Inspirational: Teresa Paschal

[baretta]

I thought this was a prefect story for the O35 forum.

I met Teresa and John a couple of years ago when they started attending our church. I've gotten to know them a little better since I moved my gym membership to the gym they train at.

Below is a picture of Teresa and a story from our local newspaper. I know it's a long post, so if you don't want to read the whole thing, here's the long and the short of it:

Last month, Teresa won women's overall in the IFBB North America Championship and with it, got her pro card.

Teresa turns 50 this year.

For more pics: http://www.musculardevelopment.com/b...=1283&id=17359
---------------------------------------------------




Paschal muscles her way to title

By Lionel Green
The Reporter

Published October 2, 2008

Less than four months away from turning 50, Teresa Nabors Paschal turned pro.

In August, the Albertville resident won the International Federation of Bodybuilding North American Championship in Cleveland, earning her pro card in the process. The week before she won the state competition.

She is the first Alabama woman to win the title and now can compete for money in premier events like Ms. Olympia and Ms. International.

She?s already planning to start her diet the second week in January to prepare for her first pro competition in April.

?It was the hardest thing I?ve ever done,? says Paschal, who?s director of personal training at Power House Gym & Family Fitness Center in Albertville. ?I think it?s because I?m older.?

Paschal turns 50 on Dec. 24 but didn?t really start actively training for bodybuilding until she was 31 because her hometown of Fayette didn?t have a gym. Paschal says she?s always been physically active, though, because of a history of obesity in her family.

?At 12 years old I said I will always be conditioned,? she says. ?So I?ve done what I knew to do to stay in shape and be healthy.?

A chance encounter sparked her interest in competing.

?Our college had a gym, and I was there visiting a couple of friends who were working out and they had a guest speaker,? she recalls. ?He was talking about competition and pulled me out of the audience. He kept using me as an example the whole time he was doing the seminar.

?Then he said at the end of it, ?How long have you been working out?? I said, ?I?ve never lifted a weight in my life.? He said, ?In 12 months, I could have you winning shows.? I?ve never met the guy again, but my friends were like, you need to do this. So I started training at that time and in 13 months I won my first show. I won seven shows that year.?

SUPPORTIVE HUSBAND

She credits her husband of almost six years, John, for inspiring her to compete for her pro card.

But even John admits he was surprised she won the North American title.

?We went just hoping to place in the top 10,? John says. ?I was surprised she won the overall. I think it was because we are very critical of ourselves, and I felt like I was kind of being partial because she was my wife. After looking back at the photos, it didn?t surprise me she beat everybody else. After looking at the photos, she wins hands-down.?

Paschal was stunned because the North American competition included participants from Canada and Mexico, not just the United States.

?After I got over the shock of the whole thing ... I just couldn?t believe I won it,? says Paschal. ?I was going to be really happy with top 10. I knew by the morning prejudging, I was definitely going to be top five.

?As I stood there on stage and they continued to call numbers, I realized I was the first-place heavyweight. I just couldn?t believe that. And then I won overall the whole show. It took me a while just to think, ?I?m an IFBB pro. I?ve won the nationals.??

She couldn?t have done it without John?s support.

?He pushed me through to nationals,? she says. ?I said don?t make me do it, and he said, ?No, I want to see you on a national stage.? It was fine to do Alabama but when you talk about Mexico, Canada and the United States, I just thought I couldn?t compete with them.

?The best thing about the show is we had 50 state people there with us. Just them being in the audience and me knowing they were there helped so much. There were 14 Alabama competitors. It just helped having them there and their families supporting you.?

John is obviously proud of his wife.

?She is probably the most consistently disciplined person that I?m around in this sport,? he says. ?A lot of people slide and say, ?I don?t feel like working out today.? No matter what, she does what she has to do day in and day out. That?s her job. She treats it that way. She only lost 18 pounds before the show, and there are people that have to lose 40 or 50 pounds.?

John says he pushed her so hard because he thought she could compete at the highest level.

?Ever since I?ve known her I felt like she has the capability to turn pro,? he says. ?She has the look. She could?ve turned pro years ago had she had more support. The week before the national show she would?ve backed out if I?d let her. She said, ?I?m ready to start eating? and I said, ?You could start eating but you?re still getting on the stage in Ohio.?

?I?m so glad she did. We?re not just husband and wife. We?re best friends. We are partners in everything. I?m very critical of her physique, which gets on her nerves, but it pays off in the long run. She?s truly an amazing person.?

LIFE AT THE TOP

Now, Paschal has almost reached the pinnacle of bodybuilding.

?Other than just the thought of being on stage and thinking I?m an IFBB pro now after 17 years of training and 17 years of competition, I feel like I?ve reached the ultimate goal in bodybuilding, other than putting my feet on Olympia?s stage,? she says.

?I can remember when I won the junior nationals in 1994 and they interviewed me on ESPN, and he asked me then, ?What is your ultimate goal??

?I said to compete in Olympia some day. He said, ?I guess that?d be the goal of any bodybuilder.? That kind of got me down. I thought, ?I guess that?s an impossible goal.? But now I?m qualified to do that.?

Paschal plans to compete at least twice as a professional. Her first test is the Europa event in Orlando, Fla., in April.

A top three overall finish there could qualify her for Ms. Olympia or Ms. International.

She is already focused on training her body and intends to start her diet in January.

On top of the diet, she did weight training five days a week for an hour to 90 minutes and cardiovascular workouts six days a week for an hour.

?The diet?s the hardest part of the whole thing,? Paschal says. ?I train every day of my life, so that?s no big deal. I?ve never stopped working out in 17 years, but the diet is very tough.

?When your body fat is 5 percent, it hurts to move. You can feel the impact in your muscles when you walk.?

Craig Eagle, of Horton, was key to Paschal?s success in the August competitions by helping her with the diet portion and plans to assist her again in January.

?I thought it was great she won,? says Eagle. ?I always knew she could.?

Eagle says the low-carb/high protein/medium fat diet is tough.

?It is so monotonous,? he says. ?You eat a lot of the same foods because it?s easier to make adjustments. Most people can do it for a week or two, but after 12 weeks it can really start getting to you.

?It?s a completely different world when you?re trying to lose weight to look ripped.?

Eagle says Paschal was committed but she did get discouraged at times.

?I?d give her a pep talk and she?d get right back on track,? says Eagle. ?I asked her how many more times she was going to compete and she said, ?This is it.? I said, ?Then put everything into it.?

?I told her she would turn pro and she doubted me. But she stuck to the game plan and got rewarded for it. I was very proud of her.?

WORTH THE PRICE

In the end, all the sacrifice paid off.

?It would not have been worth it if I had not won it,? says Paschal. ?I said every day for three months, it is not worth putting myself through this. It?s not worth risking my health at my age for this.

?But once I got on stage and won the show, I decided at that moment it was worth it.

?I?ve said so many times I?ll never do this again. I told my clients the whole 13 weeks of this diet, ?Do you hear me? Even if I win the nationals, which will never happen, I will never put myself through this again.? I?d say that once a week to every one of them.?

Paschal is a personal trainer for 19 people at Power House Gym. Most are longtime clients from ages 16 to 72. She doesn?t expect them to go through her regimen unless they want to be competitive bodybuilders. Only four of her clients are training toward that goal.

ROLE MODEL?

Paschal?s feat of winning the North American title on the cusp of 50 is amazing, but she doesn?t consider herself a role model for women her age.

?Honestly, I think it disgusts most women,? she says. ?I know there?s a few women that can appreciate it. But does the general public? No, I don?t think they look up to me for it. More men than women do and I train more men than women.

?The general public does not understand why we do this ... why we want to look this way. It just becomes part of your life. People say you?re at the age ... let that muscle go, don?t work so hard. But it?s built in my brain. It?s what I have to do. I don?t know any other way of life.?

Paschal is a sight to behold with muscles rippling all over her body that would put most men to shame. Some people can?t help but stare when they see Paschal in public.

?I know it?s not something you see on a daily basis, and people think it?s unusual and strange so they stare,? she says. ?Unless they?re rude about it, I don?t mind.

?You get stares everywhere you go. Even in this town as long as I?ve been here. I understand. If I see a bigger bodybuilder, I look at them, but it?s because I appreciate their physique.?

Paschal says her family is proud of her and that?s good enough.

?My daughter admires me and so do my grandchildren,? she says. ?I have a 12-year-old granddaughter and a 9-year-old grandson, and I?m all over their MySpace.?

[mavrick77]

now that my friend is a woman...very hot. I love to see women work hard!!!

[baretta]

yeah... funny... most guys at the gym are scared of her... lol

She's a real sweetheart.

[bamaborn67]

I saw pictures of her at the NPC Alabama championship in B'ham. She is awesome. I think I'll be in a show with her in May, that would be awesome.

[baretta]

I think I'll be in a show with her in May, that would be awesome.

Anywhere close by?

[bamaborn67]

Yea, 1 show in B'ham and 1 in Mobile!

[baretta]

Cool. Keep us posted! I've never been to a show before. Would be great to check out.

I know Teresa will be doing a couple of pro shows this year as well from what I understand.

[bamaborn67]

I am sure she is doing pro shows now since she has her card. But, I hope she comes to her home state shows if only for exhibition.

[Tifflex]

Thanks for posting!