Known for shattering backboards and dominating the game with his brute force, Shaquille O’Neal belongs to a rare breed of athletes the world has ever seen. However, his fitness level deteriorated following his retirement in 2011. And it became worse in 2020, but he understood he had to make a return at that point. And a 70-year-old man served as an inspiration to him.

During his time with the Los Angeles Lakers, Shaq’s towering height of 7’1″ and 305-pound weight shocked even bodybuilding great Arnold Schwarzenegger. Shaq gathered attention for his physical strength and power even before he made his professional debut in 1992. Today, the 50-year-old Los Angeles Lakers legend serves as a role model for others and raises awareness about fitness.

Shaquille O’Neal got his workout motivation from a 70-year-old fitness freak

It all started in 2019 when Shaq’s sister Ayesha Harrison, passed away due to cancer at the age of 40. Soon after that in 2020, Kobe Bryant‘s tragic death shook the world. Shaq admits that 2020 was his toughest year because of multiple personal losses.

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He didn’t want to do anything and instead preferred to eat and watch Netflix. His poor diet caused him to gain a lot of weight.

But soon Shaquille O’Neal realized that things needs to be changed. One day he saw a man and was inspired by him. In an interview, Shaq said, “I saw this 70-year-old guy on there, and he had muscles everywhere. So I just decided to switch it up. No more bread, no more late-night lemon Oreos, no more Entenmann’s cakes, none of that.”

The Big Diesel got the motivation and bounced back. Shaq has lost 10 kilograms throughout this process, completely transforming his body, and he credits this to a new diet and workout. He said, “I’ve been doing this for six months and just eating fruit, protein shakes, salads, fish, chicken, and asparagus or other vegetables.”

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Even at the age of 50, the Hall of Famer still manages to wow the crowd. Let us know what you think of Shaq’s transformation in the comments section below.