May 25, 2017 / Lifestyle
Elizabeth
“Life is getting up an hour early to live an hour more.”
It’s not every morning one gets to enjoy a golden sunrise, learn fascinating bodybuilding details and share charming places to visit that’s rich with Japanese culture. Meet Liz she’s an International CPT NASM and Fitness Nutrition Specialist who models that in life you get what you focus on and she’s focused on family, faith, and fitness. Our entire session was photographed using natural light see images below…
Questions & Answers
1. Tell me about your favorite scene from your favorite movie. I have a favorite scene from the movie Million Dollar Arm that captivated me towards the end, when one of the actors, Amit, goes up to the young baseball players before they play to give them a word of encouragement, he tells the guys… All my life I wanted to be a ball player. It’s a great sport, but I never dreamt it was possible. YOU are real baseball players. Now small boys in India can dream to be like you. Let’s go make JB and your families proud. Hey brothers, I’m seeing my dreams in you. Your victory, my victory. Rock it brothers! It was an emotional scene for me because, Amit was letting the guys know, that other little boys, despite their circumstances, or where they find themselves, can now have hope, not just to grow up and be an athlete, but remind anyone that dreams are possible. This is the mentality little children or anyone be encouraged to have, the dialogue has encouraged me to remind myself and people not to quit, not to give up!
2. How did you get started with being a Fitness Nutrition Specialist? My father is both my inspiration and hero! A marathon runner, and fascinated with health and nutrition, he paved the way to influence me to pursue a lifestyle of both fitness and health. My passion for fitness and nutrition encouraged me to get my certification for personal trainer along with certification as a nutrition specialist. I want to help people with their weight loss goals.
3. What’s the most interesting thing about you that we wouldn’t learn from your resume or social media? Despite life’s struggles and trials, it was only through my surrender to Christ who delivered me from the bottom of the pit. He is the secret to my peace, strength, and confidence. I have forgiven many people and especially myself for the situations that had me in bondage to pain and hurt. Overcoming the things I have gone through have allowed me to share my testimony and faith with others, and be able to help them get through their pain, hurt, and suffering.
4. Do you have fitness goals for yourself? If so, what are they? My current fitness goals and challenges right now are to grow in physique and focus on hamstrings and glute muscles. After receiving feedback from the judges from my first bodybuilding competition that I lacked hamstrings and glutes, I knew I would be stepping it up a notch or two in my training. I now make sure I focus and have a consistency training those muscle groups. The proper techniques, utilizing those heels when needed have certainly paid off. Also, I am challenging myself in stepping out of my comfort zone to diet harder for growth as well as training properly. Incorporating the simplest of basic moves and making those muscles work hard per rep have been the best mechanism that are working for me and yield results. I believe a lot of people neglect the basics and incorporate too much of the latest stuff, Arnold Schwarzenegger didn’t need all that fancy stuff!
5. What should every woman try at least once in her life? Write a book! I say this because I would love to write a book. The words of wisdom from my father and from important people I met have taught me about life. Being a military wife has also taught me a lot and sharing these things with the rest of the world would be a great reason to jot them down in a book.
BONUS: What has been the best advice you’ve received about fitness and competing? Best fitness advice I have received was given to me by my amazing coach who challenged me during my 12-week prep for my first bodybuilding competition. She told me that the journey is the best part, not the end results or when you reach your goal. She was right, every step of the way was more memorable than the actual finale when I got to step on stage. When it comes to competing, the best advice I remember from her was “great” shouldn’t be a reason to stop. In other words, you are competing against other people who have worked just as hard as you and maybe even harder. To the judges, looking great is but a mere fraction of what they are looking for. Like Arnold Schwarzenegger himself, he always kept in mind that he was competing against the best of the best. He always found himself working hard pouring all his passion into his training.
