Chit-chatting with the athletes...

Erin Harte





Harte is an up and coming figure competitor who has three local level shows under her belt. Residing in the Chicago area, Erin works on the management team for a food distribution company and is planning to make her National debut in 2008.





Suzanne Germano





Germano recently made two big moves one was leaving the sunshine of San Diego for the more coat friendly weather of Chicago and the other was converting from being a figure competitor to competing in bodybuilding. Suzanne placed second in the lightweight class at the NPC Junior Nationals show this month and you can learn much more about her at her new place on the web at http://www.fitsuzanne.com/





Connie Evans





Evans is a woman who wears many hats including U. S. Government employee, mother of four, and a National level bodybuilder. Connie, a former Tennessee State champion, recently finished runner up in the lightweight class at the NPC Jr. USA's held in Charleston, SC, back in April, and is gearing up for the NPC Nationals stage this coming November.

What did you fix for your last meal?

Harte- Chicken breast & broccoli
Germano- Oatmeal w/honey, protein shake and 6 egg whites
Evans- My last meal was breakfast, consisting of a bowl of Life cereal, banana, 6 scrambled egg whites, and I had about 8 oz. of water to drink.

How many bodybuilding magazines do you subscribe too?

Harte- 4! Oxygen, Women's Health, Flex, & Muscular Development
Germano- Just one, Muscular Development
Evans- I subscribe to Oxygen Magazine and pick up Muscle & Fitness and Flex every now and then for a little motivation.

What time of day do you weight train?

Harte- Depends on what I have going on that week. Either very early around 4 am or "rush hour" at 6-7 pm. I prefer mornings if I can drag myself out of bed!
Germano- Cardio is 5AM and I usually lift mid-afternoon
Evans- I train from 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. 5 days a week.

What is your favorite type of music?

Harte- Pop
Germano- Mostly rock
Evans- Hip Hop/Top 40.

What show will be your next competition?

Harte- My trainer thinks that Jr USA's will be a good one. My first National show. Yikes!
Germano- I will be at Nationals as a LW :)
Evans- I'm shooting do to the Nationals in Dallas, TX. If all goes well and I can keep my kids healthy between now and then, I will be there.

Spotlighting... Dawn Adams

England is known for many things including Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Manchester United but when it comes to female physique stars that's another story. Thirty year old Dawn Adams is hoping to change that with her charm, gracefulness and beautifulness. Adams who won the overall figure title in her very first show, the UKBFF Southern Competition in Portsmouth, England, back in April of this year is now preparing for the UKBFF UK British Figure Championships on October 14th. Dawn is currently is under the dieting tutelage of super nutritionist Dave Palumbo and invites you to follow her journey toward winning the British championships and ultimately competing in the U. S. as a pro here at her website http://www.dawnlouiseadams.com/component/option,com_frontpage/Itemid,1/



Also check out a thread devoted to Dawn's contest preparation here at http://forums.musculardevelopment.com/showthread.php?t=10564

Spotlighting... Pam Franklin

They say the third time is a charm, Texas's Franklin is hoping that will be case as she prepares for her third appearance at the NPC Masters Nationals this Saturday July 21, in Pittsburgh, PA. Pam is a Registered Massage Therapist and Personal Trainer who began competing in bodybuilding during the late 80's. In 1986, the Houston resident won her very first show competing as a middleweight then competed a few more times before sitting out the 90's in order to start a family with her uber-supportive husband Darrell. She made her comeback in 2001 at the John Sherman Classic where she came in second among the middies. Since then Pam has built herself up to become one of the top heavyweight contenders and has had a second place and a third the last two years at this weekends Masters contest.

Q&A with Rachael McMillan...

McMillan is preparing for a return trip to the North American championships show and hoping to improve on a seventh place finish among the light-heavies in '06. Earlier this year she placed in the top five of the middleweight class at the inaugural Arnold amateur women's show. Rachael is an avid fan of the UCF/MMA along with being a fitness fanatic who enjoys good Carolina Bar-B-Que in her off season.



The Questions...



1. Name an athlete any sport that you would love to spend a day training with?



RM) As far as bodybuilding, I have the best training partner. Can you get any better than Annie Rivieccio? Outside of bodybuilding, I would want to train with UFC Heavyweight champion, Randy "The Natural" Couture, at his gym in Las Vegas. I don't care anything about getting hit in the face, but I love how these MMA fighters train! The intensity and discipline they have is amazing. Basically, I just love the sport and would be honored to spend time with one of the best!



2. What time of the day does your alarm clock go off?



RM) I'm in the newspaper business. My alarm goes off anywhere between 1-4 a.m. 6 is considered sleeping in!



3. What male bodybuilder would you like to do a mixed pairs posing routine with?



RM) There is no male bodybuilder that I would want to pose with. The posing routine is not my favorite thing to do anyway, and having to pose with someone else would make it far too stressful!!! Gunter is my favorite male bodybuilder.



4. Which weekend do you think is better the Arnold or Olympia?



RM) I like the Olympia better. The Arnold is TOO big! And Columbus in the winter is way too cold! It's always fun in Vegas!! What happens in Vegas... stays in Vegas!!!!



5. What age did you start lifting weights?



RM) I started lifting weights in high school. Oh, how I wish I had listened when people told me I should do bodybuilding! I put them down shortly after starting college and didn't pick them up again until 33.

Follow Rachael's progress on www.muscleangels.com

Pics are courtesy of Gene X Hwang

Buff Calendar Girls

Muscular Development, Ford, and Sally Taylor have partnered up for an exciting opportunity for female bodybuilders and their loyal fans. Just check it out!

http://www.buffcalendargirls.com/

Here is a quote borrowed from the MD Women's Bodybuilding forum of where Sally picked up the idea for this first time project.

"The idea for this calendar came to me last year after attending the Olympia. I saw such beautiful and strong bodybuilding women both on stage and off - who were all but ignored in favor of the male bb or figure compeitors. It broke my heart. Seriously! lol Jeff (my guy) and I talked for weeks afterwards about what we could do to help promote the sport. (He loves fbbers as much as I do. He's got an eye for Vickie Nixon. lol ) We were driving home from the gym one day and stopped at Circle K to get gas. I couldn't buy aything good to eat because I was dieting, so looked at the car trader magazines. They had a muscle car mag and the idea hit me. lol Jeff and I talked about it and he liked it, so I started doing the footwork to see if I could make it happen.A few weeks later I contacted MD (Adman - he's the bestest!) and asked if they'd like ot be a part or it, becaue I knew it would be hard to market this thing without their help. Adman was interested, and has done A LOT of work for us to help make this a success. We owe him, and we owe Muscular Development for believing in us. Jeff and I will produce the print calendar, and MD will prouce the digital version. (I also hope to have a desktop version available - working on it now.) I want all the women involved to HAVE FUN. This is OUR project - together. Without all of you, it would not be happening. So, if any of you have additional ideas that would help our team and our sport, let me know. "

http://forums.musculardevelopment.com/forumdisplay.php?f=33