Written by Leigh Penman
Regular visitors to Female Muscle and internet surfers will by now be well aware that professional bodybuilder RhondaLee Quaresma was recently arrested and charged with prostitution in Florida. As with all situations of this ilk, rumor and speculation have been rife. So with that in mind I thought I would give RhondaLee the opportunity here on Female Muscle to tell her side of the story.
Now, with a court case pending she obviously can’t go into specifics about the night of her arrest – that will be revealed in a follow up article after the court case has been expedited.
However, for those of you keen to know more about what is going on with RhondaLee at the moment, read on…..
First of all I want to thank you for taking the time to talk to me about this obviously distressing situation…..
“Thank you for giving me an opportunity to speak! And before I start I also just want to say thanks to my supporters who have really stood by me through all this. Their actions have overwhelmed me and their kindness has been greater than I could ever have imagined. So to my friends and family I love you so much and Thank- you!”
Now before we get to the incident itself, can you tell us a little bit about what has been going on in your life since you did the Sex and Muscle radio show? I believe you have been setting up new websites and pursuing a new career in personal training….
“Yes Leigh I certainly have been!? www.RLQZone.com is the first step in my transition and has taken way longer than I expected it to!? You know how it goes.? Inside you get excited about something you KNOW you can and want to do, and then it’s like the universe throws us these rocks in our path to try to trip us or make us jump a bit!? I have yet to decide if they are a joke and Mr. Universe is laughing at us or if it’s to keep us appreciative and humble once we get where we are trying to go! Maybe both…”
So with this new career on the starting blocks one might ask why this whole incident came to pass?
“Again, when the reality of my situation set in, the transition from one career to another cold turkey became unrealistic.? If I was rich perfect, but that is not the case and I was offering sensual appointments only!? That doesn’t mean prostitution!
And re training, I have trained a lot of people in the past, some paid, most did not. So it’s my turn to really establish myself as a trainer…and that is what I have been working on. I am a good trainer and I want to be even better…and that also costs money!? Having to drum up clientele and get the word out as a trainer is where I am placing my energy right now, and that takes time! But this is what I have been working on and this is my dream, and when I start charging my top training dollar people will be getting their money’s worth!
And the other reality of my world is being a female professional bodybuilder is a wonderful earned title that I can forever be proud of, but reaps zero financial reward!”
I believe you were in Florida to work on some of your new internet projects when the incident happened?
“Yes…and how ironic is that, but I am still going to move forward and complete them!? Watch and you will all see where I was going with things!? Anything big and worth having isn’t easy. Add to that the fact that I am a perfectionist…details details…sometimes to a fault possibly! Any day now the first of my projects will be launched: www.rlqzone.com and I am so excited!”
You were held in custody for 13 hours…now that is a lot of time to ‘think’ Can you share some of the thoughts, realizations and perhaps promises you were making to yourself at that time?
“Jail and being arrested was a very humiliating and humbling experience! When I was out I was never so grateful to be free… and a warm bed and shower never felt so good!? I am in no way condoning any crime but I have earned a respect for inmates that live like this!? I promise you now as I promised myself the second I was released; I am NEVER going back to jail! It was awful!”
There are obviously people out there who are going to take a moral stance when it comes to prostitution how would you answer them?
“Well everyone is entitled to their opinion!? And would you believe that I can probably understand where many are coming from!? In defense of my parents and family, I had a very strict upbringing having to go through communion and learn the 10 commandments and sections of the bible etc! And STILL I follow the basic genre of my teachings! Again I say I just get the real world! I have learned and had to adapt!? And you can’t lie to God and he and I know what’s going on.? That’s all that matters! And don’t you doubt for one second that I’m not a believer in a higher power that we have to answer to but I say make love not war! And by the way… I have no room in my life for hypocrisy!”
Do you feel that this whole episode has made you re evaluate your life and the direction you are taking from this moment on?
“Absolutely! It’s time to move on as I was doing anyhow but this has made me see as my wise friend Adam back home in Toronto said …’this a hard wakeup call and it’s the universe telling you ? to stop cold turkey!’ There’s a time for everything and now I must make the new me rise to the top! What’s done is done! I will hold my head high and push forward!? I have lots of knowledge and expertise from my twenty plus years in the bodybuilding and fitness world and I am running with it…I know this is what I am supposed to be doing!
There are some who might suggest that however bad this situation may be it might just be a case of ‘divine intervention’ and by that I mean this time it was a cop but what could have happened in another scenario? What if the client had been a rapist or a serial killer?
Extreme I know but does that make you think?
“Yes a few have said this and another wise friend of mine Lori said everything happens for a reason and that it probably deterred another worse event from happening!”
Any final thoughts you would like to share at this time?
“Yes indeed! To place things into perspective and help you understand….I am a Professional female bodybuilder…I earned this status!? All the pro women are at the same skill level as for example a male pro baseball or football player BUT without the money!! Am I a bit resentful at the powers that are supposed to protect and help their athletes…ahhh yes at times if I let myself think about it too much! Shall I share another perspective with you…I’ll tell you a true story for that one….
“This is my transition from amateur to pro….I win the Canada’s and am handed an elite status… I get to join women I have idolized for years!!? That night after winning I have to reassess my life.? So what is the next step?? As I wait for an answer I quickly realize there really is nobody! NOBODY shakes my hand, NOBODY tells me where to go or who to talk to, there are no advisors or mentors or doctors or teachers or leaders or trainers like in other pro sports….unless you go find them yourself!? And pay for them yourself! And am I discouraged? No I am motivated and excited by my new future!
“I take total responsibility for my choices and actions in my life. And I am not trying to make excuses , but this is how I see it…people can criticize and say what they want and think they know, but they don’t really know anything!? I live my life and bother nobody!? All female bodybuilders, male bodybuilders and fitness and figure competitors are driven to an extreme! No-one else can be an athlete without the mind set we have in order to develop the physiques we do! ? We have a dream and work hard…it costs A LOT to do what we do. So, that being said, am I supposed to be poor or not try to be an accomplished happy person in this lifetime?? Is that ok?
“What I say is…I am not a bad person, I just get life and I am not afraid to roll with it! Most are…I hurt nobody…in fact I only want and try to help.? If I ever hurt anybody, it’s out of tough love! So my hurt will eventually help! So lastly, I think others should join me at stepping up to the plate of responsibility…what do u think?
And re all those in denial or who want to assume and slam me… spell the first three words of assume… as doing so can leave you open to being perceived as such !? And once again THANK YOU for this opportunity to speak …”
N.B. RhondaLee was given a judgment of serving community service and the case against her will most likely be dismissed following compliance.
Leigh Penman
Click HERE for More of RhondaLee Quaresma
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