A transgender man has revealed his dramatic transformation from a size 6 housewife to a musclebound bodybuilder.

On his wedding day, Cody Harman, from California, looked every inch the radiant bride, but inside he was 'desperately unhappy' because he identified as male.

After heading down the aisle in 2008 to 'fit in' and please his religious family, the chef's marriage ultimately fell apart, and Cody began the transition process after splitting from his husband in 2012.

Now an aspiring personal trainer with a rippling six pack, Cody, 30, recently came second in his first female to male transgender bodybuilding contest.

Cody Harman, 30, from California got married in 2008 to Adam after they met online (left), but just seven years later he is now a musclebound male body builder (right)

Cody on his wedding day to Adam - he tried to make his marriage work but it ended in divorce after he realised his true feelings

Cody was a size 6 as a woman, but after he began the transition process he took up Crossfit in a bid to become a rippling hunk

Cody says of meeting his husband Adam online: 'It seemed like everyone was getting married and I wanted to fit in. I met up with Adam and we got on well.

'My upbringing was very religious so I was worried that people would realise I was gay if I didn't have a husband.'

Then aged 20, Cody, who was a size six before taking up bodybuilding, met his construction-worker husband through an internet dating site.

'I knew I was doing the wrong thing by getting married - but I didn't know how to tell everyone. I'm so much happier than I ever imagined I could be now that I'm living as a man.

Cody was born a girl, but he knew he wanted to become a man. He explains how he found it difficult to go through puberty as female

After coming out as transgender in 2012 to his family and friends, Cody went on to have a mastectomy (pictured here after surgery) and began taking male hormones

'I can't believe how different I feel both mentally and physically. I've always been into fitness and now I've got the body I've always wanted. When I meet people I haven't seen in a while they struggle to believe it's really me.'

Chef Cody, who has been recording his transition on his YouTube channel 'Cody-Talks' to help others, says that as a child he always felt like a boy.

By the time he started high school, Cody found the female changes that came with adolescence incredibly tough.

He says: 'Watching my body change through puberty was hard. I hated it and just wanted to be one of the boys. I was lucky I was petite and didn't have prominent curves

'I also knew I was attracted to girls but because my parents were very religious they made me think it was a sin, so I dated guys instead.'

After a year of dating, Cody and Adam got married in 2008 in a traditional wedding ceremony.

'I thought something must be wrong with me because I didn't have any romantic feeling towards Adam. Even on our wedding day I felt uncomfortable in my wedding dress, though I pretended to be happy,' Cody says.

'Although I knew marriage was meant to be for life, I didn't consider the future or the possibility of children. I was just going through the motions. I didn't really know what love was.

'After our wedding day, we moved to Germany, where Adam was based, I tried to make it work, but I was just desperately unhappy. I just wasn't the person I was meant to be. I used to run for eight miles per day to cope.'

In 2011, Cody moved back to his hometown in California and went to cookery school, hoping that a new career would help.

The keen bodybuilder took part in his first Female to Male Transgender bodybuilding competition in October 2016 and was thrilled to come in second

He says: 'I told Adam I would come back once the two-year course was over but our marriage fell apart and we divorced.'

Once back in the US, Cody decided the only way to live a happy life was to stop repressing his feelings.

So in 2012, Cody told his family and friends he was a lesbian and a year later, told them he was transgender.

He says: 'I waited to tell them I was transgender because I thought it would be too much for them to cope with. I don't know when I realized it myself - it's just something I'd always known.

'My mum cried at first, but now she's happy for me. I also met a great community of people online and I realised that I wasn't alone.

In 2014, Cody underwent a mastectomy and started talking male hormones prescribed by a doctor. He also started doing a lot of Crossfit in addition to his running.

Cody has put in a hard work over the seven years since he started his transition changing his diet to achieve his muscly figure

After undergoing a hysterectomy the following year, Cody switched to lightweight training at the beginning of 2016 when he was advised that it would be better for his recovery than running.

Cody says: 'Working on my strength made me feel more masculine and my muscles grew quickly. I fell in love with it and in October 2016, I decided to enter my first female to male transgender bodybuilding competition.

'I was training six times per week for two hours and ate a protein rich diet with lots of chicken and vegetables.

'I was incredibly nervous but all my hard work paid off and I came second.'

Now Cody is hoping to become a personal trainer, providing online coaching and support to others who want to get their dream body.

No longer a slim housewife, Cody has been on a journey of transformation and will be fully transitioning later this year will phallophasty surgery

He adds: 'Transitioning has been a huge lesson of patience. The same goes for working out. Celebrate the journey, as long as you show up and put in the work, you will get there.

'Time is going to pass anyway, you might as well spend it working towards your goals. Keep going.'

Cody is going through the final stages of gender reassignment in June this year, when he will undergo a phalloplasty.

When he recovers from his surgery, Cody, who is single, hopes to find love.

He says: 'I've had a few short relationships with women since becoming a man but I'd love something more long-term.

'But right now, I'm happier than ever. My message to others is that life is too short - you only get one chance. Don't give up.

'I let fear take over my life and now I will never do that again.'