Greg Inglis article..
How a weedy kid became a superstar
Friday, June 20, 2008
http://www.melbournestorm.com.au/default.asp?sec=1&ssec=1
Source: Daily Telegraph

NO one remembers the exact weight. Thirty kilos. Maybe forty, at most.

"But whatever it was," Storm conditioner Alex Corvo laughs, "Greggy was struggling like a greyhound under the barbell.

"I actually had to go over and stop him . . . for safety reasons."

Today, as he pushes through a gym session at Storm HQ, Gregory "GI" Inglis is living, breathing proof that every footballer has to be made. Even those born for the game.

Because, how else can you explain this Aboriginal Adonis who outweighs props, outsprints wingers and outshines every other athlete in the NRL?

"A footballer," says fellow Stormer Billy Slater, "who is perfectly built."

This phenomenon who only three years ago appeared at a Melbourne scholarship camp with clothes dripping from his wiry frame.

A shy Kempsey boy whose body lagged six, long lengths behind his promise.

Back then Inglis weighed 88kg. Had never run a beep test in his life. And barbells, weren't they rung at midnight to signal last drinks?

First the kid collapsed in a heaving mess, unable to finish even his first session. Then came the urgent lessons on how to bench press without killing oneself.

"I was a twig, thought they'd punt me for sure," Inglis recalls of his NRL introduction.

"I walked inside that gym, looked around and thought, 'What the hell do I do here?'."

And so the Inglis revamp began. A furious Pimp My Ride for humans.

A complete overhaul involving supplements, ice baths and muscle mass records. Nutritionists, lifting techniques and injury prevention for those dangerously long limbs.

In three years Inglis stacked on 14kg. More than doubled his strength. Improving speed, muscle tone and agility in the process.

It's a complete package that finally exploded in that Origin moment at Suncorp Stadium on June 11. A play everyone saw but only those who live among weight stacks truly appreciate.

Inglis pushing off NSW winger Steve Turner - thwack! - then hurdling his limp carcass before accelerating through the space he himself created.

"I mean, he did it all in a split second," Corvo enthuses. "Only a handful of players can do that.

"Sonny Bill Williams, Justin Hodges, Mark Gasnier . . . everyone else would bump and fall over."

But not GI. Why? Well, for a start this once weedy kid now bench presses 120kg, squats 200kg and hoists 120kg in a power clean - a move he couldn't even do in January 2005.

"But even these figures don't tell the real story," Corvo continues.

"Because standing well over six feet, his long levers make lifting weights more difficult than for, say, Cooper Cronk or Dallas Johnson.

"So his strength goes beyond the weights pile. Just like some gym junkies are powderpuffs on the field, Greg has a natural strength that we're just trying to improve."

And how.

While a player like Slater is deadly in space, he needs the brains of coach Craig Bellamy or the guile of Cronk to create it.

But Inglis, he boasts more force than Belinda Neal in a waterfront restaurant with that bump, push and deadly right fend.

Sure, league handbooks insist on switching the Steeden to your opposite hand if defenders approach from that side. But not GI.

"Nah, he just palms straight across his body," Storm prop Ryan Hoffman says. "It's lethal . . . makes him the toughest player in the game to tackle."

Sadly, no Corvo spreadsheet can measure the most dangerous hand outside a Chuck Norris glove.

So we go old school. We ask the man behind the face.

"Oh, uncomfortable," shrugs Turner of the palm that basically married him to the Suncorp Stadium turf a week ago.

"That's probably the best way to describe it."

Of course, Storm officials concede they've been given a fair product to work with too. One who kicks AFL goals from 60m out and glides through water like he does on turf.

"Swimming lessons? Mate, none," Inglis shrugs when quizzed of his aquatic background.

"Dad just chucked me in a pool once, saying 'Swim to me'."

And then there's those flashing feet.

While no one at the Storm has run the stopwatch over 100m, Slater suggests that "the smart money is on GI".

Has been since day one. Back when Slater would make a break in touch games and no one chased.

Inglis, though, hadn't heard about the rule.

So he chased. Caught Billy The Kid while everyone else mouthed expletives. Yet, despite his athletic improvements, Inglis remains that laidback Kempsey boy.

You can see it in the way he moves through the gym, like one of those personal trainers with more time than they'll ever have clients.

Stopping randomly. Chatting constantly. Never once offering a flex, grunt or mirror glance.

"Mate, in four years," laughs prop Brett White, "I've never seen him use dumbbells once."

But this, even Corvo admits, is how their Queensland Origin star works best. Last in the gym, first to leave. Doing only what is necessary to continue that Pimp My Ride program.

"So, dumbbells, nah," Inglis says with a grin. "If the forwards want to get big arms, that's fine . . . they can look good instead of me."

If anyone needs reminding, the Inglis fend-off is in this clip at 1min 20 seconds

http://youtube.com/watch?v=1y-t01_Skjs

There's also a few highlights of the other storm boys in the game.