Read Diane's female bodybuilding success story interview and learn how she transformed her physique and became an inspirational success story!
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Karen: What got you involved in general fitness and bodybuilding?
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Diane: A friend of mine was a bodybuilder and I always admired that. They took me to see a bodybuilding competition and I was amazed that people could get their bodies in such great condition. It gave me the inspiration to try to get myself in such great condition.
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Karen: That's funny. That's what got me started competing, too. After seeing my first contest, I had goals set in my mind. How long have you been fitness and/or bodybuilding?
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Diane: I have been working out for about 10 years and focused in bodybuilding for the past 5 or 6.
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Karen: You have been at the iron game for quite a while now. What is your competition weight and off-season weight?
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Diane: My competition weight is 128 and my off-season is around 135 to 140 at 5'2".
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Karen: Great off-season numbers. It's good that you keep a good off-season weight. What motivates you to keep in shape?
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Diane: I think what motivates me is mainly just wanting to live a healthy life-style. Different things motivate me at different times, but the main goal is to take care of myself.
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Karen: It's never too early to live a healthy lifestyle. What is your goal setting process?
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Diane: If I am in competition mode I will pick a specific competition date and then start planning out the time line for dieting and my workouts.
If I am not competing I will still stay on a semi-strict diet and keep my workouts
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Karen: That's my competition goal setting process, too. There's something about a deadline to make you push yourself hard. How do you stick to your goals?
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Diane: I just do it. I set specific days to workout on and stick to it. If I don’t I feel guilty. The dieting is the hardest for me so I tend to cheat now and then.
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Karen: You are like me. When it's time to prep for a show, that's the only focus and you just do it. What is your nutrition like off-season?
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Diane: I try to eat clean, but it isn’t 100%. I will eat sweets and too many carbs off-season. I usually make up for the times I am being strict during competition prep.
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Karen: I think every competitor gives in more in the off-season. But that's what makes contest prep different, the strictness. What’s your contest preparation dieting protocol?
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Diane: I mainly stick with protein, veggies and very low carbs. I am carb sensitive so it is very difficult for me to lose weight if I have a high carb intake.
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Karen: I think a lot more women are carb-sensitive these days. I see that with a lot of my clients. What’s a basic cheat meal for you?
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Diane: Pizza is one of my cheat meal’s. Anything with carbs is a cheat meal for me since I am very carb sensitive.
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Karen: I like Mexican food and hamburgers as my cheat. Are there any sacrifices? If so, how do you overcome them?
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Diane: Sure, especially when you are dieting there are tons of sacrificing. I have to watch very strictly what I eat and force myself at time.
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Karen: I more than understand. My sacrifices are not being able to eat at get-together's and such. What do you find to be the hardest part about getting into contest shape and how do you overcome it?
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Diane: I think the hardest part is the dieting. It is very draining and you become very tired and weak. I think what helped me is staying focused on the end goal and I kept visualizing what I wanted to look like on stage.
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Karen: Yeah, the dieting is tough, but if you got that focus, you can get through it. What is your training split like?
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Diane: I normally train with a two on one off split.
Chest/Shoulders
Back/Traps
Off
Legs
Bi's/Tri's
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Karen: That's my favorite split for contest prep. Do you track your personal best lifts and if so, what are they?
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Diane: Currently, I don’t. I just lift to exhaustion when doing my sets. These are my past lifts:
Free Weight Lifts:
Bench Press: 135 lbs.
Incline Press: 95 lbs.
Squat: 165 lbs.
Shoulder Press: 65 lbs.
Curls: 27/30 lbs.
Dead Lift: 115 lbs.
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Karen: Push to failure; progressive overload. Some of the best growth techniques. What is your competition history?
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Diane: I have only competed one time in 2004 at the Show-Me Naturals.
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Karen: You put 100% into your contest. You looked great. Do you have any future competition plans?
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Diane: Nothing in the near future, although I would like to compete again.
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Karen: I hear ya. Once you got that competition fever in your blood, it's hard to get rid of. Do you use supplements? If so, what are your favorite supplements?
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Diane: I have used l-carnitine, l-glutamine, creatine and Meal Replacement protein. I would say my favorite is the Met-Rx meal replacement protein. It’s tasty and a good protein source.
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Karen: Those are my top favorite supplements. I'm also a fan of Met-Rx. Does your family support your fitness endeavors?
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Diane: Yes, they do. They have been very supportive, especially during the competition season when dieting gets you down. You need that support to push you through the difficult days.
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Karen: That's great. I tend to do better alone on the contest prep thing. That way, I don't bite anyone's head off. What hobbies do you have outside of fitness?
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Diane: I don’t have too many hobbies outside of fitness. I tend to spend most of my leisure time in the gym.
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Karen: Well, we'll just have to find you some hobbies. :) What advice would you give someone who wanted to get in such outstanding shape as you are in?
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Diane: I would suggest setting a goal and sticking to it no matter what. Take small steps, don’t jump in all at once and overwhelm yourself. I tried that and it doesn’t work. Focus on today and what you can do with it.
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Karen: You hit the nail on the head! Small productive steps is the way. How has bodybuilding changed your life?
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Diane: I think it has given me confidence in myself that I can achieve a goal if I set my mind to it. It has helped me become very disciplined and focused in my life.
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Karen: I agree. Bodybuilding takes a lot of discipline, and it has to be one of the hardest sports at the competition level.
Thanks for your time, Diane. Much success to you and your future bodybuilding plan.
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