Category you compete in: Women’s Physique
Date of birth: July 2, 1978
Hometown: Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Career: Restaurant Owner; mom of three
Com.jpeg)
petition history: My debut competition was the Axis Labs Northern Colorado. I brought home two first place titles in Women’s Physique, as well as Overall Women’s Physique Champion. I also placed second in Open Figure, class A.
Next competition: I’m not sure where I might compete next. The decision is mostly up to Dan Wells, he handles all my nutrition and posing and keeps me dialed in when it comes to my workouts. I trust that he will steer me in the right direction.
What do you feel is the WORST part of contest prep? For me the first couple of weeks were grueling. Adjusting to the amount of food I was consuming, as well as the frequency, was a process. I was so uncomfortable, sometimes taking and hour or more to get through my meals. Before I knew it, it was time to eat again. In the beginning, eating was way more challenging than the workouts.
We took a family vacation to Disney during this prep as well. Between indulging the kids and fielding confusing looks from family who didn’t understand what all the food fuss was about, I could have easily faltered during this week. It was important to me to maintain my progress so preparation was key and feeling supported by my husband was essential!
Would you please tell us a little about your workout schedule? I am an early bird. I am usually up at 4:45 am and at the gym by 5:30. I have to stick fairly tight to this schedule in order to fit it all in, otherwise the kids won’t make it to school on time and the restaurant doesn’t open.
I work out five days in a row then rest on the 6th. Currently my splits are Chest/Calves, Lats/Abs, Delts/Traps, Bicep/Tricep and then I do legs just prior to my rest day. My cardio varies during prep. Sometimes it’s 21 minutes of HIIT post workout, sometimes it’s 45 minutes of fasted cardio.
I love to sneak in a Yin/Restorative yoga class once a week!
If you had to lose one of your 5 senses, which one would you prefer to lose and why? I would probably miss my sense of smell the least. As I sit here, I can remember the way my chicken and greens smelled after my fasted cardio at 6:30 in the morning. I’d like to forget that smell.
If you could change one thing about this sport what would it be? I wish everyone could appreciate the human body for its unique beauty and appreciate the intricate differences of people’s physiques. I would like to do away with the opinion that muscles aren’t for girls. I also think there are a ton of misconceptions about what it takes to be “competition ready”. Many people were surprised to find out that I wasn’t in fact starving myself in order to reach my goals but that I was doing the exact opposite. I remained well-nourished right up to and through show day. I loved my proteins and greens!
If you had a time capsule what would you put inside it
and why? Time moves so fast sometimes. If it was possible to bottle up the emotions for all the “firsts” in my life that’s what would be in my time capsule. When the day came to open it, the adrenaline rush from all those amazing moments would flow back to me and I would remember.
What is your favorite vacation spot? I am a beach baby for sure, so anywhere there is sand, sun and water I wanna be there. There is something so renewing about the ocean and the sun just seems to melt your worries away. It’s a tie between Acapulco and St. Martin for favorite!
What advice do you have for women who would like to get involved in and compete in the sport of bodybuilding? I haven’t been around the block enough to give any really insightful advice but I would say in general, if there is something that you’d like to accomplish in life, set out and make it happen. Surround yourself with likeminded support and push through till you succeed. That’s with any journey in life, not just body building.
What is a day-in-the-life of Kari like? My routine is always the same, the only thing that changes are the people I encounter. I am usually up and at the gym by 5:30 and my workout wraps up around 7:15, just in time to get my oldest over to high school. I return home to prep lunch for the two little ones as well as my 8 am meal and I get them out the door and off to elementary. I return home, clean up the house a bit from the morning, clean myself up and head out to conquer the day as a small business owner. This usually means a trip to the bakery, restaurant supply store or some other pre work errand. I get to work around 10:30 and immediately start preparing my next meal before the lunch rush starts. It is super convenient for me to food prep and I do enjoy the luxury of hot meals because I have a commercial kitchen at my disposal. I eat again around 2 and then head out to start the roundup of my children and get them to their after school activities. I eat again around 5, usually hardboiled egg whites or my favorite treat, Muscle Egg, egg whites. I cook dinner for the kiddos, we get homework done and then I eat again around 8. After being on the go all day, I get a little peace and quiet with my hubby in the evening and then it’s off to bed to recharge for the next day.
Favorite Motivational Qu
ote: “Never give up on a dream because of the time it will take to accomplish it, the time will pass anyway.”
In closing, Who would you like to give a shout out to? Only, I am responsible for the way my body looks on competition day but so many other people contribute to the commitment it takes to get to that day. My husband was by my side every step of the way, for every meal and workout and grumpy mood. I am so grateful for his support. Without the guidance of Dan Wells, there is no way I would have been as conditioned as I was. Finally, Laura Richards made my beautiful suit and made sure that it fit just right so that I could step on stage confidently.
Subscribe to RxMuscle on Youtube
