Big Bulge

Burl Johnson waddled his 300-pound body up the steps in his apartment building carrying two just-delivered extra-large pizzas in his arms.  The smell coming from the boxes was intoxicating and his stomach was rumbling, even though he had already eaten his first dinner a few hours earlier.

He put the pizzas down on the kitchen counter as soon as he was inside his apartment and dug in to the pepperoni, cheese, and sauce.

Sometime around 2:00am, and not quite remembering when he had sat down, Burl awoke in his old recliner in the living room. There were 10 pizza crusts on a paper plate balanced atop his giant gut, and not wanting them to go to waste, he finished them off before getting up.

He stumbled down the hall toward his bedroom, and stopped when he got to the trophy display in the corner. There sat all of his trophies, serving as reminders of his past as a fit, athletic winner. He had been a decent athlete during high school, and his continued lifting in college changed his 5’10’” 170-pound baseball player physique into one of a thick 220-pound muscleman.

This transformation allowed him to start winning various local and regional bodybuilding contests, plus the award he had been most proud of: Best Abs, which we had earned during a Mr. Minnesota Hunk contest 10 years ago. Burl had struggled leaning out his mid-section, which kept him from making into the big leagues of bodybuilding, but that one day they were absolutely shredded and the judges rewarded him for it.

Success in bodybuilding (plus his cornfed Midwestern good looks) had led to a few other endeavors, including a fitness video and some endorsement deals, but nothing really that brought him fame and fortune – just a little security and a lot of groupies who fawned over big-muscled hunks. He ended up marrying one of them, but that ended a few years later when a bigger and younger stud lured away his spouse and Burl was left with a divorce decree and a much smaller bank account.

So now here he was, staring at all the trophies, but Burl could really only see the reflection of himself in the glass.  He zeroed on the double chin, the sagging moobs, and the big belly that was peeking out from the bottom of the XXXL polo shirt he was wearing. "What happened to the guy I used to be?" he thought. "What happened to the hot guy with the dazzling smile, chiseled jaw, and stunning muscles?"

Burl didn’t want to think about the question too much, however, because he found the answer to be embarrassing.  So he staggered off to bed, and when he awoke in the morning, decided it was time to stop feeling sorry for himself and try to make things better.

"And I know just where to start," he thought. "I'll break out the fitness video I starred in and follow that routine."

Burl went to his closet and squeezed into the largest workout outfit he owned – a black tank top and a pair of athletic shorts he bought 50 pounds ago, which was the last time he made an effort to exercise.

The clothes were ridiculously tight, with every ounce of flab threatening to burst through the stretched fabric. Left exposed were his large soft arms with zero definition, once-hard thighs that could barely hold himself up, and jiggly pecs spilling out the sides of the tank top.  Everything he could see was a reminder of how soft and billowy he had become, and how much work it was going to take to get back into shape.

After recovering from the effort of getting dressed, Burl rummaged around his video cabinet and finally found what he was looking for: a dusty videocassette of "Get Fit Anywhere" starring Burl ‘Bulge’ Johnson. Burl winced when he remembered that his agent dubbed him Bulge in an attempt to get more publicity as the stud with the bulging muscles, but at least the content was exactly what he needed: solid workout routines he could do anywhere to help improve his fitness.

Burl slipped the tape into his VCR, and soon he became mesmerized by the young, fit version of himself preserved on the screen. He was 10 years younger, with a jacked-up physique, a full head of hair, oodles of energy and vitality, and a sex appeal that could not be denied. The workout clothes in the video were a bit dated, but Video Bulge stripped them off in the first 30 seconds in order to get pumped in just a tight pair of spandex shorts.

"OK, ladies and gentlemen," said the hunk on the TV, "first I am going to show you some great exercises for your mid-section. Just follow these simple steps and you will soon have a set of abs just like mine."

Video Bulge flexed his stomach to show off his deeply-etched 8-pack; the video had been shot just after he had won the Best Abs title, so they were in their peak condition. Current Burl sighed as he grabbed his giant belly and tried to remain optimistic that he could recapture that glory.

Burl got down into position and started following the routine that the younger version of himself was doing on the TV. After only five minutes, however, he was completely winded. Huffing and puffing, he lay on the floor for another five minutes before he was able to get back up and rewind the parts he missed.

“Damn, this is harder than I thought,” he said.

After about 20 more minutes of very light exercise, Burl eventually gave up and decided to try again later.  “What I need to do is get some pre-workout to jumpstart my energy level.  And maybe some creatine.  That will help me get through the program.”  With only around $300 in his bank account, he decided to go to a nearby discount nutrition store where he should be able to buy the products he needed at an affordable price.

Burl showered, got dressed in an oversized shirt and giant pair of cargo shorts that he thought hid his bulk (when in reality the clothes just made him seem even larger), and ate three bowls of cereal to fill up his tank. He then left his house and walked to the nutrition shop, which was called Pro Body.

He was already perspiring heavily when he arrived, so the air conditioning felt really good as he entered. Burl looked around and saw several of the supplements he wanted to buy, so he scooped them off the shelf and put them into a basket.

"Can I help you find something?" asked a voice from behind. Burl turned to see a store clerk a few feet back.  The guy was maybe 20 or 21 years old, at least 6'4" tall, had straight brown hair and brown eyes. He was also wearing a Pro Body t-shirt that highlighted his lean muscles – he wasn't huge, but obviously spent a lot of time in the gym. Burl thought he looked like Michael Phelps if he had been a little more attractive and had played football instead of swimming

"No, thank you," replied Burl. "I'm just getting a few things."

The clerk nodded and headed back over to the counter. Burl continued to shop until he had everything he needed, and then went to the counter to pay for it.

After taking Burl's debit card and noticing the name, the clerk's eye lit up. "You're Burl Johnson? The bodybuilder? Bulge Johnson?"

Burl immediately began to turn red and wanted to slink away as fast as he could. He tried to suck in his stomach before answering, but it wouldn't budge inward at all. "Yeah, but that was a little while back. It's just Burl now."

"You used to be SUPER buff, man. As I kid, I totally looked up to you – in fact, I started working out because I saw your commercials, and I told my dad I wanted to get as big as Bulge.”

"Always nice to meet a fan," replied Burl, with a hint of sadness in his voice. “You sure did get plenty big.”

The clerk, whose nametag said Mason, walked over, stood in front of Burl, and looked down at his gut.  "And it was all because of you…or at least, the old you.  So I gotta know – like what happened?”

Burl tried to play dumb. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, what happened to The Bulge? How does a top hunk turn into such a…chunk?” Mason asked while gesturing at Burl’s belly.

Burl sheepishly replied, “It just happens, you know.  I naturally gained weight as I got older."

"Come on, man." said Mason as his gaze moved from Burl’s stomach to his eyes. "Hairlines naturally recede when you get older.  Crow’s feet naturally appear.  But nobody ‘naturally’ transforms from fitness pro with the best abs in the industry into a, pardon the expression, huge sack of lard just because they get older. I mean, and no offense, Bulge, but look at your body – it's all flab. I bet there's hardly any muscle left.”

"I...I'm still plenty strong.”

"Really, Bulge? You’re sweating from just walking in here.”

“Really!” Burl lied.  “I worked out just this morning.  The muscle memory always kicks in.”

Mason laughed. “OK, prove it. Flex your guns and let me see your muscles."

Burl slowly lifted his arms and hit a double bicep pose. His arms quivered, but unlike his bodybuilding days when a nice set of grapefruit sized muscles would appear, nothing happened when he flexed.

The clerk smiled at the pitiful demonstration, and then reached over and jiggled the flab dangling under Burl’s arm. "Still strong, huh? Bulge, you must outweigh me by 100 pounds or so, but I bet your lifts are less than 1/10 of what I can do.”

Mason then lifted up the bottom of his work shirt with his left hand to reveal his abs, and then he caressed the bricks with his right hand.  Burl almost gasped at how taut and defined they looked – much better than he had ever been able to accomplish.

“So my question remains, Bulge. What happened to your abs, and your guns, and those jacked thighs you used to have?  Why did you throw it all away?”

Burl knew exactly what had happened.  Shortly after his divorce, and after winning his last contest, he had indulged in his usual off-season ritual: enjoying a big bowl of pasta and some hot, buttery bread.  After starving and sweating for months to get as lean as possible, Burl loved being able to eat like a normal guy again and suck down all the carbs he could get his hands on. But instead of just making him full, that night his dick had gotten harder and harder each time he swallowed.  It was like each strand of spaghetti was a Viagra, and he’s just had 100 of them. The dinner had made him so horny that before he could go to sleep, he desperately needed to relieve the pressure.

So he went right from masticating to masturbating, and all the time was rubbing his very full stomach.  The activity climaxed in the most intense orgasm he had ever had.  Waves and waves of pleasure accompanied a geyser of cum, and the momentary tsunami of ecstasy easily overwhelmed all the adulation he had ever received for having a great body.  That night marked the end of his bodybuilding career.

After that, it was more pasta, and ice cream, and donuts, followed by as much jacking off as his body could handle, and a lot less time running on the track or pumping weights in the gym.  Burl loved eating and, as it turned out, he loved plumping up.  He loved watching his gut and ass get bigger and bigger.  He loved every part of gaining weight, but he had always been too embarrassed to admit it.

“But where has that gotten me?” he thought. “Alone, pushing 30, and almost nothing to show for it. Why not just admit the truth and see if things change?”

As soon as Burl had the thought, he felt as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. "Yeah, kid. You nailed it. I love my body. I used to think that being ripped with 4% body fat was perfection but it can't compare to a big belly and 40% body fat.”

Mason stepped back and had a look of puzzlement on his face.  "You’re joking?"

Burl stood up straight. “Bodybuilding was good to me but the lifestyle was a drag. Twenty-year-olds like you think that being built and fit is easy, but each year it gets harder and harder to maintain.”

“OK, replied Mason. “But don’t you miss people checking out your muscles. I totally get off on that.”

“Sure, there are ego strokes from being a hot stud, but I get way more pleasure from not denying myself anything. I can eat whatever I want whenever I want. It makes me feel way more manly than any pump I would get in the gym.”

Mason stood there stunned, not knowing what to say, so Burl continued on.  "I'll be honest. Up until this moment I'd been torn. I thought I still yearned for my old life and the body that went with it, but now I see that I'm past all that. I didn't get fat by accident. I was ready to move on to a better life. You did me a big favor today getting me to admit it. Muscle Bulge is history, but Gut Bulge is here and ready to enjoy life. In fact, I'm feeling a bit puny. Take back these supplements and get me your best weight gainer."

In the moment, Burl had gone from a wimpy, apologetic mound of blubber to a proud, defiant widebody. Maybe he wasn't a strongman anymore, but he felt better than he had in years.

Mason looked at Burl with respect. "So you don't wanna go back?"

"There is just no comparison," Burl smiled back at the young Mason. "If you are lucky, you will learn that lesson yourself. Now ring up this gainer mix. I'm hungry."

"Yessir." Mason answered as he walked back around to the register. "Let me know if this works on you. It's what we give the hardgainers and it really seems to help them."

The big man smiled and his round cheeks and soft jowls just emphasized his pleasure.  “Why don't you join me for lunch in a couple weeks and you can see for yourself?"

Mason paused. Moments before he had felt sorry for the former bodybuilder, but now he was imagining what it would be like to see Burl indulge himself and stuff his big belly. “Um, I’d like that, Bulge. Very much.”

The pair exchanged numbers, and Burl said he would text Mason soon for the date. He walked out of the store and into the sunshine with a huge smile on his face.