By: Curtis Schultz

In today's confusion, the confusion between women's bodybuilding, fitness and the new figure divisions one excellent physique has found the unique balance between combining them all. With the stature of a pro figure winner, the prowess of a top fitness pro, and the sharpness of a bodybuilder this young lady has found the niche, the things to come in women's bodybuilding. This "new look" is what women's bodybuilding should become and the direction it should go.

But, that's me, I'm not Wayne Dimilia or Weider. I have a better eye then they do for women with muscle and what should be done with them. But, if I could help them I would tell them too open their eyes and see the potential. It's a new beginning in women's bodybuilding. Who is this? Well, some of you know her as the Fitness Inferno girl, others, like myself just know Lindsay Mulinazzi through her name and her body.

The Interview

[ Q ] Hey, Lindsay, I loved your photos from the Nationals. Wow! You looked awesome, what took you so long to jump over to bodybuilding?

Well, I planned on competing as a fitness competitor in 2000, but I got into a car accident that left me with some injuries that inhibited my ability to perform many of my fitness moves. I could not train at my full potential for several months. I also moved to Atlanta and had to take some time to get settled into my new Personal Training business. In 2002, I decided that I wanted to get back into competing, but I still did not feel like I could perform my fitness routine to it's full potential.

I also went to see Ty Felder, aka: Ropeman, the NPC chairman for Georgia, and he took a look at my physique and said that I have a physique that would do well in bodybuilding. So I trained for the Georgia Coastal and took the middleweight class as well as the Overall. That re-qualified me for the National level competitions.

[ Q ] Yes, you do have and always had a great physique for bodybuilding. And it shows in the pictures.

Thanks, once several photographers found out I had gone back into bodybuilding I started receiving tons of phone calls and emails to do photo shoots. In 2003, I got approached by Denise Masino to do a photo shoot in Las Vegas for Muscle Elegance the same weekend as the USAs.

I have done two other photo shoots for Muscle Elegance, but Denise was really intrigued by my added muscle fullness. They really love my new look and have put me as the centerfold in the April issue. You can find three photos of me in their current issue that will give you a taste of what's to come.

Four weeks out from that photo shoot, Denise called me and expressed to me that she wanted me to be lean and muscular for the shoot. I had not been dieting or doing cardio too much so I realized the pressure was on to get back into contest shape. At that point, I thought, "I should do bodybuilding at the USAs while I am there since I have to be in contest shape for the photo shoot." It was great to have that pressure from Denise; because I really did not know what direction I wanted to go as far as competing, fitness, figure, or bodybuilding.

I did everything I could in that four-week period to be prepared for the USAs. I had to revamp my routine for the prejudging and night show as well as do cardio twice a day and diet like crazy. It was great to have pressure from Denise to get lean; because I really did not know what direction I wanted to go in as far as competing for fitness, figure, or bodybuilding.

[ Q ] Lindsay, I'll pass on the "tasting" part of looking at your pics in Muscle Elegance, I might get hungry and want more. Your look is nice and crisp it's nice Denise told you to harden up. So, what did you do next?

I started dieting for the competition at a weight of 134 pounds. I knew it was going to be a challenge for me to make weight, but I was determined to do it. My weight actually went down to 128 and then up to 136 and back down to 127 the day before I left to go to Las Vegas. I lost about four pounds of water by just laying off the weights for four days. When I arrived in Vegas, I was shredded, but I was five pounds over weight at the first weigh-in.

My body started to retain water due to flying. I usually have water retention the day after I fly for about two days. I had to lose five pounds overnight in order to compete as a lightweight. That night I did not seem to lose any water. About two hours prior to the weigh-ins I was in a panic and went into the dry sauna for about an hour. I was so dry that I was not even sweating. I stayed in there for fifteen minutes at a time. Finally, I had gotten the weight off and rushed to the weigh-ins with my face beat red and my heart racing.

I weighed in right at 118 pounds. Since the moment I started to diet for the show, I had a fear of not making weight. I was so relieved when I did. At that point, I was really flat and had to carb up and add sodium to my muscles. On the cab ride back to the hotel I started eating rice crispy treats and boy did I peak! They tasted so damn good! I knew I had peaked too soon and that it would be hard to sustain it for the next 24 hours. Due to losing that much water so quickly, my body was like a sponge and held on to everything I took in. After I made weight, all I was worried about was my health. I wanted to make sure I would not cramp and or get sick in any way.

I took extra electrolytes and carbs, but saw later that I had smoothed out a bit due to the stress I had caused by dropping the weight so fast. I felt great the next day at prejudging even though I knew I had peaked the day before. I knew I still had a chance to place in the top five. My prejudging and evening show routines helped my placing. When I took second place, I was extremely excited and realized that bodybuilding was definitely where I needed to be to turn pro.

[ Q ] This year's Nationals (2003), was the largest ever with 321 competitors. You did very well, considering this was only your second attempt at bodybuilding. How was the competition in your weight class?

Oh my gosh! Everyone looked so good. I saw many familiar faces and knew that it was going to be a hard competition. I felt confident that I could place well and I wanted to win BAD! I know Michelle Davis, the one who placed first in my class. I trained her for about 6 weeks going into the 2002 Nationals. When I saw that she was there, I knew I had to beat her on size. She gets freaky shredded and I am not quite there. I have way too much estrogen in my body to get that shredded. I like a more round and voluptuous look, therefore, I carbed up like crazy.

I consumed over 700 grams of carbs and about 3 cups of various nuts on Friday. My physique was much larger than the other competitors in my class. I just looked at the tape and noticed that some of the competitors had a few good body parts, but not the total package. Or they had a great physique, but looked too masculine. Well, that is why female bodybuilding started to die. If the fans wanted to look at masculine physiques they would just pay to see the men and not the women. Female bodybuilders need to remember that the people who keep this sport alive are our fans who are predominantly men.

So we need to present a package and perform routines that will get them excited. I want to help bring female bodybuilding to a level where the fans are begging promoters to put on more competitions and events. I love bodybuilding and I don't want to see it ever struggle as a sport. But, right now the prize money at the Pro level barely covers the ladies expenses to compete, so the motivation for these competitors is strictly their love of the sport and for exposure.

The magazines don't give these hard working woman any press because it is not mainstream. Well, who wants to pick up a magazine and see a woman that looks like everyone else? How boring is that? I am told by tons of fitness enthusiasts that they want to see women who inspire them to attain their goals. Women who are muscular, yet still very feminine - a unique look, someone they can't stop looking at. I am sick of these magazines pushing what they want to the public. It is so easy to get a girl to do a photo shoot for the cover of a magazine for pennies - who wouldn't want that press?

But ask someone who works hard for his or her physique to appear in a magazine and they may require more pay because bodybuilders can put a value on the hard work that goes into achieving such a unique look. My point is that female bodybuilding needs more publicity and there are so many people out there that love it. The press needs to use the more feminine women in the sport to make it big-time again. I am asking all of YOU, fans of this sport, please start speaking out more about who and what you want to see in the magazines by emailing, writing, and calling them. If you love female bodybuilding let them know!

[ Q ] Lindsay, I'll let you in on something. This "sport" will never ever be involved in the "mainstream", and the people that run the sport control women's bodybuilding more then you think. I read a real good article by, surprisingly, John Romano of MD and he described perfectly what is needed in women's bodybuilding, and, quite frankly, you are what he was talking about.

It wasn't the muscle on a woman or how much she had or didn't have or if she looked "masculine or feminine" but rather that the women are not being presented the way they need to be to make the money and get the notice. But, you are in the right direction with your routine and new routine combination for the stage.

[ Q ] I overheard that your routine "crushed" every one else's. How different was it from the others? My wife did a bit with the Marines Rifle creed in the beginning of her last competitions routine, which made it very different. Explain what you did in your routine, walk us through it?

In preparation for the Nationals held on November 15th, 2003, I polished my posing skills and changed my final routine. Unfortunately, three weeks out from the competition, I fractured my left foot while practicing an explosive move in my routine. I could not walk or practice my routine until three days out from the competition. Up to the day of the show, I was so stressed out about hitting my routine. All I could do was mental imagery and light movements to practice for two to three weeks.

At the same time, I had to back off of any cardio involving standing or walking. Therefore, I could only ride the bike the last three weeks of my training protocol. This threw off my entire diet and training program. Every day I was hoping my foot would get better, but it actually got worse. By the time I got to Miami, I had to push through the pain to make sure I could land my routine.

I was icing my foot three times a day in between posing and practicing. I had to wrap my foot on stage in order to walk on it and make it through my routine without re-injuring it. When I was on stage during my final's routine, I could not feel a thing. I prayed to god for weeks to help me through it. I had so much adrenaline flowing through me that every move felt easy and painless. I did my routine to Beonce's "Baby Boy."

It was an incredible feeling to know that I landed my routine after barely being able to practice it. I felt very blessed and was extremely excited about my entire performance that day. You ask me to describe my routine, well, let me just say - check out the video - It combined sex appeal with strength and flexibility moves, while showing off my physique. It was HOT-HOT-HOT! Enough said!

[ Q ] We will check it out, and I'm sure it is HOT. How did you do in the final rounds?

I ended up placing second out of 26 competitors and I placed in front of several well-known veterans. I wanted to make huge impact at the Nationals by showing the fans that muscle and femininity do mix. I didn't care where I placed as long as I knew that I impacted female bodybuilding just a bit that day. I truly believe that I pushed female bodybuilding to a new level in the appearance and performance categories.

I feel as though bodybuilders are artists carving away at their physiques, but we are also artists in the way we perform while on stage. I wanted to show everyone that I could make female bodybuilding exciting, feminine, and sexy. I believe I did that, because I had several competitors ask me to choreograph their routines, and I received so much positive feedback from the press, judges, and fans.

[ Q ] You are hopefully stumbling on to something that is desperately needed in female bodybuilding. Can you impact female bodybuilding with what is needed?

It was noted by several writers for the sport that my routine at the Nationals was one of the best they had ever seen. People could not get over how feminine I appeared with the amount of muscle I displayed. My attitude was sexy, and my routine was packed with challenging strength and flexibility moves. It was a shock to many bodybuilding fans that did not know of my fitness background.

[ Q ] Don't mean to be mean but personally it's not how much muscle a woman has that makes her "feminine" you are a babe and that is all it's about. What do you contribute to your new concept in your bodybuilding routine?

I attribute my unique bodybuilding routines to my background in choreographing break dance and hip-hop routines in junior high and high school, as well as the several years of choreographing my fitness routines for competition. I learned some tumbling and gymnastics in my early childhood, but most of my moves are self-taught.

[ Q ] Do you think you can use it as a marketing tool to obtain more guest posings?

Certainly!

[ Q ] I told you long ago the last time we talked you looked better suited for bodybuilding. Do you like bodybuilding over fitness and figure?

Yes, I do. I have always liked choreographing my fitness routines, but now that I am using many of those moves throughout my bodybuilding routines I am enjoying the sport much more. I love to train hard and in fitness I was told to tone down my training. That was so hard for me to do and I just wasn't myself when I did that.

[ Q ] So, what's next for the Italian Fireball?

I plan on doing the USAs and the Nationals again and obtaining pro status in 2004. I am working on a new sexier web site called www.SteelTemptress.com that will be up in early March. I am looking forward to doing more guest appearances and photo shoots this year as well.

[ Q ] Are you going to stay a lightweight or bump up a class, especially with the new weight classes?

I am 140 pounds right now, and I don't think I could get down to the new lightweight division weight, which is 114 pounds. I would never want to be that small now. I am moving up to a middleweight. I will diet down to 124 pounds and be on stage a bit heavier than that.

[ Q ] So, what do you think about the new weight classes? Do you think it will help bring in some more girls?

I am happy about the new classes. I think it will bring back some girls who have competed in the past, but it may also trip some people up who need to add weight or lose weight to fit into a new division.

[ Q ] Thanks a bunch Lindsay for talking with us. Where else can we see some of these great shots of you?

See more photos of Lindsay at www.fitnessinferno.com. Lindsay also does nutrition and training protocols for athletes and fitness enthusiasts worldwide.

PLEASE NOTE: If anyone out there is interested in hiring Lindsay as your personal choreographer, trainer or nutrition consultant email her at fitnessinferno@yahoo.com

More Pics:

Also check out My First Interview With Lindsay Mulinazzi!
Middle photo thanks to Daniel J. Wysocki at www.beautivisual.tk.

About The Author

Curtis is a contributing writer for various health, bodybuilding, and collegiate sports publications. Curtis has a B.S. in Sports Administration and is a Level I USWF Olympic Coach. He is a collegiate strength coach who has worked with many high-level athletes ranging from NFL stars to top-level bodybuilders. Powerlifting State and Regional champion in the 242 and 275 classes.

He is also an AAU and USPF referee. Curtis was a three-year Varsity football letter winner, All-greater Rochester Lineman in high school, and then Junior College and University All-conference lineman. E-mail him at rampages@mindspring.com.

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