Fitness Model Interview:Lea Waide |
The Interview: 1. What's your background? How did you get started in the fitness industry? I started taking dance classes when I was just 3 years old, so I have been involved in the arts for many years. I got my first paying job as a dancer when I was 16, and have been a professional ever since. I have also been very athletic and involved in sports for many years. Fitness competition is like a mix between something entertaining with performance value and something that requires athleticism. It sparked my interest when I saw a show on T.V., and pretty much made up my mind right then I was going to do it. 2. What do you feel is your biggest fitness-related accomplishment? Having the motivation and discipline to get in the sort of shape that is required by competing is a huge accomplishment. It takes immense amounts of dedication...many hours in the gym and a very strict, regimented diet. I tell anyone who competes, even if it is just once, that they have already done something that 90% of the population could never have the discipline to do. 3. Is fitness modeling/competition your full-time job? If not, what else do you do? No, competing and modeling is not my full time job. I have my own company, Felicitous Affairs. Basically we (I have a partner) create, plan, and manage special events. I also do some personal training, choreographing, and competition consulting. In addition, we (Me and my sister Sara who also competes) are trying to get our website off the ground to push us into mainstream media. The website is www.divastyle.com. 4. What are your immediate and long-term goals? An immediate goal of mine is to win the N.P.C. U.S.A.'s which is next July. I would also really like to get some mainstream modeling work since fitness really is the big thing right now but you still don't open up Maxim and see models with abs. Long Term - I would like to get into some acting possibly, or become a spokesmodel for a major corporation that would enable me to do some traveling. 5. Please describe a typical day for you. What is your daily routine like? Well, in November and December, I chill out a little bit. But the rest of the year looks like this... 6:00 a.m.- An hour to an hour and a half of cardio, usually climbing or running mountains. 9-12: work on website, answer emails, send business letters, make phone calls. 12-12:30 weight training. 12:30-1:00- stretching, hand stand push ups, presses, one arm handstands. 1:00-4:00- practice routine, practice strength skills, do plyometrics. 4-8: more business or appointments. 8-9: more cardio. 6. Please describe your normal diet. How do you eat to stay in shape? There are small changes that happen in diet pretty frequently, depending on what I am getting ready for. However, this is a pretty typical day for me: Meal One: 8 egg whites, 1/4 cup cream of rice, 1 tbls. almond butter When I get about 2 months out from a show, I eat fish for at least 5 meals a day. 7. What is your training routine like? I have a trainer, Rick Nelson, who believes in very short but intense training sessions. We train for about 30 minutes, usually 9-12 sets and about 30 reps a set. I have no set order to body parts. I do whatever feels good that day. For cardio, I do a lot of hiking. Not piddle around hiking, but high elevation, 8-12 hours a day (on the weekends) hiking. In the winter, I go snowshoeing on the weekends. I try not to do cardio in the gym because it bores me to death, but if I have to I do the treadmill at the highest incline. Sometimes I like to take boxing class too. Oh, and I ride my mountain bike sometimes. 8. What supplements do you use? I use O'Donnells Health Advantage Emerald Greens (like a multivitamin), and also their low carb protein powder. 9. How do you motivate yourself to get/stay in shape? Sometimes I am in better shape than others. Even the most seasoned competitors will lose their focus every once in a while. And sometimes I just get tired of eating fish all the time and say screw it! I am going to eat Chinese today! But most of the time, it is the thought of the goals that I want to achieve that keeps me motivated. It's like a lot of people wine and complain about how the time is flying by, yet they are not doing things to make the most of that time. I have so many things that I want to accomplish in my life...it gets overwhelming when I think about it! But with all those things I want to do there is no time to waste sitting around! 10. What are a few of your favorite fitness and health-related web sites? Genex9.com is awesome for fitness profiles and coverage of contests. Getbig.com is another great one for news and great bulletin boards. Femsport.com and bodysport.com are also some of my favorites. 11. What tips would you give to someone who wanted to get into the fitness modeling (or fitness competition) industry? Well, fitness modeling requires being in good shape year round. You also have to have a good, marketable look. You will need to get some photos taken and shop them around to magazines. It will be hard at first if you don't know anyone, but if you have a good look eventually someone will notice you. In terms of competing there are SO many steps. I would say the most important thing to do would be to gather all the information you can. Your best resource is someone that is already in the circuit. Very soon I will have posted many competition tips and helpful advice on my website...please check it out! 12. If someone you knew asked you how to lose weight and get into shape quickly, what would you tell them? To lose weight quickly, all you have to have is 100% dedication. If you have that then you can get in the best shape of your life in 3 months. What your body looks like is 75% what goes in your mouth and 25% your workout. You must drink at least 1 gallon of water a day, eat five meals a day with only your first two consisting of carbs, eat no more than 50 carbs a day, no CHEATING ever, and two hours of cardio a day with weight training. 13. What do you feel differentiates you from other people in your field? I let no one put restrictions on what I can do. I set my mind on a goal and I do everything in my power to reach that goal. Especially within the fitness industry, most girls do what every girl before them has done which I just don't understand. There is a whole world of opportunities out there to go after. I think a lot of people believe that the world isn't ready to see fitness models on runways or in mainstream magazines, but if we waited for people to be ready for things then we would never make progress in society! 14. Is there anything else you'd like to say? When it comes to your body, how you feel about yourself affects your ENTIRE life. I truly believe that if everyone would eat good and get in shape the whole world would be a happier place! Bottom line......Dream Big because you can do ANYTHING you set your mind to!
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