A friend of mine saw a guy walking two dogs downtown. He had the biggest arms she had ever seen. The guy is Paul-Jean Guillaume: Mr. Universe in 1987. The same year, he competed in the Mr. Olympia contest in Sweden. I called him to ask if we could talk about weight lifting and fitness.

It surprised me that he wanted to meet at Extraordinary Desserts. I think of this guy eating raw eggs, like Rocky.

I sit down and wait, and when he walks in, I recognize him immediately. In a room full of pot bellies, it’s not hard spotting a guy covered in muscle.

As he sits down I say, “What can you possibly eat here?” He laughs and says, “I’ve actually had these stomach pains. My doctor told me it’s a virus and that I should eat less lettuce.”

“I wish my doctor would say that.” I tell the waitress I’d like a turkey panini.

Guillaume orders only tuna on a plate with some bread sticks. The waitress, used to taking dessert orders, has a look on her face, as if she smells bad fish. She tells him she isn’t sure how they’ll prepare the tuna, and he says he’s ordered it raw here before. They’ll know it’s for him.

When she comes back, she’s excited. Earlier, when she’d spotted my notepad, camera, and pen, she’d told me she was also a writer; now she tells Guillaume that they have something in common too. I say, “I’ll bet $50 he can beat you arm wrestling.” She ignores me and says to Guillaume, “We’re both title holders. I’m a Miss La Mesa.”

After she leaves, I ask about his diet.

“I’m strict about every food I put in my body, even vitamins. I don’t take any type of vitamins, because you don’t know what’s in there.”

Cutting to the chase, I say, “What about steroids? I’m sure that has been asked.”

“Why would I want to damage my liver and the rest of my body? People always think weight lifters take those things, or supplements. A lot of my build is genetics. My dad had huge shoulders. My mom had really muscular legs. When I did judo at nine years of age, I could do more push-ups than anyone. Eventually, I started weight lifting. I sometimes say my body is like a work of art. But at every competition, people have accused me of steroids. I would let them test me, even though it wasn’t required. I never once failed. Other times, lifters will accuse me. I throw my keys to them. I tell them to look at my hotel room, or my house. They actually have. In Nice, France, they went up to my room and looked through everything. They saw my hot plate, the chicken, turkey, rice. You see, I can’t eat in restaurants and tell them, ‘No butter, no salt.’ I can’t take the chance. And in a few days, they’re eating the same things and have bought a hot plate.”

Does it bother you that Arnold Schwarzenegger admitted taking steroids? And that Barry Bonds broke a record in baseball having taken illegal supplements?

“I don’t say that about Bonds. You don’t know for sure. And those are the types of accusations that I’ve always had against me. In weight-lifting competitions, after I proved I didn’t take steroids, I had to deal with politics. I thought I should’ve won Mr. America one year. I overheard a judge say I don’t have to work hard. I work out in the morning and at night. And I do it year round. Other lifters look flabby when they aren’t competing. They might have to work harder before a competition. They are surprised by me. But I enjoy it. It’s healthy. Arnold took this stuff, and who knows what kind of damage he did to his body in the long run.”

Do weight lifters get injuries that other athletes do?

“You can have back problems if you don’t lift properly. But that can happen if you just bend over to pick up a newspaper, because you’re using half of your body weight wrong. Doing a lot of reps causes wear and tear on your joints.”

I saw a child on the news a few years back, covered in muscles. Is that safe? Or does that stunt his growth?

“It won’t stunt his growth. That’s a myth. But having any child lift weights is crazy. Again, it’s bad for the joints. The best thing kids can do is use their own body weight: sit-ups, push-ups, pull-ups.”

I had looked into Guillame’s weight-lifting competitions and saw that in the ’80s, he won a number of them, starting with Teen Mr. America in 1980. Since he has a thick accent, I ask him about being American. He says he’s originally from Haiti. When I ask if he ever goes home, he tells me it’s too dangerous there.

“I’ve been in San Diego since 1989. I had a brother that lived here. I also lived in Germany and spent time in Chicago.”

Guillaume was in Mr. Olympia, a competition started in 1965 for the winners of Mr. Universe in order to help the sport of bodybuilding grow. The founders also hoped they could earn the kind of money that other pro athletes got. Schwarzenegger won six titles; the movie Pumping Iron covered one of the events. I ask Guillaume if he has any Arnold stories. He laughs and says, “Yeah, but I can’t say. Too many people like him.”

I prod and he tells me, “When I lived in Venice Beach, we worked out together for about eight months.”

When he adds nothing more to the story, I ask if he gets bugged while he’s lifting from people that want advice. He says, “Oh, yeah. I’ll talk to them between my reps. Sometimes they’ll comment that they tried my workout after watching me and that it was too hard.”

But you train people for a living. Does it bother you that they want the advice for free?

“No. I’ll talk to them. I don’t mind. Sometimes, what’s frustrating…I was training this rich guy in Chicago. Driving up, it looked like the White House. A huge fountain in the front yard. He asked me if I wanted to see his two Rolls-Royces. And then, he was trying to negotiate the price for training. He was a little cheap. And other people that don’t have much money, they don’t do that. They just pay me without complaining.”

Our food arrives. And I’ve never felt so guilty for what I’ve ordered. I think maybe I’ll only eat half my panini. Not only does Guillame’s tuna fish look gross, but it’s such a small amount on a small plate. He picks up a bread stick, and I can see the veins in his hands bulging, as if it’s a 50-pound dumbbell he’s lifting. He scoops some tuna onto the bread and puts it in his mouth. He says, “You work out, right?” I laugh so loud, the entire restaurant looks over. I’m definitely not taking my leather jacket off.

I tell him that other than daily racquetball games, and the occasional basketball, I don’t touch weights. He tells me that cardio is important, but so is weight training.

Mustard is dripping off the sides of my mouth. As I wipe it away, I change the subject from my eating habits and ask, “When you walk down the street, do people cross to the other side? Or do they comment on your build?”

“When I used to roller-skate at Venice Beach, everyone would comment on me doing steroids. I hated it. They are just assuming that. I hear everyone say that when I walk by.”

Do you go up and explain that you don’t?

“No. I just ignore it. If I confronted them, then they’d say I had ’roid rage. I can’t win.”

I mentioned that I’d seen a workout DVD he sold online.

“That was only supposed to be sold in Europe. A friend in Switzerland did it. Then a company in London started selling it on the Internet. I’m not making a dime off that video. I’ve had a lot of opportunities to make money that I didn’t pursue. I’ve had companies asking me to advertise their supplements and products. I turned them down since I don’t use the products. They didn’t even care. They still wanted me to.”

What about the products we see on TV, like Suzanne Somers and her ThighMaster? Or the weight machines Chuck Norris advertises on infomercials?

“I call those things ‘dust collectors.’ If you get one, that’s what it will do at your house. When you see a muscular person lifting on those, I guarantee you, they got that way by working out in the gym. That’s the best thing you can do. You are more motivated by other people being around. It pushes you, to see others working hard. And you can also work on cardio there, which is important.”

When you compete, what is involved before a competition?

“You shave your body, lie out in the sun, practice posing, and pick a song the crowd will like. The wrong song will put them to sleep.”

How often do you work out? And what is the best way for people to work out?

“I work out six days a week. I enjoy it. I run a lot, too. People shouldn’t just focus on their arms, or their legs, but all the muscles. Add cardio with the lifting. And people should work out for themselves.”

Should people wait between days of lifting?

“Each muscle should be worked out every 48 hours. I especially like working on my legs. I’m always amazed when I see someone run really fast.”

What was your worst injury?

“I’ve hurt my back before. The worst was my first time using a T-bar. You roll the weight down using your wrists. I did 15, and when I tried to do 2 more…that’s when it snapped and I got injured.”

Can you tell by looking at someone if they take steroids?

“No, you can’t. The only way to tell is testing the hair or urine. I would always let them test me. Some people mention lie-detector tests. But those aren’t accurate. What if you are nervous?”

I wanted to ask some people at fitness places about the things I discussed with Guillaume, so I go to Bally’s on Mira Mesa Boulevard. I see they are going out of business next month and can’t talk without permission from the main offices. I drive over to the 24-Hour Fitness on Miramar Road and talk to Jason Felix, who I’m told is one of the top trainers there.

He tells me he’s been with 24-Hour Fitness for ten years. When I tell him about my conversation with Guillaume, he says, “That guy has to be on steroids. Anyone covered in muscles like that usually is. I’ve been in this game too long. I’ve seen it all. You can instantly tell when you see someone. Sometimes it’s their skin color or the temper tantrums. Or, if someone comes in benching 225 pounds and are doing 300 a month later. I see some people with what is called a ‘blow gut,’ which looks like they’re pregnant.”

I tell him Guillaume seems legitimate, and when I mention him competing as a middleweight, Felix says, “Oh, well…I was thinking more about those heavyweights, covered in muscles. You just can’t get that big. When I went to SDSU, I read a thing about how Samoans had the highest levels of testosterone. And these weight lifters have a lot higher levels than them. It’s off the charts. It’s not normal, and it’s not healthy.”

What about injuries?

“You have to learn to lift properly. The back injury is number one. People have poor posture, and they sit all day. You also have to do enough stretching.”

Well, two things I wondered about in your lobby. The first is a sign that says “No kids under 12.” Is that because it’s dangerous for them?

“Yes, but not because of the working out. It’s a liability issue. We had a ten-year-old kid goofing off on a machine, and he snapped off his leg. But kids that age don’t need to do weight training. They can work out with their own body weight. And they are learning motor patterns with their body, and weights aren’t necessary for that. I think playing soccer at that age, for conditioning, is more important.”

My second question: What about the variety of supplements for sale in your lobby? Guillaume says you should never take those.

“Those are all safe. They have been tested at labs in Phoenix, and they have vitamins. It’s not like they’ll be pulled off the shelves in the future. They aren’t steroids or anything. If this guy claims you can get all the nutrition you are supposed to by just eating the right foods — that’s ridiculous. You’d have to eat 9000 calories a day. It’s impossible.”

When I talk to Guillaume again about this, he smiles and says, “Why would anyone take vitamins or supplements of any kind? Unless you went to a doctor and had everything checked out to see what is lacking. What if you take vitamins and end up getting too much vitamin A? You see reports come out, telling you certain foods are good. Years later, they tell you those are bad. This can be the same with vitamins. I think you can get all the nutrients you need from the proper foods. In the Caribbean, they are healthy. They eat lots of fish and bananas. I even eat foods I don’t like, because they’re healthy. I hate broccoli. But I need the calcium. I don’t drink milk, so it’s important.”

I mention feeling guilty about how I ate in front of him at Extraordinary Desserts. He laughs and says, “That’s something else people don’t realize. You can have a piece of carrot cake or chocolate. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s all about moderation and not overdoing it.”