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For those of you who know Hayley Freeman, you'll know she's a
girl with few words preferring to let
her actions do the talking. A fine example was her recent
surprise entrance into the NZIFBB South Island Champs
'11. For almost a year since November 2010 Hayley was in stealth mode. Nobody knew what Hayley was up to. She never said 'Boo' about her contest plans, instead just worked away in the gym with her full tracksuit on and not moaning about her diet. She just got on with the job and revealed a striking figure complete with full delts, lean mid section and cut legs at the Christchurch show. Her body was talking loud and clear and she meant business taking out the Fitness title at that show. |
| Hayley, who works
as Personal Trainer at Les Mills Extreme in Wellington,
displayed her gymnastic skills and strength moves to continue her
winning form and took out the Overall Fitness Title at the NZIFBB
Nationals
In this
update with catch up with the silent assasin Hayley
Freeman and find out what her fitness plans are next year and
beyond. Well as much as she's willing to let on
anyway! |
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Have you always been into fitness and exercise? What kind of activities did you do growing up? Sport, fitness and exercise have always been a huge part of my life. As a kid I was involved in Gymnastics, Swimming, athletics, Ballet, Netball, rugby, under water Hockey. I was that kid who never sat still. Eventually I had to choose a sport to focus on and gymnastics was my true love. I trained 36 hours a week as part of an elite international development squat but was eventually pulled out and put into the national stream training 20 hours a week. After I retired I moved into swimming and focused on that for a few years. |
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How many years have you been
competing? Your achievements?
I first competed in 2007 winning my Regional class then placed 3rd at Nationals. 2008 I competed NZIFBB Novice Physique winning both my regional and National class. I took 2009 and 2010 off to focus on making some changes to my body and decide what class I wanted to focus on. left: Hayley at 08 Nationals. Nice work on your transformation Hayley! |
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You kept yourself covered up in your contest prep and didn't tell anyone your contest plans. What was the reasoning behind that? In what ways did it help you to stay focused? I've never been one to publicise what I'm up to.
I find it easier to keep to myself, do the job that's required and
let my body do the talking on the day.
Why did you compete in Figure rather than just focusing on the Fitness class? Having not
been on stage for three years it was an opportunity to get more
stage time and feel more comfortable with wearing
heels. I started to get my eating structured back in Nov 2010, at the stage I hadn't made the decision to compete. As time went by I was getting in better and better shape and was really enjoying the journey. Watching the Arnold Classic Stream live on the web gave me a bit of inspiration and planted a seed to compete fitness. By 16 weeks out I was under way and there was no looking back.
Doing regular cardio and dieting is hard enough when preparing for figure, how did you manage to find the energy to train for fitness which requires extra strength and dynamic moves as part of your training? Let's just say it's not easy. This is why it was really helpful getting my nutrition right early. My body was able to adapt to functioning off fewer calories whilst requiring more from it whilst training.
My base was
resistance training but from 8-10 weeks out my sessions became more
plyometric based - I tend to just listen to and look at my body and
go with what feels right on the day. 1. Jumping lunges 2. Box jumps 3. Jumping leg press See the
theme -I jump a lot J Mon: Cardio, Legs Tues: Cardio, Chest Wed: Cardio, Routine Thurs: Cardio, Back Fri: Cardio, routine Sat: Cardio, Shoulders Sun: Cardio Routine
In terms of your diet, did you have to have extra calories so that you had energy to train? I wish! No extra Calories, It's the simple equation of calories in vs. calories out. I have the best nutritionist NZ has (Alison Rainbow) and she was able to give me a balanced diet so that my body was getting everything it required. All my Proteins, Carbs and fats were balanced to meet my bodies' needs.
Do you give yourself and treat meals while in precontest diet? What
do you consider a treat? Up until the 16 week point I was having an extra meal on a Sunday -I was allowed to choose anything I wanted and I choose a massive fruit salad. - Fruit is my vice.
What advice would you give novices who would like to give Fitness a go? GIVE IT A GO! Everyone thinks to compete in fitness you need a strong background in gymnastics/dance or cheerleading. They do help but they are not a requirement. Talk to someone at your gym who can point you in the right direction or I am more than happy to help anyone out -my website will be up and running soon. Researching online is also a great place to start - I got heaps of inspiration and idea from there.
Have you had a role model who's inspired you? My Mum. Mum it fitness crazy. In her youth she was a top sprinter and traveled the country competing in athletics. She then had three kids all the while completing numerous ½ and full marathons, competed in triathlons, did a bodybuilding show and now competes in cycling events including the lake taupo challenge. If I can be as fit and healthy as mum when I'm her age I will be a very happy lady
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