Name: Susanna Tirpak
Height/Weight: 160 cm or 5’4 / 64 kg offseason and 55-57 competition weight
Nickname(s): Susie, Zsuzska (that’s in Hungarian), Sue

Q. How long have you been training?
A. I started working out about ten years ago, but in the beginning I did loads of stupid things. I started it, because of my brother (who was already training hard at that time) who told me not to do so much cardio (I did ONLY cardio), but to do some weight-lifting as well.

Q. What was your body like before you started training?
A. When I started working out, I was „struggling with” anorexia. It wasn’t all that serious (unless weighting 33-34 kgs isn’t all that bad!) – I didn’t have any health problems, but I wanted to be harder. As I already know, if you don’t feed your body at all, and you eat basically nothing – then your body starts to „eat itself up” and you are left with a body with no muscles. So you are basically skinny, but your tummy is still not that tight. That’s what happened to me, and therefore I asked my brother to help me…he suggested lifting weights. I was 16 at that time, just about the right time to start.

Q. How do you keep yourself motivated and on-track through the grueling dieting in the last few weeks?
A. For me personally, the first few weeks are the hardest. Because In the first days, weeks, I see little results…if I’m throught this tough period (which is about 6 weeks for me), the changes are obvious, I get more and more attention, people are seeing the changes, I get more compliments – and this is where it’s getting easy. Although by this time my energy level is always lower and lower, so I have less energy – but inside, I’m happy with all of it, and I would never give up. But to answer the question, in the beginning, when it is hard to keep myself motivated, I look at my competition pictures, or pictures of other conpetitors to get me motivated, and I imagine myself as the winner of the next World Championship. I also concentrate on my fitness routine – which requires lots of hard work – I always want to have something new in it; new dance movements, gymnastic elements, acrobatics (backflip, etc.) or strength movements. I’m not a gymnast, so this part is really hard for me. But I enjoy it, especially, when I do well onstage!

Q. Do you get more attention from the people now that you are in such good shape?
A. Yes, obviously. Who doesn’t? A good body – lean and muscular – looks more interesting to an average person, so get lots of compliments even on the street..Of course I also heard once somebody whispering behind my back things like: she’s discusting, or she’s too much, etc. – but I REALLY don’t mind. I love my body like this, and I know that it is usually jealousy that makes people say such things about me.

Q. What is the weirdest piece of advice you have heard in the gym?
A. Let me think…I think it was that I should wear a thick sweater and go into the sauna for about 30 minutes…you know, to burn fat! But the truth is, that you don’t burn fat, all it can do to you, is to make you sweat more and at the same time it can be very dangerous! Anyway, I use sauna even these days, but obviously I’m not wearing any sweathers or pants, or whatsoever..

Q. What is the one key piece of advice you could pass on to our readers?
A. Never listen to anyone who tries to convince you not to train. I f you have any dreams – for example to compete, or to simply gain muscles, etc. – NEVER give up. It is only you who can do it, and who will do it. Noone else is responsible for what you do, for what you look like. Noone will do it for you. Bring the best out of yourself, and you’ll be a winner, because you did everything you could.

Q. What is your favorite energy/pre-workout supplement? Protein supplement?
A. Sometimes I use Mental Focus from SciTech Nutrition, but I usually use caffeine (not in form of tablets!Hint: cofee)

Q. How many days a week do you work out?
A. I work out at least 5 times per week, but when I’m preparing for a contest, sometimes I train even on Saturday, so it is my 6th training. However, I do cardio 6 or even 7 times/week, which means I go to the gym almost every day…Offseason it is different, then I train 4-5 times a week, but I do cardio at least 5 times a week to prevent myself from getting fat..

Q: How many exercises per body part do you typically do in a workout?
A: It depends on the body part. For back and legs it is different, because those are quite big muscle-parts, and need more exercises. For back and legs I do at least 6-8 exercises with 4 sets. For other muscles, like biceps or triceps I usually do about 4 exerscises with also 4 sets each. I consider my shoulders a weaker area, so I do 5-6 exercises to really „get them going”.. I try to train my abs at all workouts (in the end), but I never do loads of exercises, it is usually 2 exercises; one for the upper and one for the lower part of the abdominals.

Q: How much weight will you normally gain during the off-season?
A: I usually try to not gain more than 5 kgs, but it happens…The most I gained was 8 kgs, but because I’m quite short, it doesn’t look that good on me…In the future, I will try to gain 5 kgs at most!

Q. What kind of workout program do you follow?
A. I usually start with my favorite muscle part, shoulders on Monday. Then, on Tuesday I continue with arms (biceps/triceps). After that, I train chest and glutes, then back + one extra exercise for biceps, and on the fifth workout I train legs. I might change the order a bit, but I ALWAYS do the legs at the end of the week, so that my legs have time to recover over the weekend – usually they are quite sore after the workout, and that would make my acrobatic training very painful during the weekdays (that’s why I train legs at the end of the week!)

Q. Do you believe in workout programs like Insanity or P90X?
A. I’m not really sure what these workout programs stand for, but anything like insanity doesn’t sound too good…Workout requires lots of patience, you cannot work out in the gym like an insane wanting results right away. There are some methods to shock the body, these could work, but only for a workout or two to shock the body (but definitely not to use them for a longer perios of time!)

Q. What competitions have you participated in and what were the results?
A. I started competing on the international level in the year 2008. I participated at the NAC Universe contest in fitness category, where I placed 3rd. Then in 2009 I participated at the NAC World Championships, where I placed 2nd! This year I’m preparing for the NAC Universe and WABBA Universe contests. Obviously my goal is to win. I’ll do my best, and see what happens.

Q. What do you wish you had known before you started doing shows?
A. I think that you always learn something new at each and every contest, so I think that it is the routine that I missed before. Even now I know I need to participate in more and more shows to get better, but I’m definitely on it!

Q. Looking back on what you have accomplished so far, what is one thing you would change if you could, knowing what you do now?
A. I would definitely not stop taking gymnastic-lessons back at age 7. I started going to gymnastics, where I started everything at the basics. If you start later in your life, when you are older, it is a lot harder, because you’re not that flexible anymore and you can get injured more easily..and unfortunately, adults have something called fear – which is basically unknown for children – and this is what makes acrobatics so hard for me. If I didn’t stop taking gymnastic lessons at age 7, I would not struggle with it now.

Q. What is one of the biggest sacrifices you’ve made, and was it worth it?
A. I never go to any parties, or spend my money on hairdresser, manicure, fancy clothes, etc. – I rather go to my gymnastics coach, or my routine practice. I also spend my money on myself, just like other women my age, but I spend it on my training. However, I think it is worth it, because I have a goal – and in order to reach that goal I need to do some sacrifices. There’s is nothing that could make me happier, than doing well on a show!

Q. What do you feel is the most important thing a bodybuilder/fitness/figure/bikini can have in order to be successful in this sport?
A. Patience – and to ALWAYS keep yourself motivated. If you loose your motivation, the game is over.

Q. As a new bodybuilder/fitness/figure/bikini competitor, how should one select which organization or event to compete in? And what are the major differences between the numerous organizations out there?
A. This is a tough question. A couple of years ago, organizations like NAC or WABBA were considered to be weaker than the well-known IFBB. Today, this difference is very little, or sometimes even nothing. The categories may differ a bit too, so before deciding at which organization you want to compete at, you should definitely learn more about the categories that are available to see if it is the right one for you or not. Although I currently compete at organizations like NAC (and this year I’m going to try competing at WABBA for the first time) my goal is to compete at IFBB one day. However, the routines at IFBB are even more tough, I will probably compete in figure category at IFBB. But these are just plans for the future, I’ll see what the future will bring. Until now, I’m still at organizations NAC and WABBA. I would suggest to start competing at a national level, and then later go on to a higher level like a World Championship.

Q. Is it not very hard to exercise and lift on such a low calorie diet? I am talking about the pre-contest diet. I know you follow a very low calorie pre-contest diet. Don’t you get hungry?
A. Oh yes, I’m always very hungry. Or even if I’m not hungry, I’m hungry for „normal food” – you know what I’m saying, right? Imagine practicing my fitness routine in such a condition? Sometimes I barely feel the strength to even go to the practice, but once I’m there, I need to kick myself in the butt, to do a back flip! Not to talk about the fear I have during my routine-practice! I’m dizzy and all…it is very, very hard! This is the time to do extra warm-up exercises, because you can get injured so much easier! At the weight training, you need to forget about being strong, because you won’t feel strong at all, you feel like your training was like shit – but in the truth, it was just about the best you could do in such a condition. This is someting you need to learn how to survive – it’s necessary to get that look you need on stage. If you survive, you did it. This is what makes a difference between winners and losers.

Q. For someone who is currently a non-competitor, but wants to be as healthy and fit as possible, what would you recommend as far as diet ratios and workout plan (i.e. combination of weights and cardio, how many days, etc.)?
A. It is very hard to give advice for someone I don’t see in person. First thing I do with a new client, is to sit down and talk. Talk about their condition, health problems, eating habits, etc.
We cannot recommend a very strict diet for someone who doesn’t want to compete – for ex. a diet we athletes do – they need a diet that can be followed easily without huge restrictions and sacrifices. Usually most of my clients need a change in their lifestyle. It is amazing to see, that for most people, even the smallest change comes with HUGE results. Obviously I suggest loads of vegetables, lots of fruits, olive oil instead of any other oils or fats, low-fat food like cottage cheese, chicken or turkey breast, etc. BUT I also suggest a cheat meal, once a week, so they won’t feel like they can never eat these goodies again! Moderation is the key!
When it comes to weight training, it depends really on the goal a person wants to achieve. Depending on the goal, the workout plan can be various. Let’s consider a typical situation. A woman who wants to lose weight, and never trained before. I suggest 3-4 days of weight training/week – usually 3 is enough, especially for a very beginner who has more than just a few kilos to loose. I would have her do basic exercises, to teach her the main movements, to do the exercises correctly, and slowly work up from there.

Q. Does your social life include others that are not into fitness or competition?
A. Yes, obviously. I have friends from the University I go to – and even from High School. And I have friends from the fitness area as well. They are both very important to me, I get something different from each and every one of them.

Q. Who is your favorite bodybuilder, fitness model, and/or athlete?
A. When I started, my favorite was Monica Brant and Timea Majorova. Majorova is half Hungarian half Slovakian and became a successful athlete and fitness model. She is a very good role model for me, she absolved a career I’m only dreaming of for now.

Q. What is your favorite healthy meal?
A. Cottage cheese – with fruits and/or sweetener – but this is a healthy meal that can be a part of my offseason diet only, for I cannot eat any dairy products during contest-preparation. I also love salmon with salad.

Q. What is your favorite cheat meal?
A. I really cannot name all of them…I LOVE cheese (all kinds, types, color, shape, etc!) and I have a sweet tooth – I Just LOVE everything that’s sweet!

Q. What is your favorite exercise?
A. Shoulder press…Or I should say that my favorite workout is shoulder-workout, so I love doing all sorts of shoulder exercises. My second favorite is biceps..

Q. What is that one body part that you just can’t seem to bring up or make it look like you want?
A. Shoulders. My shoulders aren’t that bad, but I want to have them bigger, fuller.

Q. What made you get into Fitness and Competition?
A. First I started working out to get myself even leaner, and harder. I was anorexic when I started lifting weights. It was so bad, that my brother – who was already a beginner-bodybuilder – had to beg me to drink at least a glass of milk after the workout. As I got more into fitness and training, I started to read fitess magazines, I saw pictures and articles of fitness contests and fitness athletes, I read articles about training and diets…and I slowly started to „recover” from anorexia and instead I started eating clean and training harder and harder. I decided to compete too, and after about 2 years of weight training, I found a trainer who helped me with gymnastics. These were the first steps to become a fitness athlete.

Q. What is the best asset of your physique/body?
A. Luckily, I have everything in proportion, which is very important in this sport. Genetics is the key. Someone with not-so-perfect genetics can also be successful, but it is a lot harder to work yourself up from there.

Q. What are your methods for breaking through a plateau?
A. I try to find a new motivation to keep myself motivated. MOTIVATION will get you through even in the toughest times!

Q. Do you like the whole competition process? And how does it feel to be on the stage in the front of the hundreds and thousand people?
A. I LOVE the competition process. I love to be on stage, presenting my routine, or even at the body round. Interesting is, that I’m quite shy in the real life, but once I’m on stage, I open up, and I feel great. Like this is something I always wanted to do. Unfortunately, a World Championship is an all-day-kind-of-thing, and it is very tiring, but it is still worth doing, because the time I spend on stage is something I enjoy very much – those are the moments I’m preparing for for months.

Q. What are your future plans?
A. My future plans are to win the World Championships at NAC and WABBA in fitness category…and perhaps to compete in figure category at IFBB one day…