CRAIG PRODUCTIONS LLC

Welcome to my very first post here on craigproductions.com! I was thrilled when Elaine asked me to blog my journey to the Emerald Cup on her site. I love blogging…I find writing very therapeutic and I also love sharing my passion for fitness with others.

So, I guess you probably want to know a little bit about me. I am 34 years old. I’ve recently become a single mother to my 4 beautiful and amazing children. My oldest child is 13 and my youngest are twin girls who are 3 ½. Our “man of the house” is a handsome 6 year old who is midway through his kindergarten year in school. We think he’s lucky to be surrounded by 4 beautiful women every day…haha!

I recently went back to work full time after being a stay-at-home-mom since my twins were born in July of 2006. I was so inspired by people that I’ve met in my competition journey that I chose to become a personal trainer. I can finally say: I am doing what I love and I love what I do! I work with 10 great guys at Elite Fitness Training in Bellevue, WA.

2009 was a HUGE year for me. I did 3 competitions. I filed for divorce and set out as a single mom. I went back to work full time. My boy started kindergarten and my “little girls” started preschool. When I was training for the Emerald Cup last year at this time, my focus was entirely different than it is this year. I was giving my contest prep my complete attention so as to distract me from the unhappiness I was experiencing in my personal life. As a result of the things I learned on my path to the Cup last year, I found the strength within myself to change my life and start down a new road to happiness for me and my children.

As I head into full contest prep mode for the EC this year, it is with a very different perspective. I’m not doing it to distract me from anything or anyone. This time around I want to, again, drive myself as hard as I can, push myself beyond what my perceived limits are and inspire other people to do the same themselves. It is my goal that my journey will speak, especially, to women who are suffering from low self-esteem and are lacking self-confidence. I know that there are so many women like me out there, who are quietly suffering and if my journey speaks to at least one of those women and inspires her to find her inner-strength (what I like to call your “inner Super Hero”) my mission will have been accomplished.

I am looking forward to sharing these next few months with you, with my clients, my family and my friends. Physique competition is not a team sport and can often be thought of as a selfish sport. But I disagree - I think we have a tremendous opportunity to use our passion for this sport to reach out to other people. Think about it…who can you inspire through your hard work, dedication and discipline? Who’s life can you change?

~Julie~

Fearless, with cape in hand.

Tags: