Athlete of the Month Heather Arena 1) How long have you been training?
I have always been pretty active throughout my life, and getting to the gym to get a workout in has always been a top priority of mine since my early teens. I always feel better after a good workout. Competing is something that I had always dreamed of doing since I was younger and started reading fitness magazines, but I had a lot of self doubt in doing so until this year. Training for a competition is completely different than how my old workouts used to be as far as increasing weight and pushing myself more, a lot more. I trained for my first bikini competition for about 3 months. It takes a lot of self-discipline, drive, sacrifice and determination to succeed in fitness competitions. 2) Age? 26 3) Sports history?
Dance (tap, ballet, jazz) softball, track, kickboxing. 4) What do you like most about training at Model A?
I like the overall atmosphere of the gym. It is big and open, the equipment is in great shape and it's clean! I rarely ever have a problem waiting to get onto a machine and that aspect always helps me get through my workouts efficiently. The staff at Model A is very friendly and helpful. 5) Body/performance changes (weight, BF%, strength gain etc)?
Since changing up my gym routine in the months prior to the competition I have increased my muscle mass and lowered my body fat. I still have areas of improvement and things to work on before the next show. So hopefully over the next year I will continue improving my body, and eventually obtain my pro card! | 
