Ken and Amy Akey
Owners, American Body Building Supplements, a new sports nutrition and supplement store that recently opened at 18 S. Main St. Both Ken and Amy are experienced competitive body builders.
How did you get involved in the supplement business?
Amy: Through natural body building. I'm a pro figure competitor in the World Natural Body Building Federation, which is all natural, and I've been doing it since 2005. You have to follow a regimented diet and eat healthy. We're not just here to be the strongest or biggest. We want to educate people that also taking supplements, you have to follow a regimented workout and be healthy. We're here to sell products, but we're also here to educate people.
Ken: I've been a competitive body builder and power lifter, and we've both got a lot of experience working out and exercising. Supplements are a big tool in achieving our goals. I used to actually travel to Massachusetts to buy supplements, so we felt we could fill a need for Concord and southern New Hampshire for all people trying to achieve their fitness and weight loss goals.
And we're locally owned and operated. We chose Concord, and we chose downtown. That's why what I don't want to do is position us as only a body building stop; we have options for anybody's fitness needs. But I will say that the companies that produce things for strength produce the best stuff.
What kinds of dieting methods have you used in getting ready for a competition?
Amy: For me it was eating right, a lot of chicken, fish, eggs, and other protein.
Ken: The ultimate goal is to lose no more than 2 pounds per week, so you're talking at least 10 to 16 weeks of dieting, six meals a day. And the most extreme, as far as competition goes, is the last two weeks. You really deplete your carbs to get your body fat down to its absolute lowest, so you're training and diet at that point are pretty strict. But you are so close to the finish line.
Who has influenced you the most in the weightlifting/exercise field?
Amy: For me, it wasn't really a person, it was really more of an organization in the INBF-WNBF (International Natural Bodybuilding Federation-World Natural Bodybuilding Federation), because it's all-natural body building and they do test for illegal substances.
Ken: For me, it's any athlete who has achieved great success without the use of illegal performance substances. Anyone who does it that's real, where there's so many shortcuts but they won't take them. It's not just one person but any athlete that does that.
What advice would you give to someone just getting started in the weightlifting or fitness fields?
Amy: Consistency. You have to be consistent in your workout, you have to be consistent in your diet and you have to be consistent with your supplements.
Ken: And once someone does undertake anything like that, they put greater demands on their body, so there's greater demands to nourish it. And that's where we come in with the supplementation.
What are some common misconceptions about supplements?
Amy: They are healthy for your body. For some reason people think they're not healthy. And people don't think they need them, but they do.
Ken: Supplements are meant to supplement a good diet and rigorous exercise, so they are used in a very productive way. No matter what you do, if you put physical demands on your body, you have nutritional needs. We have performance-driven pre-workout products, endurance supplements, recovery items, which is very important, and we sell the highest potency vitamins. There's such a demand for protein, and the purest and easiest to digest is liquid protein, meaning protein powder.
Can you tell if someone has been using steroids or some other illegal substance just by looking at them?
Amy: Oh, yeah. Someone can take a substance and within a few weeks can be much bigger, and almost have masculine features. You can tell, especially in their face. You start to get a blocky face.
Ken: I would say that's a definite yes. And it's tough. We go to the gym, we eat right, and all of a sudden you see someone in 30 days (get much bigger).
Who wins in an arm wrestling match?
Ken: Our son, Cody. He's 13.
Hidden talent?
Amy: I'm an animal lover, and I breed golden retrievers. I also have cockatoos, and they're going to be part of the store.
Ken: Snowboarding. I've been doing it for about 20 years.
Guilty pleasure?
Ken: Rammstein.
Amy: I love The Bachelorette. I told Ken, with work and stuff, I have to be home at 8 when it starts.
