With an aesthetic physique and a rising career in the IFBB circuit, Rafael Brandao has all of the traits of a successful bodybuilder. After winning his Pro Card in 2016, Rafael took the IFBB league by storm, taking 8th place in his debut at the 2017 San Marino Pro. However, while he's a successful bodybuilder now, Rafael's life wasn't always centered around weightlifting. Growing up, Rafael struggled to gain weight due to his fast metabolism. In fact, his peers often teased him because of his skinny frame. Eventually, Rafael became 'fed up' with being skinny and decided to take the matter into his own hands. He joined a gym and started training with heavy compound exercises. Although he didn't know much about training at first, entering the gym was Rafael's first step towards greatness. Rafael was born and raised in Garca, a small city in Brazil. While today, Rafael boasts one of the most famous bodybuilding physiques in Brazil, he wasn't always big and strong. In fact, Rafael looked completely different growing up. He was skinny and had an extremely fast metabolism. This made it hard for him to put on weight despite eating lots of food. However, despite this, Rafael believed he had good genetics. In his eyes, the right training program was all that he needed to start his transformation from slim to strong - he was correct. After his competitive debut, Rafael wasted no time. He started preparing for more challenging shows, aiming at becoming a professional bodybuilder. Eventually, Rafael's dreams came true. His efforts and dedication to bodybuilding have eventually earned him the place among the elite bodybuilders of the IFBB Pro Circuit. Rafael's Pro debut came in 2017, where he finished in 8th place at the IFBB San Marino Pro. He improved his result by two places at the 2018 New York Pro (6th overall), before finishing in 3rd place at the IFBB California State Bodybuilding competition. Show less «