Interview with Georgia Simmons (UKBFF Bikini competitor and female bodybuilder)
Georgia Simmons vital statistics
- Height: 5 foot 7 inches
- DOB: 15/05/1987
- Current weight: 60kg
Who is Georgia Simmons?
Georgia Simmons is a law graduate currently working as a Business Analyst in London as well as competing in Bikini Class competitions at a national level in the UK. As well as being employed in the finance industry and spending most of her spare time at Monster Gym, Georgia is also studying for the advanced level III diploma in Nutrition and GP Referrals to improve her knowledge of what it takes to get to the top of the fitness industry. Having previously gained a scholarship from the British Army in 2003, Georgia dreamed of becoming an officer in the Medical Corp before an unfortunate injury curtailed her plans in 2006. However now she is back fighting fit and competing throughout the year with the likes of Melissa Haywood, Emma Blocksage, Lauren Ashwell and Sarah McLean.
Having already competed in four contests during 2012 (WABBA Selector, UKBFF BodyPower, UKBFF MuscleTalk and UKBFF National Championships), Georgia has just been announced as a Gaspari Nutrition Sponsored Athlete. Congratulations!
Georgia, you recently participated in the tall class (over 163cm) at the UKBFF British National Championships. Congratulations on your 2nd place! Firstly, how do you feel now that has sunk in?
Coming 2nd at the UKBFF National Championships was the most amazing experience. When it came to the top 2 it was just me and Melissa (Haywood) left and I realised at that point that no matter what happened I was going to be top 2 in the country! It was an amazing feeling, especially after all the hard work I had put in. It's validation that your hours in the gym, missed meals out and healthy lifestyle and diet have paid off!
After the initial high has worn off though I'm back to normal and it's all about improving and making new gains.
Please can you give our readers an idea of how your training went in preparation for the show? Did you do anything different to what you would normally do?
I don't really do anything different in terms of my training in preparation, the only difference is that because my diet is slightly more restrictive and my carbohydrate is usually slightly lower I lose a bit of strength and my energy levels aren't quite as high which can be a bit frustrating!
Some people do a lot more cardio before a show but it really depends on your body type. I was trying to come in fuller for this show so didn't want to lose too much weight.
What is your training programme like throughout the year? How does it differ over time?
It's really hard to give an answer to a question that looks as long term as a year for training, it really differs dramatically depending on what I'm trying to achieve and how my body is responding to different diet plans and exercise routines. I vary between high weight and low reps for strength and size and then high reps lower weight for toning and sculpting.
How often do you train? Which body parts do you love to train and which do you hate? Why?
I train every day and I don't schedule in a "rest day" as such, I just rotate different muscle groups to ensure that I don't over-train an area and I always vary my routines and training. I also change between free-weights and machines as well as pilates and classes. It's important to keep your body guessing.
I don't hate training any body part, I absolutely love fitness and the gym and I look forward to my workout all day. If I'm really tired though I will have a rest day as it's very important to listen to your body because fatigue equals a risk of injury!
I think it's really important that people attack exercise with a positive attitude. If you think "I hate this" you won't put in positive effort and you won't enjoy it. My favourite body part to train though is legs! I absolutely LOVE them! I wish I could train them every day!
Yes, I know that you focused really hard on your leg development over the last month. How satisfied are you with the progress being made?
I think it's fair to say that I'm really happy with my leg progress. I love training them and have developed some really great quad sweeps. My glutes and hamstrings are also coming along although I'd like to see more glute development and I need to work on my calves a tiny bit. I've had to reduce weight now though as I was moving towards squatting 100kg on a free squat and the size of my legs was getting out of proportion with my shoulders and waist so I've had to reduce the weights.
Now moving onto diet, please can you give us an idea of a typical day in the life of Georgia Simmons? How many meals you eat, what you like to prepare?
To be honest I'm quite a lazy dieter as I don't prepare anything!
I'm really lucky that I work right next to a Tesco Express so I pop in there every day and buy my 150g portions of green vegetables and chicken and then cook everything in the microwave at work. I've also got a very understanding local restaurant who make me 2 boiled eggs and salmon for breakfast every morning. Generally I eat every 2-3 hours and no carbs after 5pm.
I know you're a big fan of the smartphone app MyFitnessPal. Can you tell us a bit about how that is helping with your training?
I've actually stopped using MyFitnessPal as much now as once you have a diet plan in place you don't really need to use it. What I have found though is that it's really excellent if you're off-season or eating random meals out and you want to know what the food breakdown is. Its also excellent for recording workouts and exercises. I would definitely recommend it for people who are trying to lose weight and control their calorie intake as it makes you very aware of what you're consuming.
Which supplements do you take and which are your favourite brands?
I supplement with BCAA amino-acids, glutamine, l-arginine, cod liver oil, vitamin-c, multi-vitamins and a whey protein. My favourite brand are Gaspari and I use their amino-acids for my glutamine and BCAA's as well as using their MyoFusion protein. The one piece of advice I would give is that research and understand why you are supplementing and what is in your supplements, don't just take something because you recognise the name or because your mate is taking it. You need to know why you are putting something into your body.
Why do you take these supplements and why do you use these brands? Also are there any brands you're thinking of trying in the future?
I take these because BCAA's and glutamine are some of the essential amino-acids used in tissue production so it helps with recovery and muscle growth. Protein supplementation does the same thing as amino-acids are the micro-nutrients that make up protein. Using whey allows me to get in additional calories though. I use Gaspari because they are a great quality brand and I love the flavours. Once you find something that works for you I think it's best to stick with them.
You manage a bikini clothing business for women called Gym Bunny. Please can you tell us a bit about that?
Yup, Gymbunny is a brand that I've just kicked off. It's 2 fold providing off-the-shelf competition bikinis for girls and then a more mainstream range of bikinis for leisure. It's a fun brand and we've have just registered our trademark and logo so it's early days but we've definitely got some good stuff coming out this year. The motivation behind it was getting bikinis that are affordable out to girls thinking of competing who didn't want to spend hundreds of pounds and also to get practice posing bikinis out.
You're renowned on Facebook and Twitter for providing some excellent advice around nutrition and motivational quotes. Are there any favourites you would like to share with us? What inspires you to train?
Ah thanks for saying that I give good advice, it's always nice to hear from people that you're doing well! I think my favourite quotes always come from cutandjacked, they are always brilliant. My favourite quote is: Do not reward yourself with food, you are not a dog! That was a quote from POTW (Physique of the Week). It made me laugh because so many people reward themselves for a few days dieting with naughty food. Don't do it people!
And lastly, what are your future plans over the next few months and longer term into 2019?
For the rest of 2012 I've got some big things happening but can't tell you yet so you will have to watch this space.
For 2019 I've got new design for Gymbunny.com and my own webpage and blog is taking shape very nicely. I also have a couple of exciting fitness shoots booked for early 2019 and then the UKBFF nationals. After that I'm focusing on the October UKBFF British Championship so I'll be busy preparing and competing again. I can't wait!
It's really important to always have goals so that you don't lose focus as motivation is one of the easiest things to lose!