Catching up with Bikini Overall Champion Hunter Stoebe
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Saturday, April 1st, 2017 the Great Falls High School Auditorium transformed into the birthplace of the 1st Annual Mighty Missouri Bodybuilding & Bikini Championships.
For competitors, an opportunity to display their hard work and dedication. For fans, an opportunity to indulge in an evening filled with high energy as they cheer on their friends and family taking on the mainstage. For event staff, months of planning finally coming to fruition to bring central Montana bodybuilding and bikini competitors a platform to showcase their progress. For Great Falls native and Bikini Overall Champion, Hunter Stoebe, the show was much more than a night of flexing muscles. “I was on the fence about competing, until I found out about a local, affordable, fun show that I could dip my toes into the water and get a feel for what this is all about.” Hunter, a CMR High School graduate, now attending the University of Great Falls pursuing an education in nursing, stepped onto the blinding lit stage Saturday morning with months of preparation leading to this moment. Only one year ago, this moment would never have thought to be possible. “If anyone would have told me I would be competing in fitness competitions one year ago, I probably would have laughed in their face.” |
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The turn of 2016 into 2017 calls for lofty New Year Resolutions that we all know can be quite challenging to obtain at times. Not for Hunter. “At the beginning of 2017, I told myself I was going to do one thing this year that scared the hell out of me. I was going to push myself out of my comfort zone and do something I had never considered before. This competition fit all the criteria!”
With fear as her fuel, she decided to do her own contest prep. Workouts and diet were planned week by week, but, didn’t come without a little help from her Mother, Kandi Stoebe, who also competed on April 1st. “Diet was definitely the hardest part, but doing this with my mom made things so much easier.”
Hunter went on to exclaim, “You would be amazed at the amount of egg whites and chicken breasts we went through in a week!”
When asked about preparation roadblocks, Hunter let her why guide her when times were tough. “When it came down to the final weeks before the show, my body was tired and I was ready to be done. It was at these times that I had to go back to square one, remember why I was doing this, and just keep pushing.”
As Hunter and Kandi confidently walked the stage steered by the cheers of the crowd, it was evident the amount of commitment both competitors had to acquire to be there. First to center stage, Hunter, with a bright smile and a few favorite poses for the judges. Next, Kandi, with a smile very similar as the one shined from across the stage.
After a few call out poses from the head judge, an exchange of smiles was shared between the mother and daughter duo.
“I can't even put into words what it meant to have my mom by my side on stage. She is my inspiration and motivation… I admire her tremendously and it was an honor for me to be there next to her. This isn't usually a sport where mom and daughter can compete alongside each other so being able to do that with her even if it was just this one time Is something I will never forget.”
This moment of joy for Hunter, not without a few post show laughs though, “Being onstage was surreal. All I can say is... I wish someone would have given me a heads up on how bad my face was going to shake up there!”
On the inside, nervous. On the outside, confident. So confident in fact, Hunter was awarded Champion of the Women’s Open Bikini B Class as well as crowned the Bikini Overall Champion.
Grateful for her competition winnings, she expressed, “The one thing I loved the most about this show was that every person there was so supportive and encouraging of each other.”
Just as the people behind the scenes are committing to bring the best show experience come next year, Hunter plans on doing the same.
“I plan on bringing a physique that will blow who I was last weekend out of the water. The amazing thing about bodybuilding is that you can always be better, and I am so looking forward to the future and what it has in store for me.”
The only limits in life are the ones we put on ourselves.
For Hunter, Kandi, and the rest of the first class competitors who embraced the stage on April 1st , such limits were broken, bent, and smashed in an evening full of fun and excitement.
With fear as her fuel, she decided to do her own contest prep. Workouts and diet were planned week by week, but, didn’t come without a little help from her Mother, Kandi Stoebe, who also competed on April 1st. “Diet was definitely the hardest part, but doing this with my mom made things so much easier.”
Hunter went on to exclaim, “You would be amazed at the amount of egg whites and chicken breasts we went through in a week!”
When asked about preparation roadblocks, Hunter let her why guide her when times were tough. “When it came down to the final weeks before the show, my body was tired and I was ready to be done. It was at these times that I had to go back to square one, remember why I was doing this, and just keep pushing.”
As Hunter and Kandi confidently walked the stage steered by the cheers of the crowd, it was evident the amount of commitment both competitors had to acquire to be there. First to center stage, Hunter, with a bright smile and a few favorite poses for the judges. Next, Kandi, with a smile very similar as the one shined from across the stage.
After a few call out poses from the head judge, an exchange of smiles was shared between the mother and daughter duo.
“I can't even put into words what it meant to have my mom by my side on stage. She is my inspiration and motivation… I admire her tremendously and it was an honor for me to be there next to her. This isn't usually a sport where mom and daughter can compete alongside each other so being able to do that with her even if it was just this one time Is something I will never forget.”
This moment of joy for Hunter, not without a few post show laughs though, “Being onstage was surreal. All I can say is... I wish someone would have given me a heads up on how bad my face was going to shake up there!”
On the inside, nervous. On the outside, confident. So confident in fact, Hunter was awarded Champion of the Women’s Open Bikini B Class as well as crowned the Bikini Overall Champion.
Grateful for her competition winnings, she expressed, “The one thing I loved the most about this show was that every person there was so supportive and encouraging of each other.”
Just as the people behind the scenes are committing to bring the best show experience come next year, Hunter plans on doing the same.
“I plan on bringing a physique that will blow who I was last weekend out of the water. The amazing thing about bodybuilding is that you can always be better, and I am so looking forward to the future and what it has in store for me.”
The only limits in life are the ones we put on ourselves.
For Hunter, Kandi, and the rest of the first class competitors who embraced the stage on April 1st , such limits were broken, bent, and smashed in an evening full of fun and excitement.
Interview by, Josh Morin