Flex UK - June 2017

FLEXONLINE.COM 41

BY JOHN PLUMMER

FLEX: Why did you get into

bodybuilding?

Chelsea Dyson: When I

decided to step away from

dancing, I started at the gym.

For the irst six months, I didn’t

really know what I was doing. I

then met my partner, Sukhi,

and he taught me everything I

now know. I’ve always been

active and competitive and

never settle for less than the

best.

How has dance influenced

your training?

It taught me discipline

and built the foundations to

the mental and physical

strength I now have. Ballet

also had a big impact on my

lower body shape: it made me

quad dominant so I now focus

on a lot of hamstring and glute

work and adapt certain

exercises to take the focus

away from my quads. For

instance, I opt for a wide

stance when squatting and

avoid any quad isolation work.

Give a brief overview of

your contest career so far.

I did my irst competition in

2014 with no expectations

besides pushing myself to be

in the best shape of my life.

Never did I think that, three

years later, I’d be in prep for

the IFBB European

Championships. In that time,

I’ve done 11 shows and won 11

trophies and I don’t plan to

stop anytime soon.

What do you do

in a typical week?

Sukhi guides me through

ofseason and prep. During

the 8 to 12 weeks of contest

prep, I train purely for

aesthetics so I do mostly

hypertrophy training, as I

ind this works best for me.

My split is:

Day 1 Shoulders and abs

Day 2 Legs

Day 3 Back

Day 4 Arms and abs

Day 5 Hamstring and glutes

Day 6 Cardio and abs

Day 7 Rest

How does this vary for the

rest of the year?

During ofseason I tend to

train according to how I feel. I

enjoy strength training, so I

increase the weights and

lower my rep range then

I change back to a six-day

hypertrophy split, which

shocks my body and

keeps things interesting.

I’m a lot more relaxed

during this time.

Why do you train abs so

frequently?

When I started weight training,

I had a lower back injury.

Strengthening my core has

helped my recovery a lot. I

have a naturally slim waist and

think part of the overall

package of a bikini athlete

includes having a toned

stomach. I don’t believe that

training abs makes the waist

thicker but I don’t spend hours

training them either. Ten

minutes at the end of every

other session is the perfect

balance for me.

What do you do for cardio?

Cardio increases and

decreases depending on how

I progress over the weeks

during prep. A low cardio

week would usually consist of

three to four 10-20 minute

LISS sessions after training

on the stepper or Stairmaster.

A high cardio week would

increase to around ive

sessions of mainly HIIT sprints

outside or on the treadmill.

What changes

would you like to make

to your physique?

I want to improve my

overall shape by gaining

slightly more muscle while

staying balanced. My main

focus in my current prep

is to improve my shoulders

and glutes.

Who is your

favourite bikini competitor

and why?

Janet Layug. From day one,

I admired her image onstage

and of. When it comes to

training motivation, I watch

old Olympia videos and loved

Dexter Jackson’s Olympia

prep series.

What are your plans

for 2017?

I’m no longer a junior, so I am

now focusing on competing

in the open class. I’ll be

competing at the IFBB

Europeans in May then the

Arnold Classic Europe,

British Championships and

World Championships at the

end of the year. In between

all that, I’ll be taking some

downtime and visiting the

United States.

Will you ever change

classes?

For me the bikini class is

where I belong. I love my

shape how it is and will

continue to improve for the

stage. I think my body shape

best suits bikini.

CHELSEA DYSON

AGEAGE 23 23

BarnsleyBarnsley

LIVESLIVES Barnsley Barnsley

HEIGHTHEIGHTHEIGHT 165 cm / 5 ft 5 165 cm / 5 ft 5 165 cm / 5 ft 5

WEIGHTWEIGHTWEIGHT 56 kg / 123 lbs 56 kg / 123 lbs 56 kg / 123 lbs

CAREER HIGHLIGHTCAREER HIGHLIGHT

2016 British Junior Bikini Fitness 2016 British Junior Bikini Fitness

Champion. Champion.

AMBITIONAMBITION To be the To be the

youngest British IFBB bikini pro.youngest British IFBB bikini pro.

TRAINING ADVICETRAINING ADVICE

Train with a purpose and enjoy Train with a purpose and enjoy

the journey.the journey.

SPONSORSSPONSORS

Pro Supps and Sparkle BikiniPro Supps and Sparkle Bikini

SOCIAL MEDIASOCIAL MEDIA

Instagram@chelseadfit Instagram@chelseadfit

Facebook: @chelseadfitFacebook: @chelseadfit

CHRISTOPHER BAILEY