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Published on Monday, 12 November 2012 21:54
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Written by Lisa Karn
Spotlight On CBBF Figure Competitor: Lisa M Karn
Category you compete in: Open Figure Short
Date of birth: 1976/08/13
Hometown: Sudbury
Career: Personal Trainer/Physiotherapy Assistant
Competition history:
2004 – 3rd place, Open Figure category, Northern Ontario Bodybuilding Championships, Elliott Lake, ON
2011, April – 1st place, Figure Short, Festival City Championships (Provincial Qualifier), Stratford, ON
2011, June – 1st place, Figure Short (Class ‘B’), Open Figure category, Toronto Super Show (National Qualifier) [First Overall OPA Provincial Figure Champion], Toronto, ON
2011, July – 13th place, Open Figure category, Figure Short, CBBF National Show, Saskatoon, SK
2012, August – 2nd place, Open Figure category, Figure Short (Class ‘A’), CBBF National Show, New Westminster, B.C.
Next competition:
The next show that I am certain that I want to compete in will be the 2013 CBBF National show on August 10th in New Westminster, B.C.. I am still in the decision process with regard to other shows in which I am thinking of doing. There are a lot of exciting things that I’d like to be a part of and to create that I will be sharing in the New Year.
How has your life changed since you adopted this lifestyle and started competing?
Since adopting this lifestyle, I have developed a stronger sense of who I am and what I want to do in this lifetime. When I was much younger, I talked myself out of doing so much due to the low confidence in my own abilities to believe and achieve. Now I know that the only thing holding me back from achieving all that I want in life is myself and I made a promise to myself to never hold back if it makes me happy.
As well, in preparing for a competition, I have seen how much dedication it takes to stick to the plan, nutritionally, physically and especially mentally. Realizing how much time is consumed prepping food, going to the gym to train, getting enough rest and, on top of that, maintaining relationships and going to a regular day job can take its toll. You really have to believe that you’re already on that stage and hearing your name being called out in order to do it, day in and day out. It takes a high intensity of focus, discipline, tenacity, heart, and unshakeable belief in yourself that this is where you are truly meant to be.
What have you found to be the best way to balance family, f
riends, career, this lifestyle, etc…
This has been a learning process for me, for sure. I have learned to leave one to two days a week that is strictly for doing nothing related to training or work. Luckily, my career is in the fitness/wellness industry so, it fits very well. I’ve learned to take one day at a time. It may sound cliché but, it truly is important to realize, even with a future goal in mind, that we truly have only the moments that we are experiencing right now. I do my best to have a plan and have goals, but to also be in the moment.
If you could change places with one competitor for the day who would it be and why?
I have wracked my brain to narrow this down to someone I might like to trade places for a day with and I honestly have no idea…lol.
Name two of the most inspirational people in your life and tell why they inspire you.
Over the years, there have been so many people that have inspired me to believe in myself, encouraged me to be a better person, and have taught me valuable life lessons, whether they knew it or not. It would be impossible to narrow it down to only two people. I truly feel that I am who I am and where I am in life because of so many people who have come into my life or with whom I’ve crossed paths. And I am filled with gratitude and appreciation on a daily basis knowing that I have been blessed with these relationships or happenstance meetings in this lifetime, the positive and the negative alike.
Tell one recipe or supplement you can’t live without.
I absolutely love the Vi-pak for vitamins/minerals/antioxidants/omega-vitals supplements. It comes as part of a kit that I receive that has the shake mix I like using as well. With regard to the costs that go into preparing the body properly and well, high quality foods and high quality supplements is no exception. This monthly supply of the majority of the supplements that I take in during competition prep and throughout the year saves me so much money. It’s definitely one of my favourites.
Tell about a typical training day for you. What exercises, how many sets/reps…etc…
Well, this is based around what phase of training I am at for the year. There are different things I will be doing 10 months out from my show as opposed to the programs that I would do 10 days out from a show. I’ll use the example of what I did last year for shoulders in preparation for the 2012 CBBF National show. The goal was for me to put on more lean muscle mass and still maintain femininity and symmetry. In the initial phases of the training, my reps were fairly low (usually between 6-10 reps) and my sets were ranging in the 4-6 sets of each exercise I did for each muscle group. My cardio was usually done once a day for 5-6 days of the week and lasted 20-40 minutes. For my shoulder workout day, my coach had me focusing on a lot of ‘shoulder cap building’ exercises – hammer dumbbell shoulder press, leaning lateral dumbbell shoulder raises, reverse flyes with the cables, and front straight-arm barbell raises. It was a hard phase but it felt great. The results come show time was a set of more developed shoulders.
In closing, Who would you like to give a shout out to?
I would like to offer thanks to my coach, IF
BB Figure Pro Aleisha Hart, for taking me on as a client and guiding me so well since September 2010. It has been an amazing journey working with her and getting her expert advice, guidance and training to help take me to the level that I want to get to in this industry.
I would like to thank everyone involved in the OPA, the CBBF, the photographers, the people who provide the competition tanning, the crews who do the hair and make-up, all of the media who cover the shows and promote them so well, the promoters, the sponsors, the fitness magazine crews, and all of the countless volunteers who donate their time to be part of each and every one of the shows. This is such an amazing industry that has so much energy and it’s an honour to be a part of it, as well as be a National-level competitor within it.
As well, a big shout out goes to my amazing family, my friends and all the people who have encouraged and supported me throughout this journey to become the next Canadian/Ontario IFBB Figure Pro. I’ve made it this far and am looking forward to all that is in store for the year’s to come.
