Next year, Winnipegger Amanda Lee will be travelling to B.C. to compete for the championship in one of the World Bodybuilding Fitness Federation’s (WBFF) largest competitions.

The 21-year-old, who is studying at the University of Manitoba to be a registered dietician, currently works out in her spare time five days a week, hoping to achieve her goal of one day becoming a professional fitness model.

“It’s all about getting proper exposure and working with the right people. So I’m on the right track, but I think I still need to keep working hard and working on my image, and keep developing and keep doing more competitions.”

Since starting her training with Contestprep.ca last February, Lee has competed in two WBFF shows across Canada, specifically appearing in the fitness and bikini categories.

According to WBFF’s website, contestants in the fitness category are judged on their sense of style, poise and presence on stage, whereas in the bikini category it is all about body shape and tone.

Training for these shows is hard work; as a result, Lee goes to the gym year-round.

“I work a five-day split. Each day of the week I work a different part of my body,” she explained. “When getting down towards the show you need a lean out. You start dieting about eight weeks out or twelve weeks out, depending on what you have to lose. Then you just have a strict diet to follow – a lot of protein. Coming up to the show ... I manipulate carb load and carb deplete and water load and water deplete. You take dietetics to make yourself look a little bit leaner.”

“ It’s kind of hard. My boyfriend had to get used to it and I don’t drink when I’m training, not that I drink a lot, but the social aspects change, you can’t go out as much.

Amanda Lee, fitness model

Dieting, exercising and training seems to have paid off for Lee.

At the Alberta championships she placed sixth in the bikini category, but the highlight of her young career so far has been the first time she stepped onto the stage.

“The first time I went on stage was kind of nerve-racking. But it’s super fun to go out there and get all ready for it. Everything is just exciting: it’s the cherry on the pie,” she said with a laugh.

Look for Lee’s picture when Inside Fitness’s top 100 hot and fit edition comes out in January.

She hopes that by continuing to compete in WBFF shows that she will keep getting noticed and achieve her goal of becoming a fitness model.

“There is not a lot of understanding,” she explained. “It’s kind of hard. My boyfriend had to get used to it and I don’t drink when I’m training. Not that I drink a lot, but the social aspects change; you can’t go out as much.”