‘LL: What has been your biggest challenge so far in your career as a bodybuilder and a fitness trainer?
Yadi: My biggest challenge has been to find a happy medium and a happy balance. I chose not to compete this year and instead really focus on my business and also to focus on my relationship with food. As a trainer you are promoting a healthy lifestyle and you want to always eat healthy. But I’m human. I have a sweet tooth that is going to send me to the grave one day [laughs]. I originally lost all this weight prepping for [bodybuilding] shows, so in my head I was associating prepping with losing weight. But I finally had to come to terms with the fact that I will never look the way I look on stage in everyday life because it’s not healthy. It’s just not normal – you go through different stages where you dehydrate yourself sometimes and things like that. You know what, if I get invited out to dinner I still go to dinner! I can find something healthy to eat out. So, it’s just improving my relationship with food and showing people that you can have a life and be happy about going out and not feel like you are restricting yourself.
‘LL: Who is your favorite bodybuilder?
Yadi: I love Jon De La Rosa and his wife Swann De La Rosa. I also love a bikini competitor her name is Yeshira Robles. I used to work for Jon and Swann and they are some of the most humble people you’ll ever meet. In the sport there’s a lot of people that because the politics of it all, tend to be very nasty and don’t really offer to help people who aren’t pros. But they are so helpful and willing to work with you. If they’re in gym you can go up to them and talk to them as if they are normal. Like Yeshira, she’s a mother so she went from putting her body through a pregnancy and she won second place at the Ms. Olympia competition, that’s like the Super Bowl of bodybuilding. And she is pregnant again now so everyone is anticipating her return. It’s amazing.
‘LL: Is there anyone you would like to workout with? Why?
Yadi: What a great question. I would like to work out India Paulina – she is another bikini competitor, she is Latina as well and she’s very sassy. Her personality just shines through all her videos and everything that she does. She’s managed to keep her body looking feminine while being muscular so I definitely would enjoy training with her. Actually, you can learn from everyone in this sport whether a man or a woman, you can take things here and there from each of them and continue to grow as an individual.
‘LL: Do you think guys are intimidated by you because you are so fit? Does that ever come up in dating?
Yadi: That’s definitely come up before. The amount of dedication and focus it takes to be in that gym while in the sport – you’re not really showing any attention to anything else. A lot of men can’t handle the fact that a woman works out as much as a competitor would have to.
‘LL: What’s the biggest lesson/advice you have for someone who wants to follow in your footsteps and have a career in fitness?
Yadi: I feel like the biggest lesson would be to take it one step at a time and not get discouraged if they are noticing slow progress. Slow progress is still progress. I always tell my clients to try to set smaller goals because it’s a lot harder to see yourself attaining the ‘I want to drop 30lbs’ than ‘I want to drop five.’ Then once you reach that five, ok let me push for another five. I feel the smaller, tangible goals will make it easier to reach the bigger picture.
‘LL: What’s next for you? What are some goals for you and your business?
Yadi: I would love to do a program with different schools, even as a vendor for the department of education. That way I could work with young girls at the age where all the complexes are happening with their bodies. I would love to work with them and show them different tips – like to stay active and love yourself. That’s another thing I really try to push, it’s not just about working out it’s about being comfortable in the skin you’re in and loving the woman that you’re becoming.
For more information you can follow Yadira Suazo on Instagram at _BodyByYadi and on Twitter @BodyByYadi.
