Bikini Competitor Victoria Michelle Failla

Age: 20

Birth Date: 01/16/86

Birth Place: Newington, CT

Current Residence:
Newington, CT

Height & Weight: 5'4" 110lb

My mom is my greatest
inspiration in life. I frequently find myself following in her footsteps. When I was little she began competing as a bodybuilder. Because she was a stay at home mom, my "daycare" was sitting in our basement gym coloring while she worked out. No one would guess that she has had 2 kids. She is beautiful and in the greatest shape a woman could be in. I admire her will power and dedication to her goals. I would go to her shows and be the little girl standing up yelling "That's my mommy!" When I got older, I would join her in the gym and she would teach me about muscles and nutrition. Eventually I looked into working at a gym, and I got the job at Big Sky. Now I am hooked. I plan on getting my personal training certification from her. Once I decided to compete, she was there for me 110%. There were days when I would come home from school in tears because I just wanted a cheeseburger and fries and my mom would tell me to be strong and picture myself on stage. She is just an amazing woman. Besides competing she decided to go college and graduated as valedictorian of the Physical Education department of Central Connecticut State University. Next month she will graduate with her master's degree. Mom...I love you! xoxo

The May 6 Ms. Bikini America in East Haven will be my first time competing!

Greg Mendoza really got my butt in gear. One day when I was working at the gym I saw a stack of flyers for the Musclemania contest. Since I knew he was competing, I had mentioned to him that I wanted to do it, but I didn't take myself too seriously. Day after day I would talk to him about it. I guess one day he got tired of me talking and not following my goals, so at 5:30 one morning he brought in the registration forms for the Ms. Bikini America contest and said "you're doing it!" That night I filled it out and the next day I was at the gym training my butt off! I haven't stopped since! If it wasn't for him pushing me, I would probably still be talking about it.

Since last May, I have been working out at Big Sky Health Club in Newington, CT. I have never been surrounded by a greater group of people. I am lucky enough to not only workout there, but to work there as well. I can't even describe the atmosphere at Big Sky. I honestly can't get enough. The gym is across for school, so I basically live there! I even sit at the shake bar between classes and do homework! If there is really no way I am making it to the gym for some reason, I have a full gym in my basement as well.

All the supplements at my gym are Apex. I use their Profile 3/4 Balanced Diet Multivitamin everyday immediately following my workout to replenish what my body lost. I also love to put a splash of Bricker Labs Big C Raspberry L-Carnitine in my protein shakes.

After years of saying that I would love to compete, I finally stopped talking and started moving on March 6th! This gave me exactly 2 months until the show. At that point I weighed 120lb with 20% bodyfat. Two weeks later I was 116lb, 16% bf!! About 1 month in I have lowered those statistics even more. I can't believe the transformation that resulted out of those few percents and pounds. Not only that, but my energy has increased, as did my confidence and knowledge about the human body. I barely recognize myself.

My life has improved in all aspects because of fitness. No matter where I am or what I am doing, I always want to be in the gym. A few months ago I dreaded going to the gym. I saw it as a punishment rather than a great time. Now it is my place to de-stress and have some "me time." I only ask for a few hours a day to just work on myself. I think that is the greatest gift you can give yourself.

My fitness goal is just to be better than the day before. As long as I improve and work harder then yesterday, I know I am on my way to success.

At the beginning of my training I was confused on the science behind when and what to eat. One of my great friends and Professional Bodybuilder Luis Santiago made me a great meal plan. The best part is that I get to eat 7 times a day! I don't go more than 3 hours without eating. Breakfast is 5 egg whites, one yolk, ½ cup of oatmeal with all-natural unsalted peanut butter and all-natural fruit preserves with 8oz of 100% fruit juice. Mid-morning I will make a protein shake at the gym. Lunch is usually 4oz. of 99% lean turkey, either brown rice or sweet potato with a small baby spinach salad and a dab of Old Cape Cod all natural honey mustard dressing. Mid-afternoon is another shake, and dinner is similar to lunch. Nightime snacks are a small shake and a plain, unsalted rice cake with light natural jelly. I drink 8 oz of water every hour, and an extra 64 oz during my cardio workouts. I think I told everyone I know that I want a pound of homemade baked mac and cheese to myself the second I get off stage. Anything with cheese is my weakness! After that I want chocolate ice cream with peanut butter!

I workout at least 5 times a week. I do at least ½ hour on the elliptical or arc trainer before my workout. 3 days a week I do a total body workout. I love to work my arms and abs because I see the fastest growth there. I do 3 sets of 15 reps each exercise. I adjust my weights each set to stay within that 13-15 rep range. On cardio days I do at least an hour of cardio. I also love spinning classes! The hour flies by.

Right now I am balancing school with work and workouts. There is rarely a 5 minute gap in my daily schedule that is free. I have been working part time at Big Sky Health Club for a year now. I do a little bit of everything. I work at the front desk, shake bar, and in the kids club. I make shakes, handle and direct phone calls, assist new members in getting to know the club better, and watch our members' children. I think the most important thing I do there is be sure to greet people when they come in. It is not a requirement; I just do it because I love people! When I work it is 5:30am! I know that for people to walk in those doors when we open is a personal choice they are making for their health and enjoyment. I want them to look forward to coming to fulfill their needs when the rest of the world is sleeping. I also know 90% of the "Morning Crew" by first and last name. Getting to know everyone just makes the gym more fun. During the week I get up at 4:30 to leave by 5am. 2 or those days I open the gym and work 7 hours. After this I go to school at Central Connecticut State University, where I am a sophomore. I am an Elementary Education Major with a focus in English and a minor in German. I do the maximum amount of credits (18) each semester, all while maintaining a 3.64 GPA. This semester I have to do 30 hours of elementary classroom observations, and will be applying to the Teaching Professional Program as a student teacher. In between, I do homework. I hit the gym around 8pm every night during the week. Many times I will go between classes for a quick workout. This may sound like a deprived, stressful life for a college student, but I truly fear boredom. I see it like this: You are only young once, so enjoy life to the fullest and do as much as possible. There is plenty of time to sleep when you die!

One major goal in my life is to graduate college with High Honors. So far I am on the right path. Besides teaching I would like to get my personal training and nutritionist certification. My other big dream in life is modeling. I have been getting a portfolio together and am sending pictures to some different places.

When I was a sophomore at Newington High School in 2001, I was captain of the Varsity Coed Cheerleading Squad. Currently I am a blue belt on the CCSU Tang Soo Do Karate Team. I absolutely love snowboarding in the winter and tennis in the summer.

I would like to thank my family and friends for giving me the support I need and instilling in me the desire to overcome obstacles and believe in myself.

Thank you to Greg Mendoza for getting my butt moving. Giving me the registration form is really what I needed. I would like to thank my Big Sky morning crew: Elena, Manny, Pat, Seon. Love you guys! Never a dull moment at 5:30am! Merle - thanks for being a great friend and taking the time to help me. Adam and Hector…thanks for getting me started with the "team effort." Thanks to Craig for the fabulous pictures. And last but not least Luis Santiago…your help, friendship, and inspiration means the world to me. You have made a huge difference in my life. I know I can call you anytime, day or night (and I do :) ) and you are willing to let me pick your brain. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be competing, and I sincerely believe that.

I would have to say that over all the progress I have made with my physique, the thing I am most proud of is my will-power and self control. Because this is my first competition, I have to be extra careful of what I eat. Once I reach my goals, I can just go into maintenance mode. Coming from an Italian family, there is always great-tasting food in the house. I don't completely deprive myself. I know my limits, and if I completely cut myself off from good-tasting foods, I will binge. But in the last month, I have been able to use self control. If someone next to me has mac and cheese, I will take one bite just to taste it. If my mind is fixated on the ice cream in the freezer, I will take a spoonful and end it there. I have come to realize that cravings are not a result of hunger. It is a physiological fixation. If I just satisfy the taste I crave, I will be fine.

There have been two major obstacles that I have had to overcome during my training. The first played a part in inspiring me to compete. I have gluten-sensitivity, which means that I cannot have anything with gluten (a product found in wheat). Living on Italian food, predominately pasta, pizza, and bread for 20 years and then discovering that your favorite foods are the cause of chronic stomach pain is a tough thing to deal with. But it somewhat inspired me to compete. This complete change of lifestyle actually worked to my advantage. Seeing as how I can only eat meats, brown rice products, sweet potatoes, fruits and veggies, I figured, "Why not go the extra step and compete rather then be agitated that I can't eat what I want. I found it a fun way to break through a challenge. My other problem is exercise induced asthma. Running on the treadmill is not an option for me. I have to work extra hard on a different cardio machine. Sometimes I have to stop because I can't breathe or I get dizzy. Luckily, I have found some techniques to deal with it.

One of my favorite things to do is travel. I go to Germany often, and have been to Paris, London, Amsterdam, and Czech Republic. For my honeymoon I am hoping to go to Italy and Greece.

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