Fawnia Mondey
Pole Dancing Instructor, Fitness Model, Physique Competitor
Fawnia Mondey is a fitness model, professional pole dancing instructor and physique competitor from British Columbia, Canada. Sports and fitness have always been a big part of her life and she has won a number of competitions over the years for her dancing and bodybuilding.
While Fawnia’s pole dancing career shows that fitness can come in many forms, she says that it was bodybuilding and weightlifting that were her first loves. She received 5lb dumbbells for Christmas from her grandmother, becoming instantly drawn to the process of lifting a heavy weight.
As she developed this passion, she dedicated herself to training and competing, winning several amateur tournaments for her well-built physique. She believes that she’s shown the world that pole dancing is a serious sport that works the human body to its limits. This is her story:
Athlete Statistics
| Weight | 115 - 125lbs (52.2 - 56.7kg) |
| Height | 5'4" (162.5cm) |
| Bust | 86 cm |
| Hips | 86 cm |
| Waist | 61 cm |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Profession | Pole Dancing Instructor, Fitness Model, Physique Competitor |
| Era | 1990, 2000, 2010 |
Accomplishments
Competitions
- 2016 Legs Contest at Tao Nightclub – 2nd place
- 2011 Spy on Vegas Hot100 – 1st Place
- 2009 Fitness America – Figure Short – 2nd place
- 2009 Canadian Fitness and Figure Nationals – 3rd place
- 2008 Canadian Fitness and Figure Nationals – 2nd place
- 2007 Canadian Fitness and Figure Nationals – 1st place
- 2006 Best Legs Las Vegas, Rainbow Bar & Grill- 1st place
- 2006 Emerald Cup Figure 5’3″- 5’4″- 5th place
- 2005 BC Championships – Figure Short- 1st place
- NPC Pittsburgh Amateur & Pro Show – up to 5’4”- 1st place
- 2005 Emerald Cup Figure 5’3” – 5’4”- 3rd place
- 2004 Canadian Nationals – Figure Medium- 9th place
- 2003 Sophie’s Swimwear Pageant- 5th place
- 2003 BC Championships Figure – Figure Short- 2nd place
- 1999 Muscle & Fitness Mania Women’s Lightweight Bodybuilding- 1st place
- Miss Nude Internet 1999- 1st place
- 1997 &1999 Miss Hawaiian Topic – British Columbia, Canada- 3rd place
- 1996 &1996 Miss Nude B.C. (Dancing)- 1st place
- 1996 Miss Nude Western Canada (Dancing) – 1st place
- 1995North American Exotic Dance Champion (Dancing) – 1st place
- 1995 Canada’s Rookie of the Year 95/96 (Dancing)- 1st place
- 1995Canada’s Western Champion 95/96 (Dancing) – 1st place
- 1995Canada’s Edmonton Champion 95/96 (Dancing) – 1st place
- 1995 Miss Nude Amateur World 95/96 (Dancing) – 1st place
- 1994place BC Championships Freestyle Wrestling – 1st place
Biography
Early Years
Fawnia was born in the small town of Kamloops in British Columbia, Canada. She was heavily involved in sports as a youngster, running the 800 metres and playing Volleyball in elementary school.
Her first experience of weightlifting came when she was 13 years old. She received two 5lb dumbbells from her grandmother for Christmas and was thrilled. She says she spent the day just “moving them around” any way she could and was instantly “hooked.”
Fawnia didn’t take weight lifting seriously until she was 16 years old. In 1995 she began weight training on a regular basis, reading everything she could about fitness and nutrition and “submersing” herself in the bodybuilding lifestyle. Between the ages of 16 and 18, she says she gained some muscle, but didn’t incorporate a proper bodybuilding diet into her life, so gained some fat due to overeating.
Amateur Competitions
As she made positive changes to her diet through reading books on the topic, she gradually built her first “real weightlifters routine.” As her body improved, her confidence in her own abilities was also boosted.
It was this confidence that inspired Fawnia to pose in her first bodybuilding amateur show in 1999. She says through competing at this show, she found out what she was made of physically and emotionally. She came away with the first place trophy and was very proud of herself.
This victory doubled her confidence – pushing her to compete again. She posed in the 2003 British Columbia figure championships, coming away with a 2nd place position which booked her a spot an the Canadian Nationals in 2004. At this show she didn’t make the top spot, but says she was very impressed with her own performance and “delighted” to be invited.
Pole Dancing
In order to stay in excellent condition, Fawnia worked as a professional pole dancer. She particularly enjoyed the sporting element of the dance, and became an authority on the movements involved – producing the world’s first instructional video on how to pole dance competitively. This video, and others, built Fawnia’s reputation across the pole dancing world and she decided she could do more.
With the proceeds from her videos, she founded ‘Pole Fitness Studio’ in Las Vegas, USA. Through this venue, Fawnia taught classes to other women and men who wanted to learn how to dance. She treated the classes like cardio workouts, seeing pole dancing as central to her own fitness progress.
Fawnia’s Fitness Modelling Career
Around this time, she also decided that she had what it took to become a fitness model. She started this career move by simply calling a modelling scout in a popular weightlifting magazine. The scout replied with interest and she had now found her new passion.
She started a basic portfolio which quickly grew. She appeared on several popular magazine covers, but wasn’t getting the kind of shoots she wanted, so she applied to compete in a high-profile Malibu swimwear competition. She won this competition and began to be photographed professionally, appearing on big-budget magazine covers with bodybuilders such as Mike Platz.
Being recognized for her hard work was extremely inspiring for Fawnia. She took this newly found confidence with her, focusing on the three areas that had made her so popular; pole dancing, bodybuilding and modelling.
Training
Favorite Exercises
As Fawnia works in modelling, pole dancing and bodybuilding, she has an intense workout routine which focuses on strength training and cardio. Her favorite exercises for each area of the body are below:
Strength Training Exercises:
- Legs: Smith machine squats, lunges, leg press, light leg extension, hack squat, seated and standing calf raises and donkey calf raises.
- Back: chin-ups, lat pull down, cable rows, one arm dumbbell rows, reverse grip pull downs, and bent over row.
- Chest: Incline dumbbell presses, seated machine press, and free motion cable flies.
- Shoulders: Seated machine press, dumbbell press, dumbbell and cable flies, up right row.
- Biceps: Barbell curls (straight and ez curl), dumbbell curls, and cable curls.
- Triceps: Push downs, bar and cable skull crushers, dips, and overhead press.
- Abdominals: Reverse crunches off a bench.
Cardio Exercises
- Interval training on the treadmill by walking at a high incline and jogging with a 2.0 incline.
- Skipping
- StairMaster 7000
- Pole Dancing
Additional Training
- 6 hours of pole fitness a week (teaching and personal)
Routine
On all of these exercises, Fawnia will do 4 – 5 sets with a rep range of 12 – 15. Her weekly routine is below:
Monday – Legs And Abs
- 10 min light cardio warm-up
- Legs: Light leg extension, leg press, Smith machine squats, walking lunges.
- Abdominals: Reverse crunches off a bench, regular and side crunches on a ball or mat.
Tuesday – Chest And Triceps
- 5 min cardio warm-up
- Chest: Incline dumbbell presses, seated machine press, and free motion cable flies.
- Triceps: Push downs, skull crushers, dips.
Wednesday – Back and Biceps
- 5 min cardio warm-up
- Back: Lat pull down, cable rows, bent over row, and reverse grip pull downs.
- Biceps: Barbell curls (straight and ez curl), dumbbell curls, and cable curls.
Thursday – Hamstrings And Calves
- 10 min cardio warm-up, Hamstrings & Calves
- Hamstrings: Seated and lying leg curls, and stiff legged deadlifts.
- Calves: Seated and standing calf raises, donkey calf raises.
Friday – Shoulders And Abs
- 5 min cardio warm-up, Shoulders Abs, 30 min cardio
- Shoulders: Seated machine press, dumbbell press, dumbbell flies, and rear delt flies.
- Abdominals: Reverse crunches off a bench, regular and side crunches on a ball or matt.
Saturday – Cardio
- 20-30 minutes of light cardio
- Cardio: Walking outside.
Sunday – Cardio And Calves
- 45 min
- Cardio: Interval training on the treadmill: walking at a high incline 10.0, and jogging with a 2.0 incline.
- Calves: Seated and standing calf raises, donkey calf raises
Nutrition
Macros
Fawnia says to her fans that it takes “21 days” to transform your old eating habits into new ones. Fawnia is very particular about what she eats, making sure that she hits her macro-nutrient needs on a daily basis.
For her carbohydrates, Fawnia includes Oatmeal, Sweet Potatoes, Yams and Brown or Wild Rice. She loves these healthy options and makes sure all her food is high quality and nutritious. Her protein comes from Chicken, Salmon, Tuna, Halibut, Orange Roughy, Snapper, and Tilapia.
In terms of fats, and other essentials like vegetables, Fawnia eats specific local produce. For her vegetable choices, she eats Green Beans, Broccoli, Edamame, Spinach, and Asparagus. In terms of healthy fats, she eats eggs, nuts and avocados.
Cooking In Advance
Fawnia focuses on cooking all her meals in advance of her training sessions. She does this so she can focus all of her attention on the workout at hand. Importantly, she sees that doing this also prevents her from making a detour into a fast food establishment.
She makes sure that these meals are spaced every 2.5 to 3 hours apart. She likes to keep her meals in the low glycemic index, including snacks such as raisins, peas, corns, carrots and white potatoes. The night before a big training session, she also likes to cook a large amount of chicken in the oven so that she can spread this across a number of meals.
Competition Diet
When Fawnia prepares for a competition or photoshoot, she leaves the complex carbs out and “feasts” on large chicken or fish salads. She includes fibrous carbohydrates and a vinaigrette made from balsamic vinegar, flax oil, lemon juice, and a sprinkle of Splenda.
What we can learn from Fawnia Mondey
Fawnia’s story shows how non-traditional sports or physical activities can be extremely useful in a bodybuilding career. Fawnia chose pole dancing as her profession, using the cardiovascular workout this provided to add to her weight lifting routine.
A lesson to take away from this, is that your fitness journey doesn’t have to be based solely in the gym. Experiment with your cardio options and enjoy the experience.
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