Monique Cormier, who has overcome obesity and severe depression en route to becoming a world class amateur bodybuilder, joins Dave [ ... ]
Spotlight On NPC Physique Competitor:Dr. Margaret Negrete
Category you compete in: Physique, Bo.JPG)
dybuilding and Figure
Date of birth: February 26,1960
Hometown: El Paso, Texas
Career: Physician-Board Certified Anesthesiologist, Certified Fitness Trainer ISSA
Competition history: TNT-This stands for too numerous to count. I began competing in bodybuilding in 1985 when I was in Medical School and have competed almost every year since then. I took off a couple of years in the early 90's to have my 2 daughters who are 11 months apart. That was a neat trick! I have competed in the Lightweight Bodybuilding, class A Figure and class A Physique Divisions to date. These are the highlights of my competitions:
2012 6th place Physique A Masters Nationals
2011 6th place Arnold Amateur LW Bodybuilding
2011 3rd place USA Lightweight Bodybuilding
2011 1st place Masters Nationals LW Bodybuilding
2010 1st place Masters Nationals LW bodybuilding
2010 2nd place Nationals LW Bodybuilding
2009 1st place Masters Nationals LW Bodybuilding
2009 1st place USA Lightweight BB
2009 3rd place North American LW Bodybuilding
2009 6th place Nationals LW Bodybuilding
2008 7th place Nationals LW Bodybuilding
2008 2nd place Texas State LW bodybuilding
2003-2007 competed in yearly figure competitions
2002 1st place Southwest USA LW Bodybuilding (now known as the Europa)
2002 1st place Mid USA LW, Masters and overall BB
2002 Nationals-did not make the top 15 cut
2001 John Sherman Classic LW, Masters and Overall
2001 11th place USA
2001 1st place Las Vegas Classic LW and Masters BB
1997 1st place and overall BB Muscle Beach Venice
1997 1st place Texas State Novice LW BB and Masters
1991 1st place Women's short BB
1985 1st Place Des Moines Classic Women's short BB
These are the highlight of my competition history. There are many many more competitions and placings over the years. As I mentioned before, they are to numerous to count!
Next competition:Master's Nationals, and the USA this year. Possibly Nationals.
How has your life changed since you adopted this lifestyle and started competing?
I have always been athletic and have enjoyed exercising. I was in track i.JPG)
n high school and continued running for many years after. When I moved to Iowa from Texas for Medical school, I was shocked by the sub zero temperatures and was in need of a more indoor sport. I got a part time job at the local YMCA working as the gym front desk attendant. I started watching people train with weights and decided to join in. I entered my first competition that year and won first place in my category. After that there was no turning back. I was hooked. I have always been a goal oriented individual and after I reached my ultimate goal of getting into Medical School, I needed another goal to focus on (besides school). Weight training and competing have been two of the best things that have ever happened to me.
Year after year, I entered competitions to help keep me on track with training and also to give myself an outlet for the stresses of my life. Through the years, the weight training and competing has played a crucial part in getting me through medical school, residency, private practice, pregnancies, a very happy marriage and those challenging Child rearing years. I think that getting through everyday life is getting more and more stressful for everyone these days. I believe that you make your life what it is and that each of us have the potential to soar. Challenging myself physically on a daily basis and entering competitions regularly have both become second nature to me. These beliefs that I have adopted through constant training and competing, have seen me through some very tough times and carried me to where I am today. For this I will be forever grateful.
What have you found to be the best way to balance family, friends, career, this lifestyle, etc…
We all know that it can be very difficult to balance all that we put on our plate. Especially if you are getting ready for a competition. I try to get the people in my life into the gym and that seems to make my life a little more manageable. My Husband is a fellow competitor (Bodybuilder) and my two daughters have also competed (Teen Fitness and Teen figure). My two daughters have been competitive gymnast and cheerleaders for many years and they understand the commitment that it takes. Sure they might be a little dysfunctional because my hubby and I have forced them into a life of physical fitness but better that then what some of the other teenagers are into these days. The rest of both of our families understand what we go through because we have been doing it for so many years. They for the most part respect our commitment and understand that the time that we spend away from them is necessary for us.
Work has been a little more challenging to deal with as far as getting ready to compete. I am an Anesthesiologist and my husband is a Dentist. We both work long hours and many times just cut out hours of sleep in order to get everything into a 24 hour day. I can recall many competitions when I had to work all night on Thursday before a show so that I could get Friday off to travel to the competition and compete Saturday. It's very hard to be at your best when you are sleep deprived! In any event we continue to sign up for the competitions and do whatever it takes to get there.
My friends are almost all into training in some shape or form. The ones that are not are some of the people that I work with and see on a regular basis at the hospital. We don't have a lot of time for socializing so the friends that do not frequent the gym we do not get to see that often. This is unfortunate because we know a lot of people that we hardly ever get to see. On the positive side, we enjoy meeting new people every year at the various competitions that we go to and we have made a lot of lasting friendships through our pursuit of fitness.
If you could change places with one competitor for the day who would it be and why? Cory Everson
If I could go back in time and see what it was like to be Cory during her reign as Ms Olympia that would be incredible. I went to the Ms Olympia in 1988 when I was in Medical School. It was held at Maddison Square Garden in New York that year. Arnold Schwarzenegger, another one of my idols, was the MC that year and I was awestruck by the whole experience. Cory of coarse wonder 5th Ms Olympia title that night. I bought a book that she had written on training and began to look for the secrets to her success. I saw Cory again years later at the USA in Las Vegas in 2001 the first time that I competed there. She was as beautiful and poised as ever and continued to inspire me. I would have loved to be Cory during her prime and to have been able to learn from some of the greats like Joe Weider. Cory continues to inspire many to be better people and to supplement their own lives with health and fitness. I praise the role model that she is and I strive to be like her and help others realize their full potential. .JPG)
Name two of the most inspirational people in your life and tell why they inspire you.
The number one inspiration in my life is definitely my husband Scott Stein. My husband and I went to school together since I was in 6th grade and he was in 5th. Apparently, I made fun of his bell bottoms back then which he likes to remind me of. We really did not know each other during the years to follow in elementary school and high school. We reunited one afternoon in 1990 at the squat rack at Golds Gym in El Paso, Texas. We had both just moved back to our hometown. From the moment when we started dating he has given me nothing but support and encouragement through all of my crazy endeavors. I encouraged him to try his hand at competition and he has proven to be an excellent competitor. Through the years of competitions and training he never tires of giving me guidance and encouragement. I have had my share of failures and have felt like giving up many times. He would never let me think even for one minute that I was a failure. He would always pick me up and brush me off and redirect my disappointment into some new motivation for my next goal. We both lead very busy lives. He is a Dentist and I am an Anesthesiologist. Many times after a long day of work I am so tired that the last thing that I want to do is train. I want to go home and just relax a little. My husband on the other hand is just as tired as I am but he still is ready to train no matter what. He motivates me to go even when I think that I don't have it in me. Sometimes he has to drag me by the hair but he does get me there. Many of the gains that I have made, both in the gym and in my life, I owe to this extraordinary man.
The second inspiration in my life would have to be my two daughters, Alex Stein and Daryl Stein. Alex a second year Psych major at the University of Denver. She is Co-Captan of the Cheerleading Squad and works as a resident assistant in her dorm. She want to pursue a career in Physical Therapy. Daryl is a freshman Pre-Dental student at the University of Texas at Austin. She works as a tutor for Chemistry and next year will work as a Learning Assistant. They both work tirelessly at their schoolwork and their jobs and still make excellent grades and find time to stay physically fit. I often wonder how they do it all. Who knew that they were listening when we told them that they had to work hard and do well in school and stay healthy if they wanted to get anywhere in life. They were both in competitive gymnastics and cheerleading growing up and have both competed in teen fitness. Last year Daryl went to and competed in the National Teen Figure competition that was held in conjunction with Master's Nationals. My hubby and I also competed at that show. One of our family goals is to all compete at the same show as a family. One year, I was the guest poser at the NPC Sun City Regional competition. I had my daughters, as my backup fitness chicks, do the routine with me. They did their gymnastics moves while I posed and we did part of the choreographed routine together. It was so awesome to have them on stage with me. These two girls amaze me daily by all that they have accomplished and all that they are planning to do.
Tell one recipe or supplement you can’t live without.
Over the years I have tried a multitude of protein shakes and supplements. Many of them do not sit well in my stomach and I have had a hard time finding one that is quality protein and agreeable to my gastrointestinal tract. I was ecstatic when I found one that is quality whey protein isolate, taste great and does not upset my stomach. I found this in Isolyze by Species Nutrition. It also comes in a variety of flavors that are all tasty and dissolves easily in water. I drink my shakes on the go so the easy mixing is a major plus for me. Another supplement that is essential for me is also made by Species Nutrition. It is called Arthrolyze. I am a bit older than I care to admit and my joints have taken a beating for many years. I have tried a lot of supplements to relieve joint pain. I have found that consistent use of Arthrolyze keeps my joints moving and really decreases the pain from vigorous training. Species Nutrition has helped me in many ways and I would be devastated if I could not get many of their products.
Tell about a typical training day for you. What exercises, how many sets/reps…etc…
I joined a cross fit last year and sometimes go to do the WOD (w.JPG)
orkout of the day) before going to work. This is a very fast and concentrated workout. It usually only takes about 20 minutes so I can do it at 5 am and still be ready and at work by 630. I have had to lay off of the cross fit workouts lately because of my late regular gym training and the need for the extra hour of sleep before work. I recently competed in a Super Spartan Race at Lake Las Vegas with a team from my cross fit gym. A Super Spartan is an 8 mile race with 20 obstacles. It was on some really rough terrain and it was blazing hot! We did still manage to have a great time participating in the event. there were close to 4000 competitors there! We are planning to do more of these types of obstacle races this year.
I do my regular weight training with my hubby at night after work. We usually workout 6 days a week. We work one body part each day and split legs into 2 days. We typically do 6 exercises per muscle group and 4 work sets. It usually takes a couple of warm up sets to get up to the work sets. We both like to read a lot about different types of workouts in the magazines so we usually incorporate something that we have just read about if we think it is a worthy workout. We like to change it up often so that it doesn't get boring. When you have been lifting weights for 28 years it can definitely sometimes get boring!!
We have a wide array of cardio equipment in our house including a treadmill, two ellipticals, a spinning bike and the newest addition, a full fledged Gym Model Stair Master. The cardio we do whatever time of day that we can fit it in. My hubby does it every morning before work no matter what. Some days I can not do it first thing in the morning because either I go to cross fit or I am at work super early. As the competition date gets closer we both go to twice a day cardio. It is very difficult sometimes to fit it all in and sometimes I am forced to do cardiac the hospital. I run up and down the stairwell to the 7th floor and back a few times. If I'm really needing results then I do the stairs with a weighted vest.
In closing, Who would you like to give a shout out to?
I would like to say thank you to my exceptional Husband, Scott and my Daughters, Alex and Daryl, who have been behind me every step of the way. They give me strength and joy every day. I would also like to thank my sweet Mom who made me what I am today. My Step Mother Ellen and Ms Peeps who are also always in my corner. Thank you to my brothers and sisters, Mark, Paul, Joe, Teresa and Nichole who have kept me grounded and will always be there for me no mater what. I would also like to remember those beautiful souls who have passed on and who I will always hold close to my heart, my Father in Law - Stanley, my Sister in Law - Marla, my Father - Dionisio and my sweet Brother - Pauly, who we lost tragically just a couple of years ago.
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