at 27 years old. For decades he said he hated what he saw in the mirror.
“I have this memory and I'm like, I hate this body, and it's a really hard thing when you kind of feel that self-hate,” Haines said. “One thing that trans folks kind of weren't born with is feeling at home in our bodies. Most of us, when puberty happened, it wasn't a pleasant experience.”
As he transitioned, he began bodybuilding. In 2021 he competed in his first bodybuilding competition against other trans men at the International Association of Trans Bodybuilders & Powerlifters. There, he won his weight class and the show overall.
“Bodybuilding and focusing on my fitness and nutrition has literally let me sculpt the man I want to be,” Haines said. “I never thought I was going to be able to take my shirt off and feel proud and to be able to do that and have that freedom is just so life changing…I feel great in my body, and I'm proud of it finally.”
Four years into the sport, he’s now training for his first cis-gendered competition in September.
“It is a mainstream bodybuilding show, so I won't be competing against only trans men this time, I'll be competing with the wild world of men's bodybuilding,” Haines said. “Because I take testosterone injected, I inject testosterone via my medication, I have to compete with non-natural bodybuilding. So non-tested bodybuilding.”
Once a food microbiologist, Haines now works full-time in fitness as a certified personal trainer. Through his business, Constant Evolution Fitness, he helps people, no matter their gender, build the body of their dreams all over the world. Many of Haines' clients are trans men looking to achieve similar results that he did.
“I have a client in Australia, I have a client in France, I have a client in the UK, a couple in Canada and all over the U.S.,” Haines said. “Almost all of my clients are queer in some way. Most of them are trans men looking to do what I did. Feel more confident in their skin and that's really where my passion lies.”
One of his clients is his partner, Madi Kohr. The couple has been together for three years.
“Words can't even explain how proud I am,” Kohr said. “He makes such a big impact. I don't think he even really realizes it.”
Haines chooses to be visible about his journey in hopes that proximity breeds empathy. He said as humans, we all have insecurities, they just look different in each person.
“It's really easy to hate behind a keyboard, it's really hard to hate up close,” Haines said. “And I really want to be there to be, to help change people's minds. I want to be the first trans person people know. If that's me, then cool. Let's, let's talk man because I think there's more that binds us together and we have more in common than we have not in common.”
Through helping people build their ideal body, he helps people build their ideal life. Transforming not just their physical bodies, but their mental health.
“I want people to have the confidence,” Haines said. “I don't care what your body looks like, but what you can get through changing your body is that confidence that you can do what you want in this world. No one can hold you down. You can and can pull yourself up and dust yourself off and and keep going.”
He encourages anyone struggling with body dysmorphia to take that first step in their fitness journey.
“It's not going to be fast, it's not going to be without downsides or difficulties,” Haine said. “But you can make it through and any action that you take in the gym is going to move you forward. All we are trying to do is create that momentum forward and keep it rolling. We don't have to change everything in one day. The nice thing about fitness is that it all builds on itself.”
Rep by rep and lift after lift, he works to unite people through fitness and more importantly, love.
“Fitness is one thing that connects all of us. We all have to figure out how to take care of the, I always call them flesh suits, we all have to take care of these flesh suits, so let's figure out how to do it best,” Haines said. “Personal training is just the best job in the world because you're really seeing people live their best lives and really make their dreams, their own dreams come true.”
Haines is taking new clients, if you’d like to inquire to work with him you can find more information here.