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Wilkins said he viewed that opportunity as the Weiders putting their trust in him to write articles based on science and research. He did, and he authored a regular column for Muscle & Fitness and Flex magazines until 2007. Wilkins said he had no writing experience at the time, and the Weiders suggested he take classes at a community college. Joe offered Wilkins the opportunity to pen a column in Muscle & Fitness magazine.
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Joe Weider published fitness magazines, while Joe’s brother, Ben Weider, organized the International Federations of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB). That piqued his interest in lifting weights, and, though he never competed, he did meet the Weider family in 1983. Wilkins’ fitness journey began in eighth grade, when he discovered Muscle Builder magazine. “If they went undetected, they may have passed away,” said Wilkins, who received an Air Force commendation for organizing the health screenings. His programming focused on “functional strength” and included beach walks or runs, along with speaking engagements at local schools.ĭuring his time at Patrick AFB, Wilkins said, health screenings revealed existing conditions in some of his fellow airmen. He was given the opportunity to run a fitness program at Patrick Air Force Base in Florida. At the time he was focused on bodybuilding, the Air Force, according to Wilkins, had increased its attention to health and fitness. “ about 1 percent serving now, or less, and I think to be amongst those few is a tremendous honor,” Wilkins said.īalancing his Air Force responsibilities with his bodybuilding routine was “very, very easy,” he said. It’s simply “part of a family business,” he said. Wilkins’ military history dates from relatives in World War II to present conflicts. “I think I am the Air Force,” Wilkins said. The military, according to Wilkins, has given him the opportunity to learn in an environment that he calls the “melting pot of America” and to succeed. “Secondly, because of serving in the Air Force, I just want to make all airmen proud.” “I just thought, ‘What a great opportunity for me as an enlisted person,’” Wilkins said of the appointment. His nomination to the council was announced last year. After his service in Afghanistan, Wilkins was on the staff of the Joint IED Defeat Organization and Legislative Liaison Office for the secretary of the Air Force.
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Wilkins deployed to Baghdad, Iraq, and Kabul, Afghanistan, from November 2005 to December 2006, and served in Turkey at Incirlik Air Base during Operation Northern Watch in 1997. “My initial thought was, ‘Only in America.’” Photo courtesy of Rob Wilkins.“I just thought it was remarkable,” said Wilkins, a Life member with the VFW Department of Virginia. Rob Wilkins (middle) visits with co-chairs of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition, New York Yankees legend and Hall of Famer Mariano Rivera (left) and Heisman Trophy winner, football and Olympic star Herschel Walker (right). Rob Wilkins has never competed in a bodybuilding competition, but his lifelong passion for the fitness regimen aligned with his 26-year Air Force career and led to an appointment on the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition.