ladyliz’s BodyBlog

This is really a great opportunity. Please go to Flex Online and vote for me. I am an August contestant ("Liz", 5th row down, 3 in).

www.flexonline/modelsearch

Each monthly winner qualifies for the 16-woman finals at the FLEX Bikini Model Search presented by Champion Nutrition during Olympia Weekend in Las Vegas on September 26 and 27.

Winners of the FLEX Bikini Model Search on Olympia Weekend earn a contracts with Weider Publications and Champion Nutrition and will appear in the 2009 FLEX Swimsuit Issue!

www.flexonline. com/flexmodelsearch
Liz Jones
5′ 8 1/2′
competition weight: 137-140
career: Executive Director of a domestic abuse and sexual assault program & yoga teacher

How Did You Get Started? I have always been interested in bodybuilding and fitness. In high school I lifted some weights, but was very skinny at 105 pounds at almost 5′ 9′. At 17 I was pregnant, and slowly gained weight in the years to come. In my 20s I began really becoming interested in sculpting my body, but didn’t know what I was doing and did not live a health lifestyle. Corey Everson was always a great inspiration (I loved the Hercules show), but at that time, I ‘worked out’ but didn’t really have a plan. In my 30s, 2004 was a pivitol point in my life (see below, What a Difference a Year Can Make).

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> What a Difference a Year Can Make
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> Two thousand and four was a very difficult year for me. I began the year having orthoscopic knee surgery, which took longer to heal from than I expected. After the surgery, due to my inability to go to the gym and not feeling well for quite a while following the procedure, I proceeded to gain almost twenty pounds. I was the heaviest I have ever been (I weighed more than I did when I was nine months pregnant).
 
> In April I cut off almost a foot of hair and donated it to Locks of Love, which was not a bad thing, however it was a huge adjustment for me after having long hair for most of my life. In May, I ended a long time relationship in which I was not happy. Again, not a bad thing, but a major adjustment. Then in June of 2004, the company I had worked at for four years was downsized and I lost my once-secure job. In August, my beloved seven-year-old cat, Mat, suddenly suffered from kidney failure and died. I thought that was more than I could handle.

> Then the unthinkable happened. On September 5, I was leaving the gym on my way to meet some of my girlfriends for a night out, since my son Jordan was visiting with his father for the Labor Day weekend. As I left the gym, I received a message on my cell phone. It was Jordan’s aunt telling me that my fourteen-year-old son was in a terrible motorcycle accident and was being flown to Gillette Children’s Hospital in a coma. Jordan had been riding on the back of his dad’s motorcycle, when they slowed down to turn into a driveway to go to a family cookout, they were run over by an SUV. Jordan was dragged 205 feet under the truck before the driver stopped. The vehicle caught on fire, but Jordan was pulled from beneath before the flames reached him. He was in a coma for eleven days and in the rehab department until October 8. I stayed with him twenty-four hours a day while he was at the hospital because he needed me there and I did not want to leave his side.
 
> The good news is that he is recovering wonderfully and is back at school now. During our stay at the hospital, I needed to try to keep myself healthy so I could be there for Jordan. While I was by his side, holding his hand and talking to him while he was in a coma, I needed to keep myself focused on something positive throughout the most difficult time in our lives. There wasn’t a gym to use at the hospital, but I modified my exercise program to things I could do while I was there (including using hand weights in the physical therapy room while Jordan was doing his PT, running in the parking ramp, yoga and tai chi) and I had a friend bring me my protein shakes and bars so I had some healthy food with me to avoid eating all of the junk food our well-meaning visitors brought to the hospital.

> When we were finally able to go home, I was determined to make a greater commitment to health and fitness in my life. Because I have always loved to dance, and wanted to start dancing again, I had planned on competing in a fitness competition once I got in shape. Once I was able, I began to focus on that goal. I have spent the past two and a half months working very hard, keeping focused more and more on my training and nutrition, and learning everything I can about what I need to accomplish to be successful at a fitness competition. I made great strides in that year. I have become a stronger person both physically and spiritually.

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What Are Your Future Fitness Plans? Since that time, I competed in the Gopher State Classic in 2005 and have had a few articles and pictures appear in magazines about the changes I made. This year is going to be the transitional year in my life. I’ve always been told that 36 is when you start to really ‘find yourself.’ I recently completed my masters degree in Organizational Leadership and Strategic Management, and my son graduated from high school and will be attending college in the fall. I had been a single parent for 18 years and putting myself through school the whole time, on and off, so now is the time in my life to pursue my other dreams. I have my dream job as the Executive Director of a domestic abuse program and love the work that I do, but have many other dreams that I want to follow. This is my year to commit to being my best ever and to pursue opportunities in fitness and health.

I am training to compete in the Elk River, MN NANBF natural figure competition on October 18 and am working hard to find opportunities to be a role model as a strong, healthy woman.

Why Do You Love Fitness? I love fitness because it helps me to reach my other goals and because I believe that the body is a work of art. I always admire the people who are dedicated to living healthy and putting in the work to achieve greatness (while remaining humble). As I mentioned Corey Everson was always a huge role model, as is Monica Brant now, Tosca Reno, and Elain Goodlad have all been people I admire and bring me inspiration. There are so many! All of the ladies who made it on the new American Gladiators are amazing- I admire the strength and dedication it takes to get to that level of success. I admire the men that are on there as well. That would be one dream I would like to pursue, being in the ranks of the nations best.

What One Tip Would You Give Other Fitness Competitors? I still have a lot of work to do. I think to always be setting new goals and to keep pushing forward even in the face of failure or hardship. I have mentored teen parents and other young women who were struggling in life, as well as working with a group of young males in jail, and one thing I try to leave them with is that those of us who have struggled the most in life really have a great opportunity to be the best leaders. Difficulties give us the ability to overcome and rise above it. Just because something goes wrong, doesn’t mean you should give up (whether that is teen pregnancy, a jail sentence, addiction, domestic abuse, disease, or if it is just that you didn’t stick to your training plan one week and ate a pizza with a 12 pack of beer).

Keep rising up!

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