Holly Stefanski This is Me

Education

 Web References

1. 1. Janet Frank Atkinson - Fitness Competitors Polish Their Physiques

   www.jfatkinson.com/fit_comp.ht - [Cached]

   Published on: 7/18/2001   Last Visited: 4/21/2006

   Determination and refusal to accept defeat provide the motivation for fitness competitors Leyla Raffuel of Oakdale and Holly Stefanski of Imperial.
   
   Raffuel and Stefanski's fitness focus is on the new figure division contests sponsored by the National Physique Committee.
   
   Raffuel, 27, and Stefanski, 22, recently competed in their first competition -- the 2001 NPC Pittsburgh Body Building, Fitness and Figure Championships. There was more than winning at stake -- just pride in making it on stage for the contest was an accomplishment in itself.
   
   Raffuel and Stefanski kicked their training to maximum levels, sometimes training twice a day, incorporating sweat-drenched cardio workouts and gut-wrenching weight-lifting sessions to achieve the physique desired for the contest.
   
   "I don't know if I can make it," said an exhausted Raffuel during an intense workout prior to the May competition. But she did make it, and immediately began training for the NPC Masters Nationals being held this weekend at Sheraton Station Square Hotel Pittsburgh.
   
   Stefanski will not be competing this weekend. She is training with a goal of competing in a figure championship in September.
   
   "They wanted you to look feminine, but when you got there, most of the girls were ripped and shredded," she said, referring to the muscled physique of competitors. "Now I know what they are looking for."
   
   So, Stefanski said she's training differently, trying to build more muscle to further enchance her 5-foot, 2-inch frame. "I felt like a little peanut compared to the other girls," Stefanski said.
   ...
   During the final 12 weeks leading up to the contest, Raffuel and Stefanski adhered to a diet consisting of high protein and vegetables and cut out sugary drinks and processed foods.
   ...
   The discipline Raffuel and Stefanski have learned has a positive effect on other aspects of the women's lives. Stefanski, a management information systems student at Robert Morris College, finished the year on the dean's list, while Raffuel completed her bachelor's degree in health sciences with a 4.0 grade point average from Duquesne University.
   
   Raffuel is now pursuing her master's in speech and language pathology at Duquesne.
   
   Raffuel will take a month off from training before she prepares to compete in the West Virginia/Mid Atlantic Grand Prix Figure Championship in December.