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Focus on what matters and what you can control.

Ivana Ivusic is a champion professional. What she brings to the stage is the sum of variables that she lets influence her mental and physical health. Here in this brief look in the last couple of weeks before the Chicago pro, she explains how she really honed in on what her body needed to improve.

"I focused on the off season as if it were prep. I never have had such an amazing offseason."

In addition to focusing on nutrition and training, Ivana also was keen on prioritizing what needed her energy and what didn't ie. her gym, team and work when zeroing in on peak week.

"Now that we really focused on the offseason, I am really excited to show you all what we have been working on."

FOCUS! Ivana Ivusic Prepares For The Chicago Pro

Whether you are preparing for competition, expanding your business, finally prioritizing your own health and fitness or returning from an outdoor excursion, we catch up with athletes, friends and ambassadors for a quick update on their gym life and how it compliments the rest of their everyday lives.

We catch up with Branch Warren, Jessie Kinder-Vasquez aka Mrs. PRIDE, Gina Davis, Chris Pantano and Gina Davis.

How's Your Training - Branch Warren, Jessie Kinder Vasquez, Gina Davis, Chris Pantano, Bree'Anna Lucero

Samir Troudi is en route to compete at the Indy Pro and is focusing on what his physical strengths are.

"I would rather come in full and round which are my strengths than coming in looking depleted and like shit."

Samir has always walked to the beat of his own drum. He consistently receives feedback from the judges on what to improve in his physique namely his back and puts in the necessary work to make it happen.

Samir is looking to secure a qualification and travel to Orlando with the team and be on stage at this years Mr. Olympia.

Samir Troudi - Indy Pro

Meet Carina Isaksson - one of Sweden's perhaps most prestigious fitness athletes of all time! Carina talks about distance and balance and how this is the key to sticking to things in the long run - both mentally and physically. And especially when you live the fitness lifestyle.

Carina has been with us since 2002. During these years we have been in Carina's life in various ways with everything from competitions, workshops, work and in her active everyday life, to the fact that she has been with us at fairs and events, photography and athlete activities and more.

Known as a bodyfitness athlete, but started the career in Atletic Fitness and Bodybuilding

Carina has been active all her life and trains to feel good. As a young woman, she was riding horses and found her way to the gym at the age of 18. After six years of training, she made her debut in bodybuilding at the Norrland Championships in 1990.

A win in the -52 kilos class and silver at the Swedish Championships a few weeks later really whetted her appetite. Carina has competed almost every year during her career except for the years her children were born and today Carina can be proud of her track record.

 10 SM Gold, 2 SM Silver, 3 Nordic Gold, 2 EC gold, 2 EM silver, 2 World Cup Gold, 2 VM silver, 1 EM bronze

Routines are crucial to get the life together and to feel good!

Without children, you could spend all your time on yourself, the gym and your goals. But when the first son was born in 1995, Carina realized that it was necessary to adapt. You yourself were no longer the first priority. Routines and habits became extra important to put together the puzzle of life, something that Carina believes in and sticks to. For example, to train before the children woke up and use the lunch break or in the evening when the children had gone to bed to get their cardio done.

For Carina, it has always been important to have her own time, but at the same time that her own investments have not interfered with family life and everyday life - to have distance. Something she is trying to convey to her clients. Even when she is not dieting, routines play an important role in everyday life. To get everything together and above all to feel good!

Competition or not - Life should have room for strict diet and exercise, but also family, friends and enjoying life!

Likewise, when it comes to diet, Carina always make room for the good things in life every weekend - diet or not! She believes everything is about planning both your training and diet, so that you can invest and be serious, manage your diet a week, and at the same time have room for friends, family and, for example, a three-course meal on Saturday. This "distance and balance" mentality is important in Carina's lifestyle and has almost become her mantra.

“If you live in a family, the weekends are perhaps the only time you are really together. In addition, there must be time and space for some fun, even if it’s in moderate amounts."

To have a genuine passion for training to succeed in fitness and bodybuilding

Another thing that is important for success in this sport and industry in the long run is that you must first love to train and then comes the competition, not the other way around where you only train to compete. It is easy to lose all joy for the lifestyle, exercise and everyday life which can result in ending up in imbalance or that you're questioning what you do.

Exercise is a natural part of life, to train to feel good. I have trained all my life and life also becomes easier to handle if you have that lifestyle. When you exercise, endorphins are released which gives a joy and kick mentally. But the body also feels so much better!

"Distance and balance" have been the one that worked in the long run for me and many of my clients. It's about finding your own philosophy that works, this concept with distance and balance to everything in life and routines has worked for me and many clients (the majority of them being career women and mothers of young children) finally get the life puzzle together, get their own time and training done and feel so much better. Whether you are a competitive athlete or a person who just wants to feel good, this thinking works.

Feeling responsible for the new generation and to encourage people to acquire knowledge for themselves

With her solid experience and being active in the industry for more than half her life, Carina is passionate about, and feel a responsibility for the new generation. She believes that, for example, there are many "coaches" who have damaged more than they have helped. And she encourages people to acquire knowledge about everything - not just coaches but themselves and their own body. This way you can always criticize and reason about what is right and wrong. She also stresses the importance of competing for the right reason as well as pointing out the danger of not getting critical and honest feedback in the process to avoid disappointment on stage.

Distance and Balance - Carina Isaksson

Ever since I learned to stand up I've been an active person and I have always wanted to stay active in some form or fashion. When I was 6 years old I got interested in horseback riding. I fell in love with it and I quickly became a dedicated horseback rider who my mother had to drag out of the stable.

How long were you horseback riding and on what level?

Already at 10 years old I was competing, and shortly thereafter all my spare time consisted of riding several horses per day, working in the stable, training other riders, and competing around the country.

I was training, competing and riding all my free time until I was 20 years old when it all just stopped.

I didn't quit because I was injured or due to anything specific that made me quit. I just lost the motivation to keep doing horseback riding on the same level.

How did you become interested in gym training?

When I was 16 years old I stared at an elite athlete high school with focus on horseback riding. We had extra training hours for practicing with the horses, but they were scheduled the middle of the day and I couldn't make it to the stable, take care of the horses, ride, home to shower, and be back within the time we had allocated. Instead I ended up at the schools basement gym among all the big power-lifters and hockey- and soccer guys. It was simply me and all the dudes. I liked it and I got stuck there.

I liked the atmosphere, the masculine and a little tougher attitude, the performance aspects of the training, and the feeling of being strong. And I was always strong, because there weren't many girls to compare myself with down in the cave.

We had this community feeling that is hard to explain if you haven't experienced it. The ones who were older welcomed me and taught me a lot both about weight training and myself. I found a new side of myself that I didn't know existed.

Rumors say you once competed in Bench Press, how was that experience?

The national coach in power-lifting brought me to the district championships in Bench Press. They needed a girl in the "flyweight" class. I was the only girl small enough training at the gym so I didn't have much choice other than to be of good sports and participate.

I had never bench pressed until the day I was asked to participate in the competition and I only had a few weeks to become friends with the bench and prepare. I did it, but I'll never do it again!

It wasn't a bad performance, I think I even got a medal. But that tight suit I had to wear... what was that???!! OMG, I was hiding like the bull Ferdinand when it was my turn.

When they announced my name I ran out to the bench, laid down, pushed the weight up, ran out, threw the suit off and headed home. The coach called the day after, asking where I had gone since I had won a medal. Thanks, but no thanks. Never again.

You live fitness, how did your career start?

My interest for the gym had become a part of me and I continued training in parallel with the horseback riding until I was 20.

At that age I traveled abroad and it was hard to bring the horses. Naturally the focus shifted to the gym.

Back in Sweden again I stared studying at GIH (The Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences). In parallel with that I also added other courses for further education, which are a big reason for being where I am today career wise.

How did you get in contact with Better Bodies?

At the same time as I was studying I started my own company and started working as a Personal Trainer.

I did a ”test diet” on myself to help my clients get in shape the best possible way, and all of a sudden I ended up on the Bodyfitness (now figure) stage at Luciapokalen 2015 where I placed 3rd. .

The same weekend I was voted as one of the finalists in Better Bodies Model Search, which I surprisingly won!

i dare to say that this weekend was the starting point for the rest of my fitness career. The Bodyfitness competition made me long for more since I wanted to improve myself and win. The model search gave me a big model contract with Sweden's most successful clothing brand in the industry, Better Bodies.

How has the journey been from 2005 until today?

After this everything has just spun further. Competitions and photoshoots all over the world have succeeded each other and my own company Forever Fit Sweden has grown in the same pace.

13 years and 17 competitions later (of which 5 gold, 4 silver, 3 bronze, and 2 finalist spots) I can feel that I am done with the stage, heels and bikini for a while.

I've had the opportunity to compete all over the world, been lucky enough to place well at big championships (Worldcup, EM, Excalibur LA, Extravaganza San Antonio, Arnold Classic Amateur Ohio, Olympia Marbella, Oslo GP, Sweden GP, Swedish Championships etc.) and I have always had fun along the way. The happiness, experiences, and memories will always last and enrich my life. There is nothing I would've rather done and nothing I regret.

I got to a point where I felt like I needed a new challenge, a push forward, something that lights the fire within again... and there it was; CrossFit!

As a crazy competitive person who always looks for new challenges, who always strive to win, always wants to improve and try new things, CrossFit was the perfect match. I fell in love with it and got hooked.

There is nothing that'll give me as much adrenaline as CrossFit, nothing that makes me feel so good, and nothing that fills me with as much endorphins as a CrossFit workout.

There are always new things to learn within CrossFit, it is hard and almost impossible to ever say that you know it all. If I am to mention a sport where you're really all around conditioned it would be CrossFit.

You'll need strenght, range of motion, speed, explosivity, endurance, lactic acid tolerance, gymnastic skills, mental strength, balance... the list is long and keeps going.

I am not saying that I've retired from Bodyfitness (Figure) forever, but my heart currently beats for CrossFit and I want to see ho far I can get.

Helene Ahlson - 14 Years with Better Bodies

Surround yourself with people who push you to be better. That is what this team and this community is all about.

 drove up from San Antonio, Texas with his wife and daughter to visit the GASP and Better Bodies headquarters and to see what we are all about.

Andy has a powerlifting background, is an IFBB physique pro and is the head instructor at Orange Theory. He linked up both days with Jon Irizarry for chest and back training and to experience Destination and the huge team environment and atmosphere.

_"I love this vibe here. Y'all are going to make me move here."

Andy gets his nickname from his incredible back development that was built from deadlifts and chins and of course grit and lots of love for physical culture. Andy is also known for his extremely positive energy which makes him a valuable addition to the team and the mission.

"This is what I am all about. Doing collaborations like this as much as I can along with networking and building each other up."

Jon Irizarry and Andy share stories of how they got started in the gym and where it has taken them thus far.

Andy "Backzilla" Perez Visits Our Home Base

Leading up to Olympia 2020 we will release a series of Pro Tips from 

If you have a lagging muscle group or a lift that you're trying to get better at PRIORITIZE IT. Put the muscle group or the exercises at the beginning of your workout.

"I want to improve my lats for bikini competition so I always start my back workout with 2 to 3 sets of bodyweight chin ups. I always aim to hit 13-15 reps and if I happen to come up short in the last set I utilize the assisted pull up machine."

Prioritize Exercises - Jennifer Ronzitti Pro Tip 1

Advice to ladies who have a similar passion for fitness?

From childhood and growing up in a tight knit family in Chicago to

her entry into fitness to where she's been and what she has her sights on now.

We get in depth with the one and only Narmin Assria.

"I grew up in a Muslim household. We were very religious, especially my dad."

Narmin discovered her passion for fitness when she set out to gain weight and a fellow gym goer encouraged her to compete. She had to weigh out the risk of losing her family to compete in bikini given the clash between her family's culture and the nature of bikini competition. 9 pro bikini wins later and her family's acceptance, she is setting her sights on another Bikini Olympia birth here in 2020.

In Depth With Narmin Assria

 at Pro Gym Stockholm. We get to take part in her leg workout where she focuses on "muscle contact" by doing high reps, a lot of squeeze and stretching in the bottom position. She is also using heavy weights to get the most out of her training.

Angelica is a competing fitness athlete and she's been competing in several divisions like Athletic Fitness, Body Fitness (figure) and lately Women's Physique.

"You have to endure pretty rough and brutal diets as a physique athlete."

Why do people choose to put themselves through this? Angelica feels like this is something you do for yourself and something to be proud of at completion.

"You win a lot by fighting battles with yourself."

Angelica haven't competed the past two years and she is currently off-season. However, she's still living the fitness lifestyle, eating nutritious foods, training very hard and focuses on feeling good.

This is a lifestyle I'd like to keep for the rest of my life. I want to be old, strong and look good in 40 or 50 years, and that is my current goal.

Further Angelica wants to be her own motivation in training and she is working towards becoming the best version of herself, which is a goal only she herself can achieve.

What she so far has done, achieved and is able to do now, are results of her hard work with herself and her own training progression and development.

Be Your Own Motivation

Swedish Elin Söderström is 23 years old. She works full time as a police officer but when she's not at work her focus is training and fitness, specifically CrossFit.

Elin discovered CrossFit three years ago from in the beginning she doing it just for fun, it quickly became one of her biggest passions and she is today an active CrossFit competitor.

“CrossFit is one of the most important things in my life.”

All of Elin's spare time is spent at the "box" and her goal is to reach top 10 status among the Swedish female athletes in the sport within the next 5 years.

In contrast to the typical gym "the box" (aka CrossFit gym) doesn't have any mirrors and the Elin explains the feeling to be a little more rough. This removes distraction and it demands a different kind of focus which Elin really enjoys.

“CrossFit is about always doing the best you can with what you have.”

Last year Elin competed in Cyprus, Greece among with other female athletes, some of them on World Champion level, and she came home with a lot of experience that she's using to progress and develop within the sport.

With 5-6 workouts per week Elin is aiming to do more competitions both in Sweden and abroad. A strong passion for something usually also means sacrifices in other areas and Elin's determination to reach her goals transcends into her life in general. She makes sure to always get enough sleep and rest and she is conscious about her food choices.

Elin has a hard headed personality and she wants to look back and know she did everything she could to make it as far as possible within the sport.

Goal: Top 10 Female CrossFit Athlete

Meet Christina Heath, currently preparing for another competitive outing in the bikini division working her way towards professional status in the IFBB.

_"I honestly never thought it was possible to get my pro card. i just surrounded myself with a lot of pros. I think I am so driven because I surround myself with people who are better than me in some way."

Christina has a profession and goals that constantly require her to improve and level up over and over. As she gets better, the motivation to continually improve increases.

"If you want to accomplish anything in life, do it now while you're physically able."

Video: Risk It Now, Bet On Yourself - Christina Heath

Better Bodies ambassador Liliana Sakhanova is 25 years old. When she was 9 Liliana and hr family moved from Kazakstan, Russia to small town Mariestad, Sweden. The past 6 years her family have lived in Gothenburg and Liliana herself made her way to the capital of Sweden, Stockholm. We meet Liliana to get to know her better.

I live in Stockholm together with my boyfriend Gibbe Nakhle. I'm currently studying part time and working as an online personal trainer and posing coach.

I have always been into training and sports since I was a child. My mom got me into ballet when I was little and when we moved to Sweden I continued with figure skating. Unfortunately I developed Chronic Compartment Syndrome in both legs and eventually at 20 I had to get surgery.

I had to stop competing in figure skating when I was around 16 years old and began as a figure skating coach and judge.

When I was 17 I went to the gym for the first time as I wanted to keep up with some kind of training. This is when my fitness journey started. I wanted to know more about fitness and started to educate myself within training and nutrition. A few years later I discovered that you can actually compete in bikini fitness and I saw it as an opportunity since I missed to compete like I used to.

In 2017-2018 i decided to compete and found a coach to help me start my journey.

My biggest achievements so far has been Swedish Nationals where I took first place and an overall win and it was my 3rd competition in the bikini fitness division. Shortly thereafter I was sent to World Championships in Bratislava to represent Sweden where I took 8th place.

Fitness life has taught me a lot. Discipline, dedication, hard work and a lot of joy. Im aware of my body, my nutrition and I love being in the gym and be able to work on myself as a person and as an athlete. I have also met a lot of people through fitness industry and I’m happy to be able to motivate and inspire others.

As mentioned earlier I decided to compete in 2017-2018 and did my first competition 2019. After winning Swedish Nationals I decided that I really wanted to pursue a fitness career and to focus completely on that.

I am currently on a diet and preparing for my first competition of 2020 in Malta (IFBB Diamond Cup) April 9-12. I’m aiming to win my PRO-card this season. Among Malta I have planned to compete at Sweden Grand Prix, Oslo Grand Prix, European Championship in Santa Susanna and maybe 1-2 more competitions.

My plan is to win my PRO-card this spring, compete internationally and also making a good placing at European Championships. If all that goes well I'd like to take an off season in summer and compete again later this fall, hopefully in the PRO-division.

My long term goal is to make it to Joe Weiders Olympia and that means that I must change from Elite-PRO division in IFBB to IFBB Professional League and take it further in the USA. My plan is to be able to qualify to compete at the Olympia within 2-3 years.

I love being with my family back home in Gothenburg, spending time with my boyfriend and hanging out with friends. Unfortunately I’m not able to meet my friends that much during my competition season, but they understand my lifestyle and my fitness goals. I have to mention my cat as well (LOL), she is adorable. My other interests are traveling, finding new amazing places and some good food (when I’m not on diet of course).

Being a part of the Better Bodies family means a lot to me and I’m grateful to be able to work with such a great and welcoming company that genuinely cares about you as an athlete. Their support makes a big difference in my continuous fitness journey/goals I want to accomplish.

For a person who is just starting their fitness journey I'd like to say: don’t give up, it will get hard but it will only make you stronger. Be curious, find a good coach that matches your thinking and genuinely cares about you. Believe in yourself and fall in love with the whole process.

I feel like some people want to compete just because it's ”popular” nowadays and not because they love lifting weights and to evaluate/progress in the gym. For me it's important to feel that you love working out, lifting heavy and making an effort in every session. Find your ”why” and remind yourself every time you're in doubt or want to give up. Don’t listen to someone who is skeptic, just do your thing and enjoy every moment.

My motto in life goes by the saying ”Nothing happens unless we dream first”, dare to dream and work hard for it - every success story starts with a dream! :)