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Spotlight On: Gillian Kovack
Category you compete in: Bodybuilding
Date of birth: 19th June 1979
Hometown: Living in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada but was born near Toronto and was raised there as a child before living in both the US (Maryland) and Australia as I moved through school and University.
Career: My current career ambition is just now being realized as I apply for IFBB Pro status after winning the NA’s this past weekend! Though at home I work in supplement store to pay the bills. I enjoyed working as a personal trainer for the first few years I competed at a provincial level but I decided to step away from that career for awhile and put my focus on my training when I commited to turning pro. Sometimes you CAN spend too much time in the gym.
In 2005 I moved back to Canada from Australia for a job with the government as a research geologist after many years of specialized study. But not long after I began my career I made a huge change!
What made you begin dedicating your lifestyle to this sport? I was working away in the above-mentioned Rock Dr. career when I finally joined a gym and hired a trainer to learn how to use it effectively. My motivation at this point was fairly typical – weight loss and boredom. I was living in a new city and didn’t know many people. The gym quickly became a passion that consumed my entire day! I started “cheating” on my job with what I wanted to be my new job by signing up for courses online and having a go at planning my own workouts and training splits, though at that stage I still didn’t really know what I was doing and ALWAYS planned way too much for myself. In the first 6 months I dabbled in everything to do with the gym - taking group classes and boot camp in addition to the weights and cardio program set out by my trainer. Finally at the end of that year I was well under the spell of weight training after I completed introductory personal training, group exercise and nutritional courses. Two of those instructors are still very much a part of my life and each also had a role in my decision to compete in my first bodybuilding show. I quit my job as a geologist after barely 6 months and began working as a trainer in the gym with little hesitation and no regrets.
When I began working at the gym in Jan 2006, my then-boss and trainer began to teach me about bodybuilding-specific training as he helped me prep for my first show. One thing we both learned quickly was the need for a nutritional coach to completely change how I looked at food in addition to the nuts and bolts of the contest diet itself. By the middle of that year I had a new career, was in the best shape of my life so far and about to step onstage for the first time as a lightweight at the Alberta summer bodybuilding shows (a regional qualifier and the provincial show). I placed in the middle of the field but couldn’t be happier, into my first “offseason” (complete with new vocabulary) before I even had my tan off.
“Lift heavy” and “get big” were now my dominant thoughts, (periodically interrupted by “eat doughnuts”) and I rarely wanted to leave the gym for long. I continued to compete and work as a trainer for 4 years before I commited to taking things up a notch and finally doing the Canadian Nationals last year. I placed 4th out of 12 in the toughest class of athletes I had ever stood next to, and I was thrilled with the result! I had seen my glutes for the first time! LOL
Just knowing this was what I wanted to do my best friend and I hopped on a plane for Vegas a few weeks later to check out the Olympia and really see what the bodybuilding world was like outside of my own city/region of Canada. There is a pretty big community of competitive and recreational bodybuilders in Edmonton and the few people I knew quickly introduced me to many new friends! That trip, though entirely social, was a turning point for me in terms of motivation and belief in myself that I could take my bodybuilding to the pro level and put all of my focus onto achieving that goal. I made changes to my training for sure and a bit to my diet, but the biggest change was my mental game and strove to think like an athlete all the time. Visulaizing is an important and extremely useful tool for me and I incorporate it in all aspects of my training. It’s part of my prep that is the most pleasureable because you can make it whatever you want it to be!
What approach do you take to dieting...carb cycle..keto? My trainer and I take a carb cycling approach to dieting. I find it very effective and I mentally I enjoy the regular changes.
What do you think is the biggest misconception people have about competing? How much time it really takes out of your day and how much forward planning you really need to do, even for something simple like going to the movies… you always need to be prepared. A lot of people expect us to be moody all the time just because of hunger or cravings, and I find myself getting insulted by that when I am dieting. It’s usually a lot more going on for an athlete than just being hungry or craving a chocolate bar, c’mon now people!
If you could change into a superhero for a day who would you be and why? A shape-shifter like Mystique, it would give you the most amount of options and abilities to try new things. Though, you could change the world in 1 day with that kind of power – a resposibility I wouldn’t want to have!
What is your most embarassing childhood memory? Oh nothing much more than having an unrequited crush found out or messing up a speech. I regularly like to laugh about my embarassing moments to my friends so not much stands out.
What is the biggest lesson you have learned about YOURSELF during your contest prep? I have Obsessive-Complulsive tendencies! I have a crazy-huge spreadsheet (and a number of sub-spreadsheets) dedicated to my training and prep that I am constantly changing and updating and changing back and color-coding… It’s my stress-relief.
Who do you look up to and admire and why? My role models are always changing. I have had Pro FBBs that I have admired in the past for their incredible physiques and obvious dedication to acheieve their dreams on the pro stage. The very first in that group would have been Nicole Ball (still is, she is awesome and about to step on the Olympia stage for the 4th time). From Alberta as well, she turned pro the year I started competing and I wanted that combination of muscularity and femininity she possessed. Now having watched so many more shows I have added many women to that group! I also have role models a lot closer to me in my life – friends and family members that do incredible things, or ordinary things with great passion.
Competition history: 2006-2009 I competed in the Alberta Provincial Bodybuilding Championships, placing top 5 but never winning my weight class. During this time I increased by stage weight from 111 lbs to ~140lbs. In 2010 I competed at the Canadian Nationals and placed 4th as a relatively small heavyweight (136 lbs) before stacking on the muscle to compete this year at my biggest and best at 155lbs! Now I want to achieve a harder more mature look to my physique before I make my pro-debut but there wont be any down time for me. Those changes are going to begin right away!
Next competition: It is my intention to make my pro debut as soon as possible. Shows I am interested in doing and applying for are the Arnold Classic, the Toronto Pro and Tampa Pro. But these plans I will discuss in detail with my coach when I get home and determine the best plan for me.
Favorite Motivational Quote: I enjoy reading quotes and videos that others post and DO find them motivating for moments of training or when in need of a good kick in the pants. But my favorites and most effective quotes are the short simple ones I make up leading to each show – “first callout, centre stage” was given to me by last years Canadian champ and I must have said it in my head 1000s of times during training and cardio. I even changed my passwords to reflect my goals, typing them out several times a day and I just believed it.
Who would you like to thank? My coach Raejha Douziech and her husband Wayne. They are like extended family in Edmonton (mine are all in Ontario and abroad) and dear friends (as well as my being my trainer and boss respectively). It’s been a winning combination and I look forward to continuing the journey. The entire Alberta Bodybuilding Association and community. The congratulations I received from eveyone in town was touching and overwhelming! I’ll be the first to admit that the arctic winters make Edmonton one of my least favorite places to live but it is a GREAT place to become a bodybuilder. The amount of IFBB Pros that little city cranks out is quite remarkable and how lucky we all are to have such a wealth of knowledge and experience there.
Lastly my family. I went home for a visit this year during my prep. I hadn’t seen any of my family in person for over 3 years (just because it was too expensive to fly home). Although not knowing much about the sport and finding my decision to make it a career confusing, each and every one of them made a point to support me. They came to the Toronto Pro expo to see what it was all about and were so excited and happy for me when I won last weekend. I realize not everyone gets that unconditional support and especially in hindsight I am really grateful I got to share a bit of what I do with them.
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