Author: [MyoFolio] Stories~collected

[Jeremy Lightning]

Once again, I like this whole scenario, I love how you basically showed her ending first and now are working backward to show how she got that way, and are going fairly slow and measured about it. That takes patience and shows a long term vision, good job on that. k+!

[Jeremy Lightning]

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[MyoFolio]

Thanks for the comments everyone! I'm sure the pacing isn't everyone's cup of tea but I prefer more long-form storytelling, something which is hard to find these days. The tradeoff is more time between instalments but hopefully the waits are worth it.

Not really sure where this'll go but don't worry, we'll get to what was teased soon - that is the fun part, after all!

[MyoFolio]

Chapter 3.2
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Ariel was determined not to let Daphne's attitude deflate her. Instead, she used that experience to reset her definition of what her Wonder Woman should look like. Women as muscular as Daphne weren't as unusual now as they were ten years ago. So, Ariel decided, she had to take it to the next level.

It took longer to convince Damien, along with many texts, emails, and links to photos of championship female athletes. When he saw the look in her eyes at their next training session, he was hooked.

"I know what to do," he said offhandedly while Ariel was performing a brutal set of forced rep barbell curls. He often tried to throw off her focus but Ariel had learned to tune out his attempts. Squeezing out maximum intensity was far more important and far less painful than Damien berating her for "wimping out".

"To get y'all where ya want, to the next level, as ya said," he added. He put his hands under Ariel's rigid forearms, assisting her on the final, most painful reps. She grunted as she looked in the mirror, her biceps glistening with sweat and swelling bigger than she'd ever seen. Despite the gym being full of people and noisy, Ariel only saw her arms in the mirror and only heard Damien's voice instructing her.

"I can bring you quality and condition, that's not a problem." Damien dropped his hands suddenly and the bar dipped, forcing Ariel to squeeze her abs harder to avoid leaning forward. After four sets, keeping the fifty pound bar steady was excruciatingly difficult. "But in only a few months, beyond your body's normal ability? We'll need help." Ariel's eyes darted from the mirror to look at Damien and she almost lost her grip on the barbell. Was Daphne's concern about Damien and steroids valid?

"Don't look at me like that." Damien turned his face away. "I'm talking about bringing in my wife, the nutritionist y'all met at the audition. Helen." He helped Ariel regain her grip on the weight. "She's forgotten more about nutrition and supplementation than I've ever known. I can do the training, no problem, but you'll need better raw materials than I have to put on the pounds of mass."

That visual drove Ariel to grit her teeth and crank out more reps, far past failure. The barbell fell from her hands and into Damien's, her biceps stiff and bloated with blood. Unable to speak, Ariel simply grunted her acquiescence as she rubbed her arms. They remained pumped for hours after the workout, even during her later run in Hollywood Hills. Ariel thought they looked a little bit bigger than normal the next morning when she met Damien's wife at the gym. At least they seemed to pop out more when she picked up things.

It had been over a month since they met but Helen seemed even shorter than Ariel remembered. The wiry blonde only came up to Ariel's belly button and she had the calm, steady look of a seasoned yoga instructor. As Helen led the way to the gym's second floor, to one of the consultation rooms, Ariel couldn't help but notice how fit the nutritionist looked in her business suit, her calves flexing beneath her skirt as she walked up the stairs. Ariel had never noticed such things before, being preoccupied with fashion, hairstyles, and facial beauty, but now she appreciated athleticism as well.

After Helen shut the door and sat down near an immaculately arranged desk, she motioned to a stool opposite. Ariel declined, preferring not to sit so high up. The consultation room, which must have belonged to Helen, was tiny, bright, and mostly empty except for the desk, a few posters, and a weigh scale in the corner. Looking down at Helen, Ariel felt tall enough already.

Helen looked up at Ariel and said, "Life must be pretty awkward for you, I'd wager."

Ariel allowed herself to smile, her nervousness dissipating at the warmth in Helen's eyes. This was a woman used to helping people. "It used to be awkward, yeah, but I've learned to live with looking like a giraffe." Ariel decided to sit on the stool, her feet staying flat on the floor. "You get exposed to all sorts of nastiness in the acting biz. Especially when you're taller than everyone else."

Helen's laugh filled the room, revealing quite a different personality than Ariel thought. "Ironic that for an industry so focused on looks, it's the more interesting looks that get ridiculed." Helen turned to wake up an iPad on the desk. "So let's talk about what we can do to hit your goals. I have all your current stats here." Helen rotated the device to show Ariel a screen filled with data. "Damien also told me what you want and his training program. It's pretty impressive, cutting edge routines." Her voice grew excited as she swiped into a new screen. It showed photos of Ariel in an orange swimsuit, taken during a prior posing practice. "I'll need to take my own measurements and samples, of course, and we'll need daily photos of you, not weekly like you've been doing."

"Why do you need all that?" Ariel shifted position, the stool cutting uncomfortably into her glutes.

"The blood samples determine the nutrition and supplement mix, the biometric data helps me measure the program's progress, and the other tests ..." Helen's voice trailed off as she saw Ariel's look of confusion. "Oh, you meant the photos. Yes, well, it's easier to evaluate all aspects of your body if I can see everything. We're going to do some extraordinary things to grow as much lean muscle mass as we can in such a short time, techniques that have never been done before. Don't worry, everything is confidential, no one else will see the photos."

"Now I'm not so worried about the photos as I am about these 'techniques'," Ariel said. "You need to tell me exactly what you're going to do."

Helen turned the iPad back around. "Of course, you should know everything, there's nothing to hide here. First, nothing will happen without your express permission. In fact, everything is self-administered, except for the tests, so you'll always be in complete control." She pointed at an anatomy chart on the wall. "See this poster? It shows the different systems of the body but we're focusing on three, the digestive system, the nervous system, and the muscular system. At a high level, I'm going to give you supplements to boost and optimize all those systems, along with a few others, to turn your body into a muscle-building machine."

Ariel's throat dried up as she realized this was getting serious. Intense workouts were one thing, putting weird stuff into her body was another. She nodded slowly.

"Good, you agree so far." Helen opened a drawer and pulled out three transparent jars. "You'll still take the supplements my husband gives you, but in the adjusted quantities I've assigned. Those are useful and available to the general public. These ones here will boost their effectiveness as well as the effectiveness of your training, meals, and sleep cycles." She held up a jar filled with white powder. "This is similar to what you're taking already, reducing muscular fatigue, improving endurance, and so on. But rather than introducing temporary effects, this builds up over time, permanently boosting protein synthesis and reducing lactic acid byproducts. If you think you're getting pumps now, just wait a few days for this to kick in." She handed the jar to Ariel, who held it gingerly between two fingers.

"These here taste terrible but are incredibly important." Helen tapped a jar containing pills the size of grapes. They were red and flecked with gold that reflected the room's light. "These adapt your digestive system to improve nutrient extraction and delivery, basically turning anything you eat into optimal muscle-building fuel. The gold bits we snuck in to boost your nervous system, improving muscular contraction and control and that thing Damien calls the mind-muscle connection. Thankfully, you only have to take these for a one-month loading phase then you're done." She handed Ariel the jar before picking up the last container, filled with a bright blue powder.

"You take this and that white powder as long as you're on my program." Helen handed the last jar to Ariel and her voice became serious. "This one changes your blood chemistry and heart output, all for the singular purpose of driving as many nutrients as possible to the right organs and muscles. I'll tell you right now that your cardiovascular endurance will double, at minimum. Now, your resting heart rate may or may not change beyond normal exercise adaptation but your heart itself will get much stronger and more efficient which means, of course, that your entire vascular system will adapt to the increased demand."

Ariel held all three jars in her hands awkwardly, searching Helen's face for any signs of lunacy. This all sounded highly dangerous and illegal, changing a body unnaturally like this.

"I ... I don't know where to start." Ariel cleared her throat. "I mean, how safe is any of this stuff?"

"Oh, of course!" Helen perched the iPad on top of the jars in Ariel's hands. She flicked through different pages as Ariel tried to keep it all balanced. "All the ingredients in these supplements have been tested extensively, and seventy percent of them are approved by the FDA. At least, individually. What we've done is combine them in ways never conceived of before and we've tested these specific combinations on hundreds of subjects."

"Who is the 'we'?" Ariel tried to read the information but it was mostly scientific gibberish. She did see a few photos of male test subjects and the results looked impressive, if they were legitimate.

"Damien didn't tell you?" Helen reached into her blazer pocket to retrieve a business card. "I'm a nutritionist for the clients here but I also work for BlastCore Nutrition, on contract. I lead the development team working on this."

"Never heard of them." Ariel's eye was drawn to the lone female test subject on the page. Carefully, she shifted the supplement jars in her hands to reach her thumb up to tap the picture.

"That's not surprising," Helen said. "BCN doesn't market to the general public, only elite athletes and some sports teams. Their products are extremely expensive. It's all because they refuse to make promises they can't back up, Ariel, and they promise safe results." Her voice indicated how much pride she had in the company.

Ariel only half heard her, as on the screen was the before and after picture of a person that had undergone an incredible change. On the left was a slightly overweight woman that was hunched over; on the right was a tall, athletic woman that shone with vitality. While she was nowhere near Ariel's desired Wonder Woman, the incredible part was the timeframe of the test study. The dates showed that there was only a month between photos and Ariel wondered what the subject looked like now.

Ariel's gaze drifted to the anatomy chart, wondering what it would be like if her body looked that way. Helen seemed trustworthy and she certainly had the data to back it up. Plus this was the only way to become the muscular, powerful role model that women needed, in only eight months. She looked down at her arms, the weight of the supplement jars causing their newfound size to be noticeable.

"You're absolutely sure I'm in complete control," Ariel asked. "I can try it out for a week then stop?"

"Absolutely sure," Helen replied. "You'll have to fill out a few feedback forms, that's it."

Ariel tapped a finger against a jar and noted it was about the size of a bulk container of moisturizer. "Is this a month's supply?"

"Goodness no, dear." Helen laughed. "That's just the initial dose, these will last three days at most."

Ariel coughed but her decision was made. "Then I'll need more."

[Jeremy Lightning]

Very nice, I'd love to see more of Helen, to tell you the truth, to see her body in full, to see if her calves are just a hint to what the rest of her body looks like. Shorter muscle women appeal to me, especially if she's stronger than she looks. Maybe she's a tester of her own products and the results would speak for themselves, don't know if that's going to happen, but I liked this chapter, once again, it delves into Ariel's desires to get to her goals and if she has to do something that seems strange and foreign to her to reach those goals, then so be it. Helen was a nice plus, though, a woman who only comes up to Ariel's belly button, but who knows how fit and strong that tiny woman might be? k+!

[MyoFolio]

Chapter 3.3
--------------

Ariel mixed the RWB, as she called the supplement stack, right after leaving Helen's office. The nutritionist had said "the sooner the better" and, after receiving detailed instructions, Ariel almost ran across the workout area to down her first dose in the women's bathroom. As she held two shaker cups up to the light, one clear and one bright blue, her phone buzzed with a text from Daphne. The message was brief, "Let's train together! XOX", and Ariel replied right away, excited that her friend wanted to share in her newfound passion. "Awesome! Tmmrw at my gym, will send address. Love."

She opened the lids of the cups and drank deeply from both, pausing to pop six of the red pills in between gulps. They all tasted foul, the pills leaving a bitter trail down her throat, but she still ran her tongue along the insides of the cups to make sure every last drop was consumed. Ariel leaned on the counter to observe her face and arms in the mirror. No change. Strangely, it only felt like she had drank a lot of water.

After waiting fifteen minutes and checking in with Helen upstairs, she decided to go to the nearest food court to consume her mid-morning meal and wait for her next session with Damien. Picking up her gym bag, Ariel's stomach lurched suddenly and a wave of nausea overcame her, causing her to stumble down the stairs. She used the railing to steady herself and the pain intensified. Ariel doubled over, clutching her stomach while waves of heat shot through her entire nervous system. Her legs locked, causing her to fall over into someone just coming up the stairs.

Ariel mumbled an apology and stood up shakily, the pain receding. She retrieved her gym bag and looked around, the person she had run into was saying something but she couldn't understand the words. Pushing past him towards the door, her stomach clenched so tight that ripples could be seen under her top. She knelt down against the wall, sweat pooling on the floor, faintly aware of people gathering around. Someone yelled something and she felt hands on her arms but she shrugged them off and slid into a fetal position on the gym floor. She rasped, "I need help." It was the last thing she remembered that day.

***

"It turns out that was expected but I'm not sure why she didn't tell me." Ariel grasped Daphne's arm to lead her over to the squat rack. "Something about expelling all the bad stuff to prepare for the good stuff. Like, even stored up poop and other gunk clogging up my insides, can you believe that? The floor manager wasn't impressed and my bathroom at home still reeks."

"That's disgusting Ariel." Daphne grimaced as she navigated past gym equipment. Another busy day meant the floor was strewn with dumbbells and bar clips. "I can't believe you went through that. Or you're telling me about it."

They reached Ariel's favorite squat rack and started stretching. Ariel was wearing black leggings that went down to the ankles, as the last few deadlift sessions left bruises on her shins. They also highlighted her pink and white shoes and wrapped nicely around the contours of her thighs and the burgeoning shapes of her calves. Ariel carried a much bigger gym bag than before, containing her new meal and supplement requirements.

Daphne's outfit, on the other hand, left little to the imagination. Her tiny compression shorts were barely able to contain her bubbled glutes and their color contrasted sharply with thick, tanned legs that made Ariel's look like toothpicks. It wasn't that they were much larger, given Daphne's smaller frame, they were just far more conditioned. She wore a lavender singlet on top, leaving her muscular arms and shoulders bare.

"Just be glad I'm not telling you everything," Ariel said, placing an Olympic bar up high on the squat rack. "I was buzzing the whole day and didn't get much sleep last night 'cause I was so hungry. The pain kept coming and going but eventually went away."

She stepped under the bar, letting the story end. Ariel didn't want to mention how bad it really was, that Ariel spent most of the night eating or on the toilet, with excruciating bouts of pain. She had texted Helen constantly, who reassured her that it was just her body preparing itself by getting rid of all impurities and creating new mechanisms for muscle growth. By the morning, her kitchen was littered with empty egg cartons and her bathroom was nearly unusable. Ariel's body didn't look any different and her stomach was still board flat despite eating a week's worth of food.

"But now I feel amazing! A little tingly and jittery but I feel like I could lift forever." Ariel unracked the bar and performed a perfect squat, quickly setting the bar back in place.

"What's wrong," Daphne asked, looking at Ariel's face. "Only doing one rep? Your eyes look a little weird."

"I don't know." Daphne stepped out of the rack and lifted the bar with one hand. "I usually warm up with this but it feels really light today, I didn't feel anything."

"It's only forty-five pounds, Ariel." Daphne snickered. "Just put on more weight." She placed the bar on a lower rung, added a small plate on either side, and performed twelve reps, the muscles in her legs dancing. "Go ahead, use my warm-up weight." Ariel nodded and raised the bar higher again, thinking she'd love to get her legs to Daphne's level. After only two reps, she re-racked the bar and swore.

"This feels so light! I'm going to add more weight." As Daphne watched, Ariel added more small plates, tried out a few reps, then added larger ones. This continued until Ariel struggled to hit eight reps and she let out a whoop. "I can't believe it, Daph, this was my max weight last time!"

Ignoring Daphne's expression, Ariel added two of the biggest plates and nestled herself under the bar. "Check this out and make sure to spot me." Speechless, Daphne stood behind Ariel and watched her friend crank out four shaky reps. Ariel's face turned beet red and the tendons on her neck stood out. With a grunt that echoed off the walls, Ariel re-racked the weight and pinched her thighs, which were swollen with blood and RWB-enhanced nutrients.

"Holy shit Daph, they're huge!" Ariel turned to the side to inspect her legs in the mirror. They weren't as muscular as Daphne's but they were definitely approaching the same size. She bent her knees as a warm stiffness began creeping in.

"Unbelievable Ariel." Daphne peered around Ariel to look in the mirror. They made a funny pair of girls: one short bodybuilder and one giant bikini model. "You're definitely getting a pump on, you put up one-sixty like it was nothing. Are you feeling okay?"

Ariel lifted her shirt to wipe the sweat dripping from her chin. "I feel great, it felt like my heart was going to burst at the end there but now it's like I'm only doing a warm up again." Her words were rushed and her eyes darted around, never locking on Daphne.

"Okay," Daphne said slowly. She stepped out of the rack to look Ariel up and down. "Just let me know if you start feeling funny and we'll slow down, okay? Your skin is getting all pink and you're sweating like cray-cray." Ariel nodded and Daphne noticed that she was clenching and unclenching her hands.

They completed their sets on the squat rack without incident, with Ariel polishing off one set at Daphne's maximum weight. It was same story throughout the workout: Ariel finding the weights too easy until she increased them to Daphne's numbers. It was a joy for Ariel but caused great concern for Daphne, as she had been bodybuilding and training others for much longer.

Ariel gained more energy as they moved from exercise to exercise, every so often reaching into her bag to gulp down a drink or shove raw oats into her mouth. Blasting through sets, her thighs, glutes, and hamstrings started to visibly stretch her leggings and Daphne could barely keep up.

Finally, at the standing calf machine, Daphne had had enough. "Ariel, slow down! You're going to burn yourself out." Ariel had set the pin to 180 pounds and was on her tenth set, twice as many as Daphne was able to finish. One of the seams around the bottom of Ariel's leggings had started to tear, as her calves stretched the fabric with an enormous pump.

"Fine. Daph." Ariel's voice was ragged, her hair and clothes soaked with sweat. "Only burning in legs. Nowhere else." She completed a few more reps, holding each one at the top for five seconds, before stepping off the machine. Heaving deep breaths, she lifted her shirt and tied it off underneath her chest, revealing splotches of pink around her stomach. She collapsed onto the floor, sweat soaking into the rubber, and put a hand to her forehead. "That's the best feeling ever," she said in between gulps of air. "Can't wait to do this again, Daphne my bestie."

Daphne just stared at the heaving mess on the floor, idly noticing how Ariel's breathing caused faintly distinct abdominals to pulse beneath her skin. Had her body fat dropped too?

"Ariel, I've never seen anyone work out that hard or get that big of a pump." Daphne rotated her foot onto its big toe. "Look, your calves are my size now and I've been working out for years!"

"I told you Daph, these new supps are incredible." Ariel's breathing was quickly returning to normal and the pink splotches had almost disappeared. "I feel like I could go on forever." She reached over to her bag and tore open a packet of oats, upending the entire contents into her mouth and onto the floor.

Daphne shook her head. "Okay Ariel, I've always said I'll never tell you what to do." She frowned as Ariel turned her head to lap up the oats on the floor. "As long as you think these ... fucking unreal results are safe, then I'm okay with it." She knelt down to push strands of hair out of Ariel's eyes. "I do have a confession to make, though." She paused for a response but Ariel was busy opening her bag to dig out more food.

"So, I wasn't going to tell you this until later," Daphne said a little louder, looking at her hands. "I texted you because we haven't hung out together in a long time, like months. When you said you were going to start working out seriously, it was awesome because I was like, 'I'm a trainer', I can help! So I'd like to keep doing this. If you want. I mean, it looks like you don't need the help, obviously." Her voice trailed off as Ariel stared at her friend, her bag forgotten.

"Of course we should do this!" Ariel sat up and punched Daphne lightly in the shoulder. "You're my little buddy, we should do this forever." Daphne frowned slightly at "little buddy," Ariel had never called her that before. Her frown disappeared as Ariel's face beamed.

"Oh, that's such a relief to hear Ari." Daphne leaned back on her feet. "I have more too, a little more selfish. I really wanted to compete in Harry's competition coming up but have been slacking off in the training. After the beating you showed me today, I'm signing up today, right after we leave."

"That's awesome Daphne! And hey, we can keep each other motivated!" Ariel reached out for a hug but stopped at the look on her friend's face.

"Only one rule," Daphne said, wrinkling her nose. "No sweaty mess hugs ever!"

[Jeremy Lightning]

Another nice little scene, I liked what is happening here with Ariel having had some serious bathroom trouble, but coming through it with more strength, stamina and energy than ever! I'm sure this is just the beginning of her journey into being huge and strong as hell! I really look forward to seeing more! k+!

[Poddy]

Really liking this so far! The story feels really grounded, it's still believable and it's awesome how much Ariel is embracing the workouts, the diet and the supps. I'd really like to read more!

[MyoFolio]

Thanks, appreciate the feedback! More parts coming up, just figuring out where this story is going...
___________________________________

Chapter 3.4
--------------

Like so often between old friends that had very different lives, their partnership started off strong but diminished over time. Ariel's workouts with Damien were incredibly demanding, pushing her body and mind to new levels. Working out with Daphne, however, grew easy, as she surpassed her friend in all lifts after only one week. It was tolerable at first but when Ariel had to spend more time taking plates off the bar than lifting them herself, she started making excuses to skip their joint workouts and instead worked out with Damien or, surprisingly, alone.

For Daphne, her friend's incredible growth was a little too much to handle. She constantly felt like she was holding Ariel back and found herself giving up in the middle of sets as she saw Ariel bringing over more and more plates to the weight bench. It wasn't so much that Ariel was surpassing her, it was that Daphne thought she was doing it for the wrong reasons. Serious bodybuilders did it for themselves and the thrill of competition, not to be "society's hero" through a movie role that Ariel probably wouldn't get anyways.

So it was that after a few weeks of cancellations and excuses, Daphne sent Ariel a text to meet at their usual Starbucks.

Like last time, Ariel bounced into the coffee shop and saw that Daphne was already there, standing in line to order. The shop was very busy, with nearly all the tables and couches occupied by the local clientele. Daphne wore loose jeans and a black t-shirt emblazoned with the logo of her gym, her back and shoulders filling it out. On her feet were giant white sneakers, the kind you'd see on basketball players. Ariel was wearing the same white tube dress as last time, her dark hair up in a bun, but it wasn't to impress Daphne, she simply didn't pay attention to clothes anymore. The shape of Ariel's body had changed so much that her apartment was littered with shirts torn at the sleeves and shorts she could barely shimmy past her thighs. She had picked the tube dress up off the floor, thrown in disgust a few days ago, as it was the only thing handy that she could still squeeze into.

Daphne looked up from the counter and saw Ariel immediately, as did nearly everyone else. The look of surprise on Daphne's face was echoed by several other patrons, including one couple that stopped their conversation entirely. Ariel knew the reason why but decided to play it cool, slowing her pace and noticing how bold some people were at staring. Her height had always caused a reaction but her newly muscular body amplified the effect, especially when poured tantalizingly into a dress now two sizes too small.

The snapping of Ariel's blue flip flops was the loudest sound in the room as she smiled at everyone and approached Daphne. Those that had glanced sideways at Daphne's hints of muscle, openly stared at Ariel's bigger, more exposed physique. Every inch of her frame, covered by the dress or not, was bulging. Ariel bent down for a hug, exclaiming, "Daphne, it's so great to see you! I'm so sorry I've been so busy but it's great you texted to meet up."

Daphne returned the hug gingerly, more grimace than grin. "Ho-lee shit woman," she said slowly, sliding her hands down Ariel's arms to clasp her hands. "What have you done to yourself?"

"You like?" Ariel turned around, the muscles in her legs popping. "Before you ask, I feel fine. Great, in fact. I mean, this dress is cutting off my circulation but otherwise, I'm in the best shape of my life."

Daphne stared at Ariel's calves as she completed her turn. Faintly visible for years, each calf now swept up from flat feet and narrow ankles into two solid masses of muscle, a deep cleft between them. Ariel's thighs were equally built, larger than Daphne's and actually stretching the bottom of her dress wider than her hips. The thin material ended mid-thigh, exposing solid teardrops that bulged above her knees and, as Ariel shifted her weight, popping them out further while the rest of her quads split into distinct muscular sections.

"Hey little buddy, up here." Ariel laughed and lifted Daphne's chin with a finger.

"Sorry Ari, but your body is ridiculous!" Daphne looked around quickly and lowered her voice. "I mean, I just saw you a few weeks ago and now you look ready for competition. You'd look like the goddam trophy if you got a tan."

The line moved forward and Daphne used the opportunity to slip behind Ariel, nearly toppling a stand full of coffee mugs. Ariel felt a pinch and turned to see Daphne looking guilty.

"I can see those squats are working," Daphne said, poking Ariel in the glutes again. "Your booty is bigger than before. Like a rock too, they look like two basketballs just sitting there, saying hello." She cupped her hands together and pretended to squeeze.

"Oh stop." Ariel batted her friend's hands away. "I've put on some gains, yeah, but it sucks that my clothes can't even handle it right now. This dress is way too tight." Ariel smoothed the dress down over her abs, highlighting six distinct bricks etched into her stomach. This also revealed more of Ariel's pectoral muscles, her once smooth chest now looking like two plates had been stuffed underneath her skin. Her breasts had shrunk disappointingly but the heavy poundages in the gym had blown out her pectorals and shoulders considerably even as her high rep work carved out serious definition.

"You don't wear a bra anymore?" Daphne leaned in closer.

"What? That's kind of personal, dont'cha think?" Ariel smirked. "I haven't worn one in weeks. My boobs have vanished, as I'm sure you've noticed, and none of my old bras fit." She pulled at her top, trying unsuccessfully to cover up more. "Would be nice though, I thought guys stared before but now it's like my muscles are an excuse to start dumb conversations. I guess they like my headlights sticking out all the time. But these boys don't quit, one day I'll stop being polite and call their bluff."

They reached the counter and placed their orders, a medium roast for Daphne and a hot water with lemon for Ariel. The barrista joked that he wouldn't want to meet them in a dark alley, which Daphne laughed off but left Ariel annoyed. She was going to say something harsh when Daphne pulled her towards the receiving end of the counter, into the middle of a group of people. Another barrista, a blue-haired girl behind the counter, stared at them before realizing the mug she was filling was overflowing.

"What you're saying is, we definitely need to go shopping," Daphne said, taking Ariel's attention away from the barrista. "I'm thinking sleeveless dresses or halters, to show off those arms and that ginormous vein." She pointed to the elongated mound of muscle that was Ariel's left bicep. A vein the size of a power cable ran uninterrupted down it's length and over the top of her forearm, feeding into several smaller vessels branching towards her wrist.

"Oh fuck off Daph." Ariel sighed and crossed her arms over her chest. "You know I think these are nasty." Looking disgusted, she looked down at the bulging shapes of her biceps and the size of her cephalic veins. "This arm is grosser," she said, stretching out her right arm. The vein that ran down from Ariel's shoulder was thicker than her pinky finger and shot though her bicep, connecting to equally thick veins running down her forearm. Ariel tensed her arm, making everything surge outward and her shoulder to striate, veins splaying across its surface like tic-tac-toe grid.

[Jeremy Lightning]

Really nice! Definitely seems to be almost a retelling of the first part of the story, but with a little more and different detail and dialogue, but I enjoyed it a lot, Ariel is definitely coming along, hope her adventures are far from over though, she's got so much more muscle to grow! k+!

[Poddy]

Absolutely awesome stuff. The muscle description here was on point, you've built a tantalising image of Ariel's body. Keep it up! K+

[MyoFolio]

 

This is actually earlier than that first part, a lot more growing to come between now and then.

[Jeremy Lightning]

Ah, yeah, well I look forward to the in between parts, telling how she got so big and ripped. k+!

[MyoFolio]

Here's a new one, something to whittle away time while figuring out what to do with [the previous] story. Enjoy!

Odd Progress
by MyoFolio

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0 months - Meeting at the Gym

Dustin walked into the gym, stomping his boots and adjusting his duffel bag, thankful that he could strike out on his own and do whatever he wanted to do. It had been almost one month since he had broken up with Mandy and it had taken this long to realize that he didn't need to make his bed everyday, or wash the dishes, or clean the snow off the roof of his car, or any of a hundred little Mandy things that added up to a big break up. No, all those daily annoyances could wait for the weekend. Today was the day to put the post-Mandy part of his life into action.

Brushing the snow off his membership card, Dustin looked past the front desk and felt a twinge of nervousness. It had been several months since he had last worked out here, before Mandy had scolded him yet again for not spending enough time with her, and the gym looked completely different. What had once been a locally-owned, family-run gym had been transformed into a YouFitness franchise, complete with row upon row of awkward-looking machines and everything splashed with a purple and gold color scheme. It looked like a barn filled with animals of cable and steel, and the amount of people tending to them - pushing, grunting, and pulling - made it seem like a massive factory farm had descended upon the formerly serene pasture.

Dustin took a deep breath and held out his faded card to the girl behind the desk, a cute brunette with a small, angular face. She was leaning over the back of a chair and staring at a computer screen, long hair obscuring one eye. Dustin extended his arm out further and coughed, making the girl look up.

"Can I help you with something?" She stood straight and Dustin noticed that her height was mostly legs and that she was taller than him. The gold tag on her purple jacket said Jessica. Standing there with his old membership card held out, Dustin wasn't sure why she couldn't figure out what he wanted.

"I'd like to work out here?" He flicked the card between his fingers. "My card may be old but I checked the website and it says old memberships are still valid here."

Jessica plucked away the card with two fingers and held it up to inspect the faded handwriting, giving Dustin a chance to check her out. Her purple jacket was frustratingly baggy but her tight-fitting yoga pants accentuated the length and shape of her legs, ending above her shoes to reveal tantalizing bands of olive skin.

"Seems legit," she said without sounding convinced, handing Dustin back the card. "But we don't use these cards anymore, we have these things." She held up a basket filled with small, black key fobs that had the YouFitness logo stamped on them. "Come back here on your way out and I'll have a new one coded for you."

Dustin looked at the imposing gate that separated the front desk from the rest of the gym. "Okay cool, thanks. But it's not like I have any other way to get out of this torture chamber, right?" He chuckled but Jessica gave no indication that she heard him.

"I'll open the gate for you." She reached an arm under the desk and Dustin heard a buzzer as the gate slid open. Even before he started walking, Jessica had returned her attention to the computer.

Shifting the weight of his duffel bag, Dustin considered that Jessica may have nicer legs than Mandy but they both had the same cold personality. He walked past the gate and into the next phase of his life.

[MyoFolio]

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2 months - At the Gym


Deep into winter, the age of the YouFitness building made itself obvious as cool air poured out of the heating ducts and light breezes spun around every outside window and door. Despite the temperature, Dustin still wore shorts and a t-shirt while working out, to better gauge his physique in the mirror and thrill at any change, no matter how small. Two months in, Dustin had almost caught up to the weights he was using before meeting Mandy and he loved it. He took every opportunity to admire himself, from an expanding chest to new lines running up the sides of his calves. Dustin had initially researched and drawn up a bodybuilding program to pack on overall mass but he soon abandoned that in favor of focusing on the muscles that gave him the biggest satisfaction. Going all-out on chest, arms, and legs would produce gains on other body parts as well, he decided.

Stepping closer to a dumbbell rack running the length of a vast mirrored wall, Dustin ran a hand down the front of his shirt, accentuating his larger pectorals and trimmer waistline. The expansive mirror gave the illusion of doubling the size of the large free weights area and also showed that it was nearly empty, causing the loud music to echo and the temperature to drop even further. But Dustin didn't mind the emptiness or the cold. He had debated on moving his workouts to later in the evening when one of the trainers mentioned that it was less busy at night. After experiencing one too many line-ups for equipment, Dustin resolved to try a nighttime workout right away, despite the lack of people and, more importantly, fewer attractive girls. He even cancelled plans with friends as the workouts were becoming highlights of his week.

A big reason for his success was that the gym helped Dustin forget about Mandy while at the same time motivating him to strike up conversations with random women. His usual approach was to ask for a spotter on a heavy lift, or offer to be a spotter if the girl looked like she knew what she was doing. Either way, it demonstrated that he was approachable and helpful, with a hint of vulnerability that women liked. In fact, Dustin had initially met Mandy by stopping on the side of a road to help her repair a flat, so it was a pickup method proven to work for him.

Glancing in the mirror at the only female behind him, a blonde performing squats rather unsteadily, Dustin picked up a pair of dumbbells and started his fifth set of curls. Raising and lowering them in rapid tempo, he noted that he would have to pick a heavier weight next week, as fifteen reps with these twenty pounders was getting too easy. Pushing to seventeen reps, his arms gave out and the dumbbells dropped to the floor loudly. He straightened up and was about to flex his pumped arms in the mirror when he spied Jessica coming around the wall.

Trying not to stare, Dustin was surprised at how different she looked without her baggy YouFitness uniform. Her pink fitted tank was wrapped around solid shoulders and accentuated the gradual taper of her wide torso down to a narrow waist. Her long legs were encased in their usual black yoga pants but this time they were cut high, revealing meaty calves that were nearly the width of her thighs. She wore odd little shoes that looked like ballet slippers and she started each step on the balls of her feet, raising legs high and far in front of her like a thoroughbred.

Behind Jessica lumbered a massive man with a massive beard, wearing a t-shirt that was too small and bright red shorts over black leggings. He looked like a cross between a grunge musician and a member of a biker gang. Dustin knew he was a trainer here and had seen him leering over Jessica's desk on more than one occasion. He was taller than her, which meant he would tower over Dustin, and looked nearly three times her width, filled with bone and gristle. Compared to his grungy powerlifter appearance, Jessica looked like an elite college athlete, although Dustin guessed that she had never made it to college.

Dustin looked away and prepared for his sixth set of curls, making sure to keep an eye on the couple in the mirror. They set up beside two bench press stations, dropping belts, bags, and two gallon-sized jugs filled with something that looked like blue mouthwash. They stretched and warmed up as Dustin completed his set and moved into preacher curls, almost forgetting she was there after a few sets. That is, until he saw what Jessica was lifting.

Counting two large and two smaller plates on the bar, Dustin nearly froze mid-rep and caused his arms to cramp. Jessica was benching an incredible one hundred and sixty pounds. Her back was arched high off the bench and Dustin knew enough about powerlifting to know that not only was she pressing a lot more than he could, she was almost exclusively using her pectorals to do it. Even adding in his shoulders and legs, he could barely complete a set at one thirty-five and here she was pounding out rep after rep with perfect form without any spotting aid from her meathead training partner. Jessica racked the weight and jumped off the bench, yelling loud enough for Dustin to hear across the floor. The meathead wasn't acknowledging her, he was setting himself up underneath a bar loaded with twice as many plates.

Jessica looked over at the same time Dustin was staring into the mirror and he quickly averted his eyes. Setting the barbell down, he bent over to pick up his water bottle and sensed Jessica walking closer to him. Throat closing, he stood up thinking that she was going to chastise him and held his breath as she walked by. She stopped between him and the weight rack, picking up the twenty pound dumbbells that he was using earlier. Dustin breathed again.

Up close, he was impressed by Jessica's size. He already knew she was tall but now he could see just how thick she was compared to the average girl. Her arms were nearly his size and her back was wide like a competitive swimmer, pushing out her tank top. A bit of belly fat squeezed between her top and pants but her legs were even more impressive at this distance, looking lean and muscular atop impossibly small ankles and feet.

"Oh, hey," she said, spotting Dustin in the mirror. "I didn't know you worked out so late."

Without waiting for him to respond, Jessica turned around and walked away.

Wow, Dustin thought, not caring that she didn't want to talk right now. Not only was Jessica fit, she knew his workout schedule! He was definitely going to continue evening workouts from now on.

[MyoFolio]

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11 months - At the Jewelry Store


"Oh my God, we have to check out R&V!" Zoe tugged Dustin's jacket, nearly causing him to topple over. He was exhausted and short on patience but he figured his one-month anniversary with his new girlfriend was worth a trip to the mall to find a gift. He just didn't count on it taking so long.

Tugging his arm again, Zoe squealed when she saw the big sale signs hanging in the windows of the Rosetree & Vowel jewelry store. Forcing himself to smile, Dustin allowed the smaller girl to pull him into the brightly-lit store. Tall, glass-enclosed cases covered every wall, holding all manner of necklaces, rings, watches, and bracelets, and thin strands of silver hung from the ceiling, dangling tiny Rs and Vs over their heads. There were two other couples in the store but Dustin's eye was immediately drawn to the main counter, and the familiar brunette sitting behind the cash register.

Jessica sat hunched over, shoveling what looked to be chicken and boiled eggs out of a container and into her mouth. Only her head and shoulders were visible but it was enough for Dustin to stop in the middle of the store, causing Zoe to look back.

"D, do you know her?" Her gaze bounced quickly between the two.

"Yeah, I think so." Dustin turned his head towards Zoe but his eyes stayed on the large figure behind the counter. Clearing his throat, he forced himself to look at his girlfriend. "She used to be the receptionist at YouFitness but I haven't seen her in a few months. I think her name is Jessica?"

"Oh cool, maybe she'll give us a deal." Zoe pulled Dustin closer and whispered, "Wow, she's big. Look at her arms."

Dustin was trying to do everything but stare at Jessica's new Olympian-sized figure. How had Jessica gotten so big? The width of her shoulders had doubled in size since he last remembered, their gentle slope replaced with distinct trapezius and deltoid muscles fighting for space underneath a strained cardigan. The light green sweater fell open at the front, revealing the top of Jessica's chest swelling out from underneath a white shirt. The expanse of olive-toned skin was deeply split down the center and twitched as Jessica used two fingers to lift more food to her mouth. Dustin realized that he was looking at pure muscle, grown thick enough to push her large breasts out like torpedoes against her shirt.

Seeing the new customers, she ate one last piece of chicken and held up a finger. "Sorry, folks," she said between chews. "Just having a late lunch, it's been crazy busy today." Swallowing, she stood up. And up. Dustin had to tilt his head to look Jessica in the eye, wondering how she had gotten so tall. The counter barely came up to her waist and her physique was wide enough to block the glass case behind her.

"Hey, I know you!" Jessica's smile transformed the angles of her face into a soft beauty that surprised Dustin. She had changed her hair into a short pixie cut with shaved sides, making her face look even smaller atop such a large body. "Dustin, right? I used to run the desk at YouFitness at Riverside." She held out her hand, which he accepted awkwardly.

"Yeah, I'm Dustin and this is Zoe." He nodded towards his girlfriend but kept his eyes locked on Jessica. As the two women shook hands, he noticed how Jessica's forearm dwarfed Zoe's, looking strong enough to crush concrete. "I still work out there but haven't seen you in a long time."

Jessica nodded. "Still have a membership but I got this job here and moved into a new place with my boyfriend. Working out at his gym now, Steel Power on Industrial." She spoke oddly, her tongue interfering with her words, causing a slight slurring. It was as if her brain wasn't used to speaking at such great lengths. In fact, this was the longest conversation they'd ever had together.

"Good to see you've kept it up," she continued, looking Dustin up and down. "You're in much better shape than I remember."

Dustin raised an eyebrow at her bluntness even as he took in a deep breath to puff out his chest. He had put on ten pounds since winter and lost plenty of body fat. He knew he was in great shape and loved when people commented on his prominent pecs and rippling abs, proving that his hard work was worth it. He felt Zoe's hand pinch his butt and turned to see her smiling at him proudly.

"Oh, he's more than kept it up," Zoe said, giggling. "We actually met at YouFitness a month ago, I'm a sucker for muscles and a six pack." She placed a hand on Dustin's stomach, so he placed his hand over hers. "But speaking of in shape, damn girl! Hashtag do you even lift?"

Jessica threw back her head and laughed so loud that everyone in the store turned to look. Dustin couldn't believe this was the same cold and quiet girl he knew from the gym. He felt far more comfortable with this new, outgoing version of Jessica.

"Shit Zoe, you are hilarious. Just for that, I'm giving you our employee discount." Jessica came around to the front of the counter, towering over both of them, and causing Dustin's face to go red. Her green cardigan was open down to the floor, revealing a floral print skirt that ended above the biggest calves he had ever seen. He didn't know what to look at first, whether it was calves the size of tennis balls protruding on either side of her shins or the relatively small feet, tantalizingly criss-crossed with straps from her wedge heels. Heels tall enough to forcibly flex her calves and raise her height almost two inches. The floral skirt itself arced far away from Jessica's waist, most likely concealing huge masses of quad muscle and achingly-smooth expanses of skin. Dustin felt himself getting aroused, so he released Zoe's hand and dropped it in front of him.

Looking down at them, Jessica spread her arms. "What do you two think? Do I even lift?" Much to Dustin's surprise, Zoe nodded vigorously.

"You're totally jacked Jessica," Zoe said in a strange voice, almost reverent. "Come on, there's no denying it, you look absolutely fantastic." Dustin looked at his girlfriend, curious why she was embracing this so quickly. Whenever they talked about changing up her workout routine, she was always fearful of looking like a man. Perhaps Jessica's hourglass shape, however exaggerated, was something she could deal with.

Jessica nodded, placing a hand on her hip and leaning against the counter. Dustin feared the thick glass might crack. "To be honest," she said, "it's been very, very difficult to put on this much mass, you know what I mean, right?" She looked at Dustin. "I mean, it's taken me six months to put on twenty five pounds, can you believe that? Back in high school, I put on ten pounds just looking at pizza"

Dustin swallowed while Jessica and Zoe laughed in unison. She put on that much in half a year? No wonder she was so big.

"Oh my god, I totally know what you mean," Zoe said. "I crave pizza all the time but luckily D here keeps me in line." She patted her flat stomach. Dustin loved her mesmerizing combination of tight abs, sizable breasts, and a butt hardened by thousands of hours on the step machine. She was the definition of a fitness fanatic. But standing next to Jessica, her tiny frame overshadowed by this mountain of muscle, Dustin wasn't sure what to think. He found himself tugging at his pants underneath his jacket.

Jessica looked at Zoe's stomach and grimaced. "I wish, boy do I wish, I had a six pack." She looked down but Dustin didn't think she could anything beyond the huge outcropping of pectoral muscle and breasts erupting from her torso. He noticed that her midsection pushed out slightly against her shirt, so she definitely wasn't as lean as Zoe.

"I mean, I'll get there eventually, but right now I'm bulking up to pack on as much mass as I can."

Dustin coughed and Zoe's eyes sparkled. "Oh, that's awesome," Zoe said, drawing out her words. "Are you competing?"

"Why, yes I am, ma'am." Jessica snorted at herself. "Next year, maybe the year after. I'm sticking with powerlifting now, will move to bodybuilding once I'm big enough to hit the stage as jacked up as possible. I want those judges to go, fuck, she is a beast." She puffed out her cheeks and flexed her arm, causing a huge mass of muscle to bulge beneath her sweater. As Dustin stood speechless, Zoe reached out to grasp it, her tiny hand barely able to span the height of its front, let alone reach over top. It was impressively shaped too, leaping high off her arm to create a clear, peaked silhouette.

"Oh, em, gee," Zoe breathed. "How big are they?"

Before Jessica could answer, Dustin slapped his girlfriend's hand away, muttering that it wasn't polite to touch other people without permission.

"Oh, I don't mind. I've gotten used to people asking." Jessica relaxed her arm, eyes lingering on his girlfriend.

"Well, we have to find our anniversary gift before the mall closes." Dustin pointed to an antique clock on the wall.

"Fuck, you're right. Enough muscle talk," Jessica said. "Let's find what you're looking for. I have about thirty minutes before my next meal anyways."

"Your next meal?" Zoe pouted and brushed her hand against her neck. "We just saw you eating when we came in."

"Yes, you did," Jessica said, tugging at her sleeve. It had ridden up when she flexed and Dustin noticed that the meaty underside of her forearm was criss-crossed with veins.

"I just told you that I'm packing on as much mass as possible." She looked down at Dustin but gave a quick smile to Zoe. Surprisingly, his girlfriend returned it. "So I'm eating around every half hour, probably more per meal than your boyfriend here eats in two. Nine thousand calories a day has to come from somewhere, right?"

Dustin gulped as she took Zoe's hand and walked back around the counter, talking about styles and price ranges. Staring at legs far bigger than his girlfriend's, he couldn't help but wonder what Jessica would look like when she built herself up even more.