I.S.C.A. ( Aboriginal Sports ) Athlete Player of the Month for July, 2011.

Chelsea Breanne Yellowbird
24 yrs old
Hometown: Hobbema, Alberta

Employed with: Only Women's Fitness for past 3 yrs
Second year Kinesiology Student at Red Deer College

Her next competition is July 23 weekend in Saskatchewan for the Canada in Nationals.

I grew up playing sports. I was fortunate to have parents that put us in any and every sport we wanted to and play all year round. As I got older I began to narrow down my options and play at a more competitive level. My sport of choice was Ringette. I played for 13 years before having to stop due to a knee injury.

I Had stopped playing all contact sports because of the high risk of re-injuring my knee. It was in the summer of 2010 when I was introduced to 'Fitness Competeing' by my close friend and trainer Brienne Whitehead. This was it, I had found a sport where there was no contact, I was able to train, and still compete as an individual. I registerd for my first competition which was the 'Muscle Beach Fall Classic' took place October 16,2010 in Edmonton and surprisenly, after only 8 weeks of hard training, I placed 1st in my class 'Bikini Fitness Model Tall'. Placing first qualified me to go straight to competing at a National level. So since then I have been training to represent Alberta for Nationals held by the Canadian Body Building Federation, which are this coming July 23/11 in Saskatoon.

My goal is to become the “First Aboriginal Female International Fitness Bikini Pro” .

I am in the gym training 5-6 days a week. Anywhere from 1 1/2 hours - 2 hours a day. I spend more time lifting weights, trying to build muscle than I do doing cardio.In the bikini category the women want to try and look fit and feminine. A nice muscle tone, nice skin complexion, with an energetic stage presence. I'm also on a very clean meal plan that slightly changes every 2-4 weeks. My diet consists of, from most to least, Egg whites, White fish, Chicken, Sirlion, Green Vegetables, Yams, Spinach, Brown Rice, Natural Nuts, and Tons of Water!!! I eat 6 meals a day, the same thing every day and roughly around the same time every day. Exciting eh?? And when I'm not in the gym I still try to stay very active outdoors.

Preparing for a show like this is not all about being physically prepared but being mentally prepared prepared as well. It is very important that you are getting enough rest, giving your body and mind time to recover in between workouts so you'll have the energy and motivation to stay forcused. If I ever feel too tried, I listen to my body and I will take that extra day off.

It's also important to keep yourself surrounded by positive people, I am so lucky to have such amazing and supportive family and friends by my side through this journey. This experience is not an easy one but is one of the most rewarding experiences I've ever had. To be able to have full control of yourself, see change and not give into temptation is an accomplishment in itself.