Unlike many other fitness individuals, I was not a childhood athlete. I was never a cheerleader, nor did I take gymnastics or dance as a little girl. I grew up in dysfunctional atmosphere; being an athlete was not an option. However, I have always been very interested in working out and very impressed with female strength. I purchased my own gym membership with money I earned from my paper route (I delivered a LOT of papers) at the age of 14. It was a membership to Fitness USA. I still have that lifetime membership today. So, while I wasn't an athlete, I certainly had the drive and determination of one at a very young age

Believe it or not, I am quite the archer! I got hooked on shooting archery several years back and actually shot competitively for many, many years. I held many local, state, and regional titles. I was proud to represent PSE (Precision Shooting Equipment) as a fully sponsored archer. Of course all the trophies and accolades I received for being a successful woman in the sport were fantastic, but they'll never rival the joy I got out of donating my trophies. Our community had a local archery club for preteens and teens, which included quite a few young ladies. I'll never forget the first time that I donated my trophies and I heard a young girl exclaim, "Look daddy, it's even got a GIRL archer on it!" It was the first time any of the girls ever earned a trophy with a woman on it. I was so moved that I donated my trophies every year after that.

I have really long dangly arms. As a young girl, I would hardly ever wear a tank top because I felt like Popeye's Olive Oyl. Now, even though my arms are not where I want them to be, my shoulders and arms remind me of how far I've come

Fortunately for me, the students come into my classroom with a degree of respect without even knowing me. They're enamored with what I do and very curious about it. They all respect the discipline that it takes to do what I do and they're very curious about it. I had one class this past school year that had a blast with trying to tempt me with my diet. I had shared with the class that I have a love-hate relationship with Culvers, which is a restaurant with delicious custard treats that are similar to Dairy Queen blizzards. I love Culvers but I don't eat it because of what it would do to my physique. After that conversation, every chance they got, the students would leave Culvers coupons on my desk or tell me how they had Culvers that weekend and how delicious it was. I'd gasp and get all animated and they'd just laugh and laugh. It was great fun!

Interestingly, the boys think I'm way stronger than they are and they always want to know what I bench press. I just let them wonder... And I use that to my benefit. If a male student acts out, I have a push-up rule instead of detention: 20 push-ups to nonathletes and 50 to the athletes. They must perform the push-ups in front of the class right along side me. No boy wants their female teacher to be able to do more push-ups than them in front of their peers. I've never had one boy take me up on it and the negative behavior stops instantly. I know someday that rule will probably bite me in the booty when an athletic boy takes me up on it, but when it does, we'll all have a good laugh and get back to business.

I don't want to miss a thing! I feel like once I started training hard and competing my dreams started to become reality and I want to savor every moment. Carpe Diem!

Truthfully, I would like to be a very successful IFBB Athlete who has had numerous magazine covers, spreads, and articles. I'm interested in becoming an athlete for a supplement company like Gaspari. I'd like to pursue public speaking, writing a Q and A section in a fitness magazine, and maybe, writing a book some day.