Adriana Gee, Elbows, Air Canada and The Olympia

Nothing like being trapped in a window seat surrounded by people that you really don't want to be around. Behind me, a woman seemingly obsessed with seeing how deep she could bury the point of her shoe into the bottom of my seat. Resting in my lap, the person in front of me, reclined back as far as possible, all the while ensuring the futility of working on my laptop. But that wasn't the worst of it.

Riding shotgun beside me, a somewhat disheveled young woman who clearly had too much Vegas and not enough sleep. But even then, how bothersome could she be, fast asleep as she was?

The answer to my question came quickly in the form of a sharp elbow delivered in a manner that would make her the envy of most any NHL power forward patrolling the wing on one of thirty teams. In rapid succession, more elbows came flying my way.

Was she really sleeping, or just carving out some extra space for herself? Fast forward to the final leg of the trip, closing in on Vancouver, and a groggy voice comes from my right: "Can I borrow your pen?" On the heels of that, a sheepish apology acknowledging that perhaps a few elbows might have been thrown my way. From there, we started to converse. In short order and to my surprise, it turned out that my seatmate happened to be a Facebook friend. And no mere mortal Facebook friend either. When not throwing elbows, my seatmate turned out to be none other than Vancouver fitness star Adriana Gee, first-place Arnold amateur winner, Bikini E, at the prestigious 2016 Arnold Classic.

You worked a booth for the Olympia weekend. What's the name of your company and how long have you been with them?

I'm sponsored by the supplement GAT Sport and I've been with them for about two years. Busiest day for you, Friday or Saturday?

I would say Saturday, because Sadik came off of the stage and straight to the booth so people had been waiting for him. As well, Big Ramy, who was also competing that day. But our booth is always super packed because we also have Jon "Bones" Jones, Janet Layug, Rebecca Ferrari, as well as Zac Aynsley, who was visiting Las Vegas for the first time since he's from New Castle, UK. Favorite moments or highlights from your weekend?

Probably when Sadik came to the team and we were all so happy and proud of him since he switched categories this year (from physique to classic physique) and he did phenomenally! We took a team picture and we all were together and surrounding one another.

Our team has a very close bond with one another, so I believe the highlight of the trip was actually just BEING THERE! GAT has many brand ambassadors around their own country, but the fact that they fly me out all the way from Canada for all the large expos really makes me feel special, of value, and just grateful to be a part of such a supportive and loving group of people.

I miss them always since we're so far, but every time we get together, it's like we've never been separated and we start right where we left off. Did you meet any industry celebrities?

Yes I met many fitness celebrities over the weekend! Too many to name and to be honest, I always see them at every Expo, so the novelty of seeing "celebrities" is running thin, whereas now they are just like any everyday person in my field (and I mean that in the utmost respect).

It was pretty cool to see Dwayne Johnson there though! I didn't get to meet him personally, but I know he hit the hearts of many spectators. Favorite thing to do/see in Las Vegas?

Talk to all the people. I'm a people person and I love connecting with our fans and followers at any moment, whether it's at the booth or when you're simply walking through a hotel and someone comments on your physique, which leads to engaging conversations about fitness, nutrition, and overall wellness.

We rise by uplifting others, right, so the times that I get to have personal conversations and give advice really makes my heart warm.

My favourite activity would be to hit the pool parties!!! Olympia weekend is filled with the best physiques in the world, so when you're at a pool party, you see so much hard work and dedication in the form of the human body. Also super cool swimwear and fashion and everyone is letting loose and having a good time! Your best advice to survive Olympia weekend in Vegas?

Take it slooowww. It's a three-day event starting on Thursday, ending Saturday, but people usually stay and enjoy the Sunday since no one is working anymore. If you go too hard on Thursday or Friday, then you're setting yourself up for a short-lived vacation.

I actually go to the gym and try to get an early night's rest (if I can) Thursday and Friday because I can not even fathom the thought of being hungover all day at the booth. I save my partying for Saturday night and Sunday.

And of course, stay hydrated! Remember, you're staying in a desert! When is your next show?
The 2017 Arnold March 2-5. I'm currently going through a building phase and will continue to build until late December/early January and then start my 10-week prep. Where can we see more of you? Instagram Facebook

Also my website - you can go on it and sign up for my free 6 week #MyBestBody Challenge starting this October!

Young Gunz - Kelsey DeCamillis

This is the second in our series of "Young Gunz" features where we shine the spotlight on up and coming competitors. At 31, you might not think of Kelsey DeCamillis as part of the Young Gunz posse, but as she's never competed before, she makes for a great fit. 

What are your stats?

Age 31, height 5-5, current weight around 151 pounds. Stage weight is hard to say! Haven't had a specific goal weight but my guess is in the lower end of the 140's.

What was your weight when you were throwing?

Averaged about 180 pounds and 195 pounds at my heaviest.

Can you give a brief chronology of your athletic history leading up to the present?

As a kid I tried gymnastics/trampoline, and even took a few taekwondo lessons, skied every winter up until about age 11 and also played some softball. Throughout all those years mainly I did a lot of ice skating and figure skated until I transitioned over to hockey. I played from ages 12-17 and my position was defense. 

Throughout high school along with hockey I played volleyball, basketball, field hockey, (I even did one season of cross country running just to stay in shape for my upcoming senior year high school season of track & field), and of course the throwing events in track and field (javelin, discus, shot put). I started with javelin when my PE teacher saw me throw a volleyball across the entire gym and encouraged me to try javelin. 

That progressed into throwing in all three events and I recognized my strongest potential in the shot put for after high school. I then threw shot put for the Vancouver Thunderbirds and the UBC Track and Field Team from 2003-2005. In 2005, I started transitioning over to hammer throw and moved to Kamloops to train there.

Kelsey DeCamillis - Physique Competitor

How and why did you make the transition from throwing to physique?

Competing in physique has meant reclaiming my identity as an athlete. Training gives me the most life. I feel alive when I lift and train.

I moved to Kamloops in 2005 to begin training in the hammer throw under a world renowned coach with a group of other elite throwers. At the time, I was really struggling with some things going on in my personal life, and the circumstances ended what was just the beginning of a very promising throwing career. I barely set foot in a gym for about 2 years after that and I continued to struggle personally. 

Looking back now, although it would have taken some years of training, there is no doubt in my mind that I could have developed into a world class hammer thrower given my body type and gift of brute strength and athletic ability. 

I moved back to Vancouver in 2007 to work and try and figure out my life and spent my entire 20's trying to go back to school to finish my degree, and then after getting rejected from applying to nursing school in 2014 and still just very unhappy, I asked myself if I had it my way, if I could be doing anything right now, what would it be? My answer was that I'd still be throwing and training.

Right then and there I decided to start training full time on my own, learn as much as I can and see how my body responds now and then see about competing in a bodybuilding show. I did as much as I could on my own for two full years before hiring a coach to help take me to the next level and guide me through my first physique competition, and here I am.

How different is training for physique versus training as a thrower?

Physique training is different in that it is less sport-specific and involves targeting every muscle group and using high volume, heavy lifting and techniques to build and sculpt while creating and maintaining balance and symmetry for an aesthetically pleasing look. I love how physique training includes the powerlifts for continuing to build and maintain my foundation of muscle and strength.

Training as a thrower was more sport-specific and incorporated more power movements with lifting and focused more on strength training, not so much isolating and sculpting movements, and with training phases changing as the outdoor competitive season approached each year, and definitely no cardio!! 

There would be a variety of training that included time spent in the weight room, but also lots of technical work in the circle, tempo runs and sprints, Olympic lifting as well as powerlifting, plyos for both upper and lower body, and overall just centered around a lot of power and speed training.

Does your throwing background perhaps make you a bit stronger than most physique competitors?

I’m not sure that I'm necessarily stronger because of throwing, but deciding to carry on with throwing allowed me to discover my strength in the weight room. I think I do possess above average strength and was born with this gift. 

I discovered how strong I was when I started formal track and field training for shot put where we learned all the big lifts, including all the powerlifting movements and the Olympic lifts. The first time I did a 1RM test for the squat, I squatted 265 pounds. That would have been about 6 weeks or less of formal training at the time in the fall of 2003. Throwing certainly helped build my foundation of muscle and strength.

What are some of your best lifts?

I’m not sure what my current 1 rep maxes are for these lifts as I've been doing high volume work with these big lifts:

Conventional deadlifts: 225-245 lbs x 12-15 reps

Sumo deadlifts: 275 lbs x 12-15 reps

Squats: 225 x 10-12 (last time I tried a one rep max was 275 lbs)

Bench: 135 x 10-12 (last time I tried a one rep max was 175 lbs)

My favorite and best lifts are deadlifts because I can move the most weight on these lifts and there is something so satisfying about moving heavy weight.

What's a typical day like for you?

Right now in contest prep, I'm up at 4 am to get to the gym for a 5 am cardio party, then I work 8-4 at UBC, and then head back to the gym after work for another few hours of training and typically home late. On weekends, I'm in the gym twice a day still and in between training sessions is where I find the time to cook and meal prep and take care of other errands etc. The days are long and sometimes 20 hours a day for days in a row, but nothing good comes easy and I'm so excited to see how everything turns out for my first show.

What are your goals as a competitor?

The ultimate goal from this first show is to qualify for BC Provincials, then qualify for nationals, and then see how far I can take this. I believe I found the right coach to help guide me there: Darren Toma – Custombuilt Training.

I always thought I'd be a professional athlete even as a young kid and it was always the sport that I was excelling at the time: first figure skating, then I thought maybe hockey, and then settled nicely into track and field. Of course hammer throw was going to be my best chance at that. However, things did not work out the way I thought and that has always been a huge sore spot in my life. I have unfinished athletic business, so here I am and I'm going for it, full force.

What do you think is the strongest part of your physique?

I love my back. I also think my legs are a very strong part of my physique.

Kelsey DeCamillis - Impressive back!

What inspired you to start competing?

I got back into training full time for the sake of saving myself from myself. Also, that time in my life when track ended abruptly has always been a sore spot in my life and I thought if certain things didn't happen, I probably could have made it pretty far in hammer throw. For me, having unfinished athletic business has inspired me to give myself a second chance at fulfilling a childhood dream of becoming a professional athlete.

It has been a thought to do a bodybuilding show for at least four years now, when my interest was sparked to do so by a co-worker at the time who was prepping for a figure show. That's when I started considering this as something I could excel at now.

What is your profession?

I currently work for Vancouver Coastal Health at UBC Hospital as an administrative secretary for a provincial psychiatric program. I also recently earned my personal training certification as I think a fitness related career is the direction I'm headed. I just love being in the gym; it's my happy place.

What's one thing about you that people would be surprised to know?

I don't own or use a hair brush! But maybe I should…

If you were on American Idol, what would you sing?

I have no idea. I'd probably freak out and just flex.

Your home is burning down. Family and pets have all made it to safety. You have one chance to go back in and save just one item. What do you save?

An opal necklace.

What three words best describe you?

Strong, sensitive, funny.

Where can we see more of you?

Kelsey slideshow on YouTube

Instagram

I'm on Facebook as well. I think everyone will be seeing a lot more of me after this competition.