FIGURE: NICOLE SIMS
November Accomplishment: Nationals Overall and Class C Winner
Age 35
Height 5’3
Weight 117
Contest History/Highlights 2012: Pittsburgh Championships 2nd Class C; 2011: Emerald Cup 1st Class B; Tanji Johnson Classic 2nd Class B; Los Angeles Championships 6th Class C; USA Championships DNP; 2010: Northwest Championships Overall; Washington Ironman 3rd Class B
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MAGAZINE MOTIVATION “In college, I gained about 15-20 pounds so I just kind of started horsing around in the gym and some the extra weight started to come off easily. That motivated me, and then I started seeing magazines like Oxygen and realized I liked the physiques that I saw. I thought they looked great, but I didn’t think that was realistic for the average woman.”
FUEL FOR THE FIRE “Stepping on the national stage for the first time, I felt like I was a deer in headlights. I didn’t know you could have 40-plus women in one class – the speed of it all was really fast, and I just wasn’t prepared. I was pretty devastated at having no placement, but in hindsight it really did give me fuel for my fire.”
STRIVING TO INSPIRE “A lot of things motivate me to do better. I have my own personal goals – I like to see improvement in my physique – but it’s also the support I have from my family and friends, because I know that I’m inspiring them and I don’t want to disappoint anybody. And of course people I’ve met along the way. Other mothers have written to me and told me that I’ve inspired them, not only to go compete, maybe just to walk around the block and do something they’ve never done before. That’s inspiring to me.”
EXCITED FOR THE ARNOLD “I’m extremely thankful I got the invite to the Arnold, it’s a huge honor. The Arnold is always a contest I looked as far as always really respecting all of the competitors on stage. But the goal is the same goal I always set for myself. I just want to show up and give it my best and at they end of the day I want everybody to say that they saw me and they liked me. I want to present the best package I can for myself and focus on the things I can control.”
