Breaking a sweat, Chris Brine stands like a bronzed Zeus on the World Fitness Federation podium, flexing the full power of his chiseled body.
It’s an unlikely sight for the teenager who was told he would never walk again.
More than any teenager, the New Plymouth man’s worst nightmare was being confined to a hospital bed.
“In school, I said yes to all sports: cricket, football, rugby, tennis, indoor sports too, you name it. For me, at that age, everything revolved around sports. Then, they told me that I would never play sports again.”
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At first, the doctors had said they were growing pains. Soon, Brine’s acute pain and chronic fatigue left him completely bedridden; As a result of an incredibly rare side effect of his acne medication, Brine became ill with lupus.
“They didn’t even mention it as a side effect, you have a better chance of winning the lottery. It was a life changer. Soon, he couldn’t even walk or raise his hands.”
Brine’s case was so extreme that he was admitted to the hospital’s arthritis ward – the youngest patient in half a century.
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Chris Brine, who lives in New Plymouth: Brine recently recovered from a decade-long battle with lupus and now competes in international bodybuilding tournaments.
Lupus, a chronic autoimmune disorder that can affect virtually every organ in the body, requires lifelong treatment in most cases.
“I couldn’t even hold sheets in my hands because of the pain.”
Brine spent 18 months on the ward enduring this waking nightmare.
Coming out of his hospital stay, now 16, he was withdrawn and depressed, moody from social isolation and disheartened by the extra 50kg he had gained. Brine had gone from being on the Under55kg rugby team to weighing 120kg in 18 months.
Chris Brine/Supplied
Chris Brine and his wife Amber Brine are champion bodybuilders.
Leaving the hospital in a wheelchair, the time of confinement and her silent suffering prompted a new approach to health. Brine resolved to change her life: she would join the New Zealand Army.
“The military was the hardest thing imaginable, and something I was passionate about anyway,” Brine said.
After a year of marching, running and training, Brine lost all his hospital weight and gained a new sense of self.
“I realized a lot of things by myself. Knowing what I know now, there were easier ways than starving myself.”
Brine left after six years in the infantry, and now works training and empowering people to improve their health.
VANESSA LAURIE/Things
Brine and his wife will represent New Zealand at the WFF World Championships in Indonesia.
His choices suggest that lupus was a catalyst for radical change: from having no control over his body and its functions, he would exert total control, pushing it to the limits of human endeavour.
In this track, Brine met his now-wife Amber the old school way, through a dating website, and they set up their first date (on the gym floor, of course).
“I was terrible at approaching women, I didn’t and I didn’t have confidence in myself. On our first date we organized a training session, that was our first official date. We had very similar interests and goals.”
She expressed a long-standing interest in taking up bodybuilding, and Brine promised to commit to her.
“I said if you do it, I will do it. From there, we were able to get coaches on board, and we fell in love with her.”
Brine’s multiple challenges and utter devotion to his training indicate a unique level of commitment, but, he insists, “everyone can do it.”
“I am not special, but I have achieved things in my life that I never thought I would achieve, just by being consistent.”
VANESSA LAURIE/Things
Brine balances 20+ weeks of training with two kids and her full-time training schedule.
Brine’s lead-up to bodybuilding tournaments is measured in years, not days or weeks.
“It is a commitment 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year; it becomes his everything.”
Bodybuilding demands a total commitment of body and mind; competitions add another level of demand to this.
As major competitions approach, with the world championships three weeks away, Brine’s training schedule peaks: about 12 hours of cardio a week and nine hours of weight training. Competing at an international fair could end up costing more than $12,000. Brine will represent New Zealand
This competition version of Brine is about as distant from his 15-year-old self as possible.
VANESSA LAURIE/Things
The New Plymouth local said that since his illness, bodybuilding has become “everything.”
She coordinates her days around training, clients and family, a life filled with things that once seemed out of reach, and lupus, now “all gone.”
“Life is unpredictable. Bodybuilding taught me with the structure you need to have support around you.”
By sharing her story, Brine hopes that other people with chronic illnesses can feel some hope, even at the lowest points of their experience.
“The gym is more for people to have functionality in their lives in the long term, to have a better quality of life.”
Brine will compete at the world championships in November, the sum of his professional life thus far. Gracefully, Brine thanks her family for helping them along the way.
“Our family may not understand it, and may think we’re a little silly, but they know it’s important.”
