That is Monique Minton, cover model of Muscle & Fitness Hers April issue (I think), and all around great person. She is with BSN, and she was teaching me how to pose correctly. We were discussing the fact that many rookie figure competitors do not know how to pose correctly, thus, harder to get good pictures, and Monique did a 'Bodybuilding.com Tip of the Week' video showing how to do the poses. It was a great, and we had a lot of fun.
Here is the press release from the event
The 2009 Bodybuilding.com Fitness Expo - Bigger and Better Than Ever
Boise, ID - April 8, 2009 - Bodybuilding.com, the Internet's most-visited bodybuilding and fitness site and largest retailer of nutritional supplements, held its 8th Annual Bodybuilding.com Fitness Expo April 3rd at the Knitting Factory Concert House in celebration of fitness and health, and in true BFE fashion it was bigger than ever! Free admission, free supplements, and the promise of a night to remember drew in a record crowd for the event. For those who weren't fortunate enough to attend (or were stuck at the end of the never-ending line) here's what you missed:
Mr. USA, Masters Champion, IFBB Pro and Bodybuilding.com-sponsored athlete Bob Cicherillo hosted the event with his usual flare, pulling the hottest stars on stage throughout the evening. Such celebrities included: Kim Lyons (trainer from The Biggest Loser); Mr. Universe Gunter Schlierkamp (seen in Warner Bros. "Beerfest"); UFC Light-Heavyweight Champ Rashad Evans and UFC Welterweight Champ Thiago "Pitbull" Alves; Pro Bodybuilders "X-Man" Toney Freeman, Trey "Phenom" Brewer, Hall of Famer Kevin Levrone and Flex Lewis; 2x Ms. Figure Olympia Jenny Lynn; and many more!
The Bodybuilding.com stage was packed with live entertainment. Pro Bodybuilder Marika Johansson ("The Viking Queen") kicked off the night with a stunning posing routine, putting most of the men in attendance to shame. World champion competitive jump rope team The Summerwind Skippers took the stage next, performing an action-packed jump routine. Pro bodybuilding superstar Flex Lewis showed off his winning posing routine, and handed out a year's worth of supplements to the 115lb, 5'10" winner of the ever-popular Mr. Puniverse competition. To follow up the puniness, there was an Exhibition of Strength performed by champion strongman competitors Corey St. Clair and Grant Higa.
The Miss Bikini BodySpace competition kept the crowd entertained throughout the night, as members of BodySpace (Bodybuilding.com's social network) competed for the title. Bodybuilding.com spokesperson Crystal Matthews and bodybuilder Jerome "Hollywood" Ferguson hosted this inaugural competition, and it was a close race with 12 beautiful, fit contestants. Lacey Gale (BodySpace Name: LiveandLove) took home the 1st place trophy along with a $500 prize; Laura Brooks (BodySpace Name: lcbrooks) won the 2nd place prize of $300; and Katie Horner (BodySpace Name: KatieHorner) took 3rd place, winning $200. All 3 winners received a giant bouquet of long-stem roses from ProFlowers, and all contestants took home Bodybuilding.com gym bags filled with women's supplements and the latest from Bodybuilding.com's women's clothing line.
Bodybuilding.com CEO Ryan DeLuca took advantage of the opportunity to announce the winners of the 2009 Bodybuilding.com Employee 12-Week Transformation Challenge, as well as the Bodybuilding.com Employee of the Year. Ryan Suydam lost 38lbs of body fat, taking home Transformation of the Year and winning an all-expense-paid trip to the 2009 Mr. Olympia in Las Vegas. Ever-humble Human Resources Manager Staci McCulloch won the well-deserved Employee of the Year title, taking home a commemorative trophy and prizes.
This year's most inspirational performance came from Bodybuilding.com athlete and wheelchair bodybuilder Nick Scott. Originally diagnosed as a paraplegic after a tragic car accident in 1998, Scott became depressed and basically gave up on life, letting his weight balloon to 300lbs. Scott then decided to prove his doctors wrong by learning to walk again. He didn't stop there though; he took his rehab to the next level to become the 2009 Heavyweight Wheelchair National Bodybuilding Champion. "Once I started competing I fell in love with the sport. Seeing the other competitors on stage overcoming their disabilities, I don't know...I just wanted to take it to that next level. To do that, I wanted to lead by example," said Scott. He did just that at the BFE, with an amazing posing routine in and out of his wheelchair. Everyone in attendance went home a Nick Scott fan.
Bodybuilding.com knows how to put on a show, and the 2009 BFE was no exception. After putting on an even this great, the only challenge they face now is topping it next year. In response to this, Director of Marketing John Shumate said, "The show may have just ended, but Bodybuilding.com is already looking at new ways to make it even bigger and better in 2010, so stay tuned."
