Lori: Did it surprise you that you won Ms. Olympia? Were you in the best shape of your life?
Valentina: I planned to compete in the light weight category and I was going to win this category. At that time I was disappointed that my weight did not allow me to compete in the light weight. I was not quite sure I would be able to win the heavy weight category, but when I was on stage I did everything possible to achieve it. I was not really surprised when I won, but I was afraid to believe that it had happened.- I think I was in the best shape of my life at Ms. Olympia.
Lori:What has it been like for you to be Ms. Olympia?How has it changed your life?
Valentina: To win Ms./Mr. Olympia is the highest point in the career of every bodybuilder. Because the dream of my life came true, I was very excited and happy. My life became more interesting and filled with events. I appear and will continue to appear at various bodybuilding competitions as a guest poser or just a guest. I also take part in video and photo shootings.
Lori:Where are you living and training now?
Valentina Chepiga: I live and train in the state of Washington in the Seattle area.
Lori: What got you interested in bodybuilding? How long have you been seriously bodybuilding? What did your friends and family think of your serious training and dedication to the sport??
Valentina Chepiga: For me bodybuilding became the only way to achieve good proportion, symmetry and balance of muscles, because no other means which I tried did not help.- I have been seriously involved in bodybuilding for about 13 years. My friends and family support me for 100% and are proud of my achievements.
Lori: What shows did you win prior to winning Ms.Olympia?
Valentina Chepiga: In 1997 I won European and World Championships and joined professional division of IFBB. And as far as my professional competitions, my best result before Ms.Olympia 2000 was 1st place in the middle weight class at Jan Tana Pro Classic.
Lori: How are the gyms in the Ukraine? Are there many gyms there to choose from, and what type of equipment do they have? Did you have a trainer there?
Valentina Chepiga: – Bodybuilding is quite popular in Ukraine and every year there are more and more gyms get opened. There is a big variety as far as equipment and therefore the price of membership. More older gyms have not as good equipment which often is self-made. However, newer gyms have quite modern equipment made in Europe and United States.
Lori: What was your weight in the Ms. Olympia? Tell us about your pre-show diet.?
Valentina Chepiga: – In the Ms. Olympia my weight was 135.5 lb.- In order to achieve the maximum result I have to limit myself as far as some types of foods. Due tothe law metabolism, I use very limited products such as proteins (chicken breast, sometimes fish, eggs), some carbohydrates (rice and baked red potatoes), green vegetables (white cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, green onion, and herbs), selective fruits (grapefruits and pineapples), and for salad dressings I use olive oil and vinegar.
Lori: Are there any training tips that you would like to share with other female bodybuilders to help them in their success in the bodybuilding world??
Valentina Chepiga: – In order to achieve the best shape, every morning I do cardio training at home for 30 minutes and train in the gym five times a week, and every muscle group I work out separately. In the beginning of the week I train the muscles which lag behind and in the end of the week I train the more stronger and favorite muscles. When doing developing exercises, I do 2- 3 exercises of three sets each starting with 10 reps and finishing with 8 reps. And when I do exercises for definition and shaping, I do more exercises depending on the size of a particular muscle. Usually, I do 3 or 4 sets with 12 – 18 reps. When training I try to choose the exercises which would help me to correctwhatever misbalance I have.
Lori: What do you feel is your biggest contribution to the sport of female bodybuilding??
Valentina Chepiga: – I do not know if I have already made my contribution, but I am trying to return female bodybuilding to its initial purpose: to show the public how to achieve beautiful healthy feminine body with the help of exercising and healthy diet. I also would like to increase the popularity of bodybuilding among public.
Lori: What do you see as the future for female bodybuilding??
Valentina Chepiga: – I hope that female bodybuilding will become more feminine, creative and attractive.
Lori: Are you planning to compete in next years Ms Olympia? When is your next competition??
Valentina Chepiga: – Yes, I am going to compete in next years Ms. Olympia as long as I can improve my body. – My next competition is Ms. Olympia 2001.
Lori: Tell us about the major differences between bodybuilding in the United States and Europe.
Valentina Chepiga: – There are no major differences. Since bodybuilding originated out of United States, European bodybuilders are following American trends. But still most of European female bodybuilders do not become professionals because they do not want to have excessive muscle mass. I hope this situation would change if professional bodybuilding will continue to lean toward showing more feminine body.