Every Tattoo Tells a Story: Billy Pope

It’s believed that each tattoo on a person tells a story, and Billy has a lot of tattoos! William Pope has a story like nobody else!

Billy went from being at the top of the fitness and bodybuilding world, to being incarcerated and losing everything in his life, including his home, car, savings and his physique.

Not only has he pulled himself out of a dark place, but he’s now reaching for the stars in the fitness world. He has been on his own upward trajectory while taking others with him.

Billy is a top level fitness competitor, a mentor, a coach and within a few weeks he will be a gym owner franchising a location of Hammer Fitness.

We asked Billy a few questions about his life, his goals and his future and we know you will be as inspired as we were.

1)What are some goals now that you’ve turned your life around

For the first time in a long time I feel like everything is falling into place for me. Everyone who knows me knows that I’ve spent the past two years on house arrest after battling with a drug addiction and a car accident that left me injured to the point where I didn’t know if I could ever compete again. That was the lowest moment of my life and to look back on that now, and how far I’ve come just motivates me to crush my goals more.

Fitness wise, I’ve been working toward my IFBB pro card since I’ve started bodybuilding as a kid.   My last Classic Physique show was postponed the day before due to COVID-19. While a lot of people would have lost all motivation to compete, I used this time to fine tune the package I’m going to bring back to the stage.

The hunger for that really drives me and I will not be satisfied until I win. The past two years, I’ve put my heart and soul into this sport and I’ve pushed myself mentally and physically to places I never thought I could go. That’s definitely something that I want to continue to do in life, push myself beyond what I think is possible and give 110% to everything I do for myself, my business and my family.

Career wise, I have a coaching business with so many great clients that remind me why I do this everyday. I’ve been given the opportunity to work alongside my mentor and coach, Amer Kamra to open a gym under the Hammer Fitness franchise. All the sacrifice I’ve given to this lifestyle and dedicating thousands of hours to this sport, my goal is to build my client base worldwide.

Otherwise, I have a beautiful wife and a son, so financially I want to provide everything they need and want in life. The harder I push myself in this industry, the more lives I can change and positively impact, at the end of the day, that means a lot to me as a person.

2) How do you manage to have such a big impact on the people around you

Being honest about my story and my struggles is the main reason why 95% of my clients reach out to me in the first place. That real, raw Billy is relatable. A lot of times, you see personal trainers and they’re robotic and all their information is from a textbook. With me, what you see is what you get, and because I’ve learned the hard way, I’ve hit rock bottom not once, not twice but three times.

That’s why I offer a judgement free zone to people. When it comes to fitness coaching, you can’t offer advice if you haven’t gone through it, so not only is my knowledge valuable because it’s based on personal experience, it is enhanced by the dedication and passion I have for what I do. I strictly focus on changing someone’s mindset before I even begin their transformations.

3) What is one piece of advice you’d give to somebody struggling to pull themselves out of a dark place?

One piece of advice I would offer to anyone in a dark place right now is to find something they’re passionate about and dedicate 6 months of hard work to it. 6 months leads to 12 which then turns into your lifestyle. Having that tunnel vision when you’re in a dark place gives you something to live for. For me it’s been fitness but it doesn’t have to be for everyone, maybe it’s a skill, maybe it’s a hobby you want to pursue full-time.

For me I had to reset my life. I had to go into isolation to the point where I had no communication with anyone I knew. I shut out the world to begin rebuilding myself from the ground up. I took things one day at a time, not ever knowing what the outcome could have been. The goal was to continue moving 1 more step forward every single day. I never began running before I could walk.

4) What can we expect from you in the coming year?

With the new facility opening up this is like a dream come true for me. Some of you may know that I owned a small nutrition store with a personal training studio in the back of it when I was 23-25 called Genetics Nutrition.

Many of you know that Amer Kamra has been my role model and mentor for the past 2 years. I’ve always told him from day one what he’s created in the fitness industry is like nothing else out there. It’s a brand I stand behind and firmly believe we are going to bring something savage this upcoming year.

It has been a dream of mine to earn my pro card since I was 18 years old. This will be my year. I’m here to bring something unique and different that the industry has not yet seen in the classic division. I’m here to make a statement. I want to share my story. I want to prove that anything is possible and that with hard work, commitment and dedication the sky is the limit. Be Undeniable!

This is what my hit list looks like for the year:

• Earn 7 figures
• Earn my IFBB Pro Card
• Mentor 10 Employees
• Grow my social media presence
• Buy a home for my family
• Buy a car
• Put a few athletes on stage
• Make investments
• Continue learning
• Buy 1 of Amer’s G Wagons

Be sure to follow Billy on Instagram @inkedphysique23