"The Olympia [in Las Vegas] is the pinnacle. It's the competition of all competitions so it'll be quite awesome."
To suck it in, curl his biceps and accentuate his torso with bronzing lotion wasn't his forte.
"I wasn't one to jump in front of people on stage. Personally I could but not show it off."
It did help in his formative years that others impressed on the former Napier Boys' High School pupil that his 185cm tall frame was ideal for sculpting.
Shedding 130kg with 36 per cent body fat appeared to be a daunting proposition but in 2007 mind took over matter.
He watched an acquaintance, Dale Nicholls, strut his stuff on stage at 50 and thought if he could so could he.
"I've never looked back and don't get body fat above 10 per cent to stay lean all year round.
"I've come down from being a fat boy and I'm not going there again."
Mawson grew up in an environment where he wasn't eating that well.
On reflection he realises how easy it is to stumble into a static but "happy place" when one is youthful.
Poor nutrition prevailed and to top it off he graduated from the Eastern Institute of Technology with professional chef qualifications to serve comfort food at numerous cafes and restaurants around the Bay.
"I did the rounds locally because when winter came around it got slack so you had to find other jobs."
In fact, by then Mawson had developed an eating disorder, gorging himself on a smorgasbord of emotional pickings.
"But those days are gone so I've overcome those demons."
He gave up his chef career to become an information technologist, something he enjoyed for 16 years while maintaining his gym workout.
During that phase he was just a "gym junkie" - nothing serious as he was still overweight.
However, gradually a regimented weight training schedule kicked in with cardio exercise and a ruthless diet.
"I had very low carbs, down to rice cakes and kumara."
His partner Sandy, a nurse, "appreciates" what he does "but she'll never understand it".
Ultimately he is the face of his profession and there's nowhere to hide.
"I'm an advertisement for my job," says the man who champions his Bioscan machine that analyses clients' internal body composition, including body fat and muscle mass coherently in the blink of an eye.
But Mawson is no food Nazi now. He doesn't beat himself up because he understands how his body functions after 1.5 hours of weight training, six times a week.
"Hey, you can't eat chicken and broccoli for the rest of your life, can you?"
Going to Las Vegas to do something he enjoys with like-minded people is godsend and, no doubt, a privilege to represent his country.
"There are so many fabulous people who are lovely and very supportive."
He'll be up against 20-year-old professionals so "as a 39-year-old I'll do my best", says the bloke who won the International Natural Bodybuilding Association in Dubbo, Australia, in 2010 and is now a year shy of becoming a masters competitor.
Mawson has raised $1700 so far in trying to attain the target of $4500 before travelling in a fortnight.
"It's quite humbling for me to help others [in his job] so now people are turning around to help me back."
