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IFBB Pro Cea Anna Kerr Interview With CBB
Age: 39
Height: 5’ 4”
Occupation: Purchaser for SaskPower
Hometown: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Currently residing: Estevan, Saskatchewan
Have you always been an active person - did you play sports in your youth?
I wasn’t involved in sports when I was younger until I started cycling at the age of 16.
What made you get into bodybuilding/figure/fitness competitions?
I started weight training at the age of 19 and continued cycling for my cardio. My first body building show I attended was in 1990 & I liked what I saw. I loved the way the women looked with muscle. I found women with muscle to be attractive looking.
Having been a bodybuilder/figure competitor for many years, what advice can you give to a young competitor just getting into the sport?
My advice to someone just getting into the sport is to learn about the importance of nutrition. Get on a good eating program & be consistent with it. You have to learn to be patient as it takes time to build a physique. It doesn’t happen overnight or even in a few months. One of the biggest mistakes I see in the gym is people lifting way too heavy & not concentrating on proper form & technique. Building a physique is not always about lifting heavy weights that you cannot control. Another thing would be to set small goals for yourself & work to achieve them.
Since you and Chad are both into the fitness, bodybuilding and competing lifestyle, do you find it difficult to balance the training, competing, dieting and still have time to give to the relationship?
Actually yes at times it can be very difficult. With this lifestyle of competing & holding down a full time job it definitely has its moments. We are both so busy during the week with work & then getting all your training in a long with everything that needs to be done in the household (dishes, cooking, laundry, etc.) it can be hard to balance time for our relationship. We enjoy our weekends or a night off from the gym where we can relax & spend some quiet time together. It helps that we both compete & understand the world of competing & how busy life is to balance in this sport. To have each other know exactly the emotions & exhaustion that goes a long with dieting. We are each others support system & you really need that in this sport.
Do you conflict with Chad when it comes to training and dieting techniques?
Yes, I train for figure & have my coach & Chad trains for bodybuilding with his coach. I have learned since being a pro to switch up my training & targeting specific areas that I need to work on. As for the diet our diets are totally different. Men & women’s bodies are so different.
How has the sport impacted your life?
The sport definitely impacts your life no matter what because of the strict diet & training. Especially for competitions, it is hard to be really social when you are working full time & training every night. When the weekend comes a long you are so exhausted from the busy week you just don’t want to go out & socialize. I find it hard closer to a show to want to go out where everyone is eating good food. The smells of food can get to me. My job is good in that I get my breaks through out the day so I can eat my food. The biggest impact of this sport is on your wallet. We all know how expensive it is for a competition. So when you don’t have any sponsors you have to save up for your shows & plan it out so that you can afford to compete. I treat it like my hobby & I do it because I love to do it. It is hard to get exposure living in a small town in Saskatchewan. Our jobs are what keep us here for now. I use my vacation time at work for competitions.
Who do you look up to in the industry and who has helped you along the way?
There are so many I have looked up to in the whole 21 years I have been into this sport. Rachel McLish, Cory Everson, Lenda Murray, Monica Brandt & Gina Aliotti just to name a few. There are so many of my competitors that I compete with that I look up to. I have also met a lot of encouraging & supportive people such as Dan Ray who does amazing photography & CJ who makes my suits. Also my coach Kim Oddo & my make up ladies Elaine Goodlad & J Zubire. As well as positive feed back from judges & constructive criticism is what keeps me going to be better every time I step on stage. Most of all is the support from my husband Chad. He keeps me in line with my diet & training & pushes me to be better! I am also very lucky to have so many wonderful friends in my life that support me 100% with competing in this sport!
Favourite foods for dieting? For cheating?
My favourite foods while dieting is chicken (dipped in mustard –LOL!) cucumbers & peppers. My favourite foods for cheating are EVERYTHING! I love burgers & fries, blizzards, cheesecake & chocolate just to name a few.
Are there any sports supplements that you cannot live without?
The supplements I can’t live without are glutamine & BCAA’s.
Are you sponsored by a company? If so, who?
No, I have no sponsorship at this time. I would love to have some type of sponsorship someday. I feel I would be very valuable with all my years of knowledge in the industry & now being a IFBB pro for 4 years.
Having competed in both the US and Canada, how was your experience in both countries. If there was a noticeable difference, what was it?
Having competed in both the USA & Canada I would say there is a huge difference. People look up to you as a pro in the USA a lot more than they do in Canada. It has been a great experience competing as a pro in the USA & being looked up to by so many of the NPC amateurs as well as the promoters, judges, photographers & the fans. Not having competed in Canada yet as an IFBB pro, I am really looking forward to the Toronto pro show. It sounds like it is going to be a fantastic show.
How do you find the US audience and judges treat a Canadian competitor?
Everywhere I compete in the USA, everyone loves Canadians. It makes you feel proud to be a pro representing Canada. It doesn’t matter what country competitors are from they love Canadians & are very friendly towards us.
What is a typical day for you when prepping for a show?
A typical day for me in prepping for a show is I get up at 5:15 am to do my first session of cardio. Then I shower, eat breakfast & off to work at 7:30am. Back home from work at 4:30pm then I do any errands like picking up groceries etc., then it’s cooking & prepping meals for the next day. I eat supper at 6:00pm then off to the gym at 7:00 to do weights & second round of cardio. I usually get home at 9:00pm have a shower & spend time with Chad & our 5 pets (our kids). I go to bed at 11:00pm & then the day starts all over again.
How do you balance your training - how is the training regimen split up for a figure competitor?
Over the past year my training has changed a lot since working with Kim. He changes my training week to week depending on how I am looking & transforming. I don’t train like a bodybuilder anymore like I used to. At the pro level it is all about tweaking your physique to make it very symmetrical. I have learnt so much about posing as well. Learning how to hide your weak points & showing your strengths while on stage. I don’t have any set days where I train a body part. Some weeks I do more weight training than others. This varies from show to show.
What do you find the most difficult about this sport?
The thing I find the most difficult about this sport is the judging. It can vary from show to show. Figure is so inconsistent with the judging where as in bodybuilding it is very cut & dry. There are so many figure competitors from around the world. It is so hard to get noticed. The time & money you put into competing & not even getting looked at can be frustrating.
When will we next see you on stage?
I will be competing at the Toronto Supershow on June 17 & 18th & possibly the Phoenix show in August. I just competed in the Orlando Europa Show of Champions on April 29 & 30th. The Toronto show will be my 6th pro show.
For a complete competition history, please view the Cea Anna Kerr Profile
