NATURALMAG - Sabrina Collette: IPL Bikini Novice Champion - Natural Bodybuilding Competitions

Sabrina Collette: IPL Bikini Novice Champion

“I feel so proud of myself for accomplishing a goal that’s been on my mind for years.”

BEN YOSEF: Big congratulations to you on the Arizona Championship! You were awesome! How are you feeling about what went down that day? Also, this was you first time ever competing, right?

SABRINA COLLETTE: Thank you so much! It was such an amazing experience. I didn’t realize how incredibly nervous I was going to be up there. -laughs- That day was SO HECTIC, but it all came together perfectly. I feel so proud of myself for accomplishing a goal that’s been on my mind for years. Yes, first time ever competing!

BEN: So cool. You have wanted to compete for a while? What got you interested in competing? Also, as I understand, you had quite a transformation prepping for this contest?

SABRINA: I’ve always been into working out and eating healthy. It all started with doing Taebo videos with my mom in the 90’s. I taught group fitness classes as well about 7-8 years ago, and some of the members were fitness competitors. Since I’d never been able to achieve that level of physique, despite always being active, I thought maybe my body just wasn’t capable. Until I met my coach. She helped me realize the importance of not just eating healthy but also getting in the right macros, and having a training plan rather than working out aimlessly. With her guidance I realized, whoa I can actually do this! I lost about 20 lbs to step on stage.

BEN: Love it. You ended up doing very well for your first show. 1st place in Bikini Novice and 2nd in the Open. Were you surprised at how well you did?

SABRINA: I was intimidated. My coach reassured me and felt confident I would do well. But I still had to hold back tears when the results were announced because all the hard work I put in paid off.

BEN: Aweee, so cool. I think it is safe to say that you had the best put together physique in that Bikini Open class. So much so that we all thought you had it. But Ciara Alejandro shot to the top, primarily due to her high Posing and Presentation scores. You were actually winning heading into Finals. What is your take on this?

SABRINA: I didn’t know we were going to be doing quarter turns until the athletes’ meeting 30 minutes prior to hitting the stage. I also only practiced posing from my right side because I thought we got to choose a side. When it was time to hit the stage I just didn’t know how to pose or transition from my left side facing forward. I met Ciara for the first time backstage and she tried helping me by showing me some posing last minute!

In most of the videos I watched of competitions, each competitor’s individual performance was maybe 30 to 45 seconds, so I was totally unprepared for a t-walk. Needless to say I was completely lost, which is a big part of why I was soooo nervous! I was definitely a little heartbroken there for a few moments, but at the end of the day, my #1 goal with competing was to achieve the best physique of my life, which I definitely accomplished. That took priority over posing. But I now wish I would’ve practiced more.

BEN: Well, you definitely have a great mindset and perspective on all of this. You have mentioned that you are going to compete at APEX in November. I am excited to see you back on that stage and with some of the best IPL athletes from the 2021 season. Any final thoughts?

EVERYTHING CAME TOGETHER PERFECTLY IN THE END THOUGH. I CAN’T THANK YOU ENOUGH FOR ONE OF THE BEST EXPERIENCES OF MY LIFE.

SABRINA: I am just so grateful for the IPL for making this experience so amazing. You were so helpful. Prior to the show I sent numerous emails with long lists of questions and I was nervous you’d all be annoyed by it. –laughs- But each time the response was friendly and above and beyond helpful. The day of felt so hectic. Everything came together perfectly in the end though. I can’t thank you enough for one of the best experiences of my life.

BEN: Aweee, that really warms my heart. We certainly aim to make the IPL experience, exciting and pleasurable for everyone. So I am so happy to hear that you enjoyed it. And I cant wait to see what’s next for you! NMI