Jul 10, 2020
In this episode Celeste talks with
Liz Yisrael, a 3x Bikini Pro Champion who has competed on both the
Arnold and Olympia stages, a mother, an army veteran, and a current
logistics senior manager who has her Master’s Degree from West
Point.
Celeste starts off the episode by having Liz share with listeners
her pre stage ritual. From there, Celeste first asks Liz about her
history in the military and what inspired her to join the army
originally.
Liz shares that she not only wanted to serve the country but saw
the military as a means to help pay for her education, as she grew
up in a household raised by a hard-working single mom. She ended up
extending her original five year commitment in the military from
feeling so inspired by the people she was leading and serving.
The conversation then transitions to the most important things Liz
learned during her time in the military and Celeste asks Liz about
time management skills and how she incorporates discipline into her
daily routine. Liz explains that commitment and attention to detail
in her schedule is important for her to maintain the consistency
with her priorities and leave no room for the excuse that something
can’t get done.
Celeste shifts the focus to Liz’s role as a mother and asks Liz how
her daily structures and priorities have changed since having her
daughter, Madison. Liz mentions how she made an effort post-partum
to take time for herself away from her daughter without any
feelings of guilt and explains how she got back into training
post-partum, what that process looked like, as well as the approach
she took during her pregnancy in regards to monitoring training and
diet.
Liz shares that she approached her pregnancy diet similarly to how
she would an off season, yet allowed more leniency with “going over
her macros” if she found herself hungry at the end of the day.
Celeste then asks Liz about the difference between her preps and
off seasons and Liz explains why she prefers macros over meal plans
and why that method works best for her.
Next, Celeste brings up a topic that is not typically mentioned or
talk about openly by competitors - the decision Liz made to drop
her sponsorships during her time off. Liz explains the reasoning
behind why she likes working with the sponsors she has and what
brought about the decision to drop her sponsors while taking a
break from competing.
From there, Liz dives into what drove her decision to take time
away from the stage and Celeste asks Liz to share whether or not
she felt she made improvements to her physique during her
pregnancy. Liz then gives listeners some insight as to her
competition plans for the 2020 season, as well as the goals she has
for returning to either the Olympia or Arnold stages. Also, having
stepped foot on both prestigious stages, Celeste has Liz talk about
her experiences as well as the differences she’s noticed between
the two competitions themselves.
After sharing insight and perspective on competing as a pro, Liz
shares how she found bodybuilding and what motivated her to dive
into the world of competing. Liz shares her early successes taking
the overall in her first amateur competitions which led her to
pursue nationals, yet that her road to pro was not an easy one. She
explains how she had to climb the placings in various national
shows, what she learned along the way, and what changes she had to
make that finally led to her achieve the top spot and earn the
coveted pro status.
Next, Celeste asks Liz about her preps: the approach she takes,
what she endures during prep, and how she transitions from
lifestyle lean to competition lean. Celeste also asks Liz how she
maintains her health while in a prep and Liz mentions what she has
changed or added to her routine over the years. Liz then answers a
question from the listeners of whether she had noticed a difference
between her preps pre- and post-baby. Since currently being in her
improvement phase, Liz shares with listeners her favorite exercises
for glutes, hamstrings and shoulders.
Switching the focus of conversation to a more personal note, Liz
shares more about her husband and the transition he had to make
when they were still dating and she started to lead a more
“competitor lifestyle.” Aside from competing, Liz pursued other
personal and career goals as well. Celeste asks Liz about those
goals and how it felt to accomplish those goals, both personal and
competition related.
Although she had to juggle long distance with her husband while
trying to sell one of their houses, Liz was glad she took on a
promotion at her job at Target Headquarters and Liz shares how she
ended up at her current job being that she received her Masters
Degree in Environmental Management. Wrapping up the episode as
always, Liz shares her best advice for newbie competitors and girls
on their road to pro.
CONNECT WITH LIZ HERE:
https://www.instagram.com/liz.yisrael.ifbbpro/
CONNECT WITH CELESTE HERE:
https://www.instagram.com/celestial_fit/
Episode Time
Stamps:
[1:30] Liz shares her pre stage ritual.
[2:45] Celeste asks Liz what inspired her to join the army.
[3:50] Liz shares what made her sign onto the military for another
3 years after finishing the initial 5 she had agreed to.
[5:40] Celeste asks Liz more about her background in gymnastics and
cheer at West Point.
[7:00] Liz talks about how she manages her time and incorporates
discipline into her daily schedule.
[8:50] Celeste asks Liz if caring for her daughter, Madison, has
made her schedule more difficult or harder to manage with the
structure that Liz likes to maintain.
[10:20] Liz shares why it was so important for her to take time for
herself post-partum and explains her transition back into
training.
[12:40] Celeste asks Liz how she monitored her training and macros
throughout her pregnancy.
[14:15] Liz explains the difference between her off seasons and her
preps.
[15:50] Celeste asks Liz why she decided to drop her sponsors when
she took a break from competing and during her pregnancy.
[17:30] Liz shares her reasons behind taking time away from the
stage after competing in the 2018 Olympia.
[19:00] Celeste asks Liz if she feels that she made any
improvements during her pregnancy and about her 2020 competition
plans.
[23:40] Celeste asks Liz about her different experiences between
competing at the Arnold and competing at the Olympia.
[25:30] Liz talks about how she got started in the world of
competing.
[29:00] Liz explains how she went from overall wins at her first
few competitions to climbing the placings over various national
shows and what finally got her to achieve that pro status.
[32:15] Celeste asks Liz about the process and approach she uses to
get from lifestyle lean to competition lean.
[35:00] Liz discusses if there’s been differences between her preps
pre- and post-baby.
[36:30] Liz shares her favorite exercises for glutes, hamstrings
and shoulders.
[38:50] Celeste asks Liz if her husband had to make adjustments to
his habits or lifestyle when Liz got into competing.
[40:20] Liz talks about other goals and ventures she’s pursued
outside of just her competition goals.
[43:50] Celeste asks Liz how she ended up in her current job after
getting her Master’s in Environmental Management.
[48:20] Liz shares her advice for new competitors and girls on
their road to pro.