Tiffany Amber Tillinger
WBFF Professional Bikini Diva - March 2011
Interviewed by: Mike Hall
Tiffany Amber Tillinger is a WBFF Professional Bikini Diva. Not only did she turn Pro last year in the World Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation (WBFF), now she is a NASM Certified Personal Trainer. In addition, she is a professional hair and makeup artist, so she can now fulfill her goals by helping and assisting others achieve their own goals with some backstage prep. She is a very diverse person in all aspects of life and loves being in the spotlight, as well as, being behind the scenes in fitness competitions “glamorizing” and “spice-ifying” (as she puts it) the competitors, so they, too, can have their time to shine.
Tiffany is from Plainfield, Connecticut. Plainfield is an extremely rural or country set town, to say the least. There are cow farms every two miles and they do not have their own Wal-Mart, Wholefoods, or Home Depot yet. She can remember when she was younger, after school, playing on her grandparents’ farm. She would make mud pies outside with all the dirt, leaves, and bugs she could find. And during school vacations and summers, her grandmother on her father’s side would bring her into Long Island and take her clothes shopping, to the exclusive salons for new haircuts and manicures, and out to fancy high-end restaurants.
Whether it be competing as a Pro, training clients, prepping competitors hair and makeup, fitness modeling, prepping models for shoots, eating at high-end restaurants, or making mud pies on farms, she feels lucky enough to have experienced it all, and that’s why she enjoy doing it all in, or out, of the lime light.
"...The key factors that dictate the way I train today is the fact that I am a Professional in the WBFF Federation and in this industry. In order to "look" the part, I have to live, eat, train, breath, and have passion for it, too. It is a lifestyle. It is my lifestyle. One at which I hold sky-high on a pedestal and can proudly say I love my life and the way I live it. I train six days a week and put my heart and soul into every workout I perform."
WP: Welcome Tiffany! It’s great to be interviewing you today. Could you tell us a little about yourself, Tiffany?
Thank you. I was born February 26th, 1985. My favorite number is 26. I love chocolate chip cookies baked just enough to where the dough is still gooey in the middle and crispy on the outside rim. My favorite color is royal blue. I have two beautiful Persian Himalayan daughters named, Meeka Catalina Sapphire and Mya Amore’. I own a beautiful home with my boyfriend (hopefully that “title” will change soon enough); the love of my life. I am 4 foot 11 and3/4 inches tall. Broccoli is my favorite veggie. I enjoy blasting music at its highest volume in the car and singing out loud at the top of my lungs. I am super close to my Grandma, Maddy, who lives in Long Island. I buy seven Sugar Free French Vanilla Coffeemate creamers a week. Ha-ha! Yeah, that’s a lot! I could just go on and on for hours and hours. But, being well-disciplined and dedicated to my own personal and professional goals are huge characteristics of myself that help my ability to have that quality I am blessed to have.
WP: What has been your stepping stone to get where you are today?
My absolute first stepping stone that has gotten me to where I am today is actually going to a fitness show as a ticket holder in the audience. My boyfriend, Sean, whom is a Professional Bodybuilder, was hosting the Fitness Atlantic Show back in 2007. As a viewer, I was amazed with the amount of competitors and beautiful women with to-die for-bodies before my eyes. I was completely envious and wanted to challenge myself and be part of something like this. I was determined to do this and with the full support of my biggest fan and lover, Sean helped me stay motivated in doing it.
WP: What has it been like to maintain your physique?
Maintaining my physique has been quite easy for me. Again, with my mindset and determination, along with the proper diet and training regimen, it has and will continually be a breeze for me. I’ve recently had hernia surgery two weeks ago. I had four hernias repaired total; three in my abdomen wall, and one umbilical hernia. The doctor had said he has never seen anything like this before. It had definitely caused me to alter my training as of now. With my diet being on point and light cardio and aerobics, I am doing just fine. I am actually feeling 100% and am extremely happy it doesn’t look like an alien head is bulging out of my stomach anymore. The scarring is almost translucent and looking incredible, thanks to the amazing Dr. Pagnozzi, of Norwich, CT. I really appreciate his hard work and making my scar as small and non-visible as possible.
WP: I’ve never heard anything like that before. That must have been a challenge. Are you planning to compete again in the future?
I absolutely, most definitely do plan on competing in the near future. My next competition is this August, in Toronto, Canada, at the WBFF World Championships. Last year, was my “Pro Debut” at the World’s and I placed first runner-up at my first Professional Show. This year, I have had a small set back being injured. Mentally, the only thing it has done for me is that it has made me that much more determined and focused to go for that “crown” the August. It has made me much stronger as a person to go for the gold, to prove that anyone can achieve anything they desire if they just believe in themselves and keep on that windy road to success, even with a few flat tires; just fix them and keep on going, as you will feel yourself getting closer and closer to your destination to success and your ultimate goal.
WP: What other sports or activities do you enjoy?
I love football; the New England Patriot’s, to be exact. Within the past five years of dating my boyfriend, it wasn’t until this last season that I was a die-hard fan and could totally feel “it”! The passion!
We go to at least one game per season and watch every single game on the flat screen. The first game I had ever gone to was in the end of December a few years back, on the coldest day of the month, not to mention it was raining the whole time. Being my first game, I was clearly not in the proper attire, breezing my nose to my toes to death. At that point, I was too familiar with the game yet, so I was pretty much suffering cold in my seat while every single other person around me was standing, cheering, screaming, non-intentionally spitting popcorn in my hair and splashing beer on my coat. Fun, right? Not!
It wasn’t until a few games later and learning the game, that I grew a closeness and passion for my team. Now I enjoy football Sunday’s, good food, good times, and cheering on the world’s greatest team. I, now, catch myself screaming at the TV, yelling at the refs and defending our teams plays more than Sean does. I love how I totally understand it now and appreciate the sport.
WP: What has competitions taught you thus far?
Every competition that I have competed to this date has taught me a valuable thing or two about the industry and the lifestyle in general. I think the biggest and most valuable thing to know when competing is to always know who your biggest competition is and that person will always be yourself; the constant battle with weight training, cardio, and dieting six to seven days a week as you get closer and closer to your show date. It gets harder the closer to show time you get. It’s important to feel the inner “fire” of whatever you may need to get through, successfully, to the next day.
For me, its drive, not wanting to let myself down and staying focused and ready. In the end, I am content and confident in knowing I am bringing my best personal package on that stage. That is what it is, “Your best personal package”. With presenting that, you can proudly say you’re a winner. Whatever placing you may get whether it be first, top ten, or bottom ten, you’ve won the battle within yourself and successfully got to your goal, by being in your best physical shape ever. A fitness competition is the celebration of it all, a way to showcase your hard earned masterpiece.
WP: What was the hardest thing for you to overcome when you first started?
The hardest thing for me to overcome when I first started was the initial diet. I was so used to not eating enough meals in a day and eating the complete wrong meals at that. An example of my eating habits would be anything from Jelly Belly jelly beans, to Belgium waffles with strawberries and whipped cream on top, a salad here or there, or a chicken Caesar wrap with a side of french fries. The foods I consumed were completely wrong and horrible for my health, and eating only two to three times daily, I had to get into flip mode, quick!
It was difficult in the beginning to consume smaller, healthy meals, five to six times daily. I had to start preparing my meals in advance and set an alarm clock on when I need to be eating next, which would be every two to three hours. Now, I can gladly say, I have my very own alarm clock installed inside my body; it’s called a super fast metabolism. Every two to three hours I feel myself getting hungry whether it is my energy being decreased or just hearing my stomach growling, telling me it’s ready for its next meal. The change in the diet, from when I first started, has done a complete 360 not only on my physique, but most importantly, my energy and health overall.
WP: What was the hardest thing you had to deal with when it came to your diet?
The hardest thing for me, when it came to my diet, was portion control. For some reason, I used to never have a concept of portioning things out for my size. I would eat to full capacity or until I felt sick and looked eight months pregnant, just because I enjoyed and loved the taste of whatever I was eating. I was a walking garbage can and endless tunnel for food. I honestly think they named the TV show “Man vs. Food” after me and how I used to eat.
WP: What are the key factors that dictate the way you train today?
The key factors that dictate the way I train today is the fact that I am a Professional in the WBFF federation and in this industry. In order to “look” the part, I have to live, eat, train, breath, and have passion for it, too. It is a lifestyle. It is my lifestyle at that. One at which I hold sky-high on a pedestal and can proudly say I love my life and the way I live it. I train six days a week and put my heart and soul into every workout I perform. It is my daily regimen, and one day without “Flex Fitness, in Plainfield Connecticut, will not feel complete. The fact that I am an athlete means there is no “off-season” for me. I train and live the lifestyle all year round. It’s a full-time job, but then again, they say you never “work” a day in your life if you truly love your “job”. In this case, I do. It is not “work” to me, it is my life.
WP: How has your training changed over the years?
My training has changed a lot over the years. I have a great training program right now and love changing minute things here and there, occasionally, to give my body and muscles a little surprise once in a while, as a shocker for some added muscle growth. I basically train in the mornings, starting off with a warm up to get some good blood flow. Then, I usually go right to the weights, training one to two body parts daily. After weight training, when my body is now already in fat burning mode, I then start on my cardio. In the past, I have been known to be “the cardio girl”. I would spend hours and hours on the elliptical, and then when finished with that, I would go straight to the “butt blaster” machine. That’s it.
WP: Wasn’t that too long to do cardio?
Yes, it was indeed way long. But, that was before I was educated in the fact of proper training and the discovery that I do have other body parts and muscles, other than a heart and a tush.
WP: What are your biggest accomplishments thus far?
I can proudly say that I am a WBFF Professional Bikini Diva. Last year at Brian Cannone’s WBFF Fitness Atlantic Championships, I won Overall in Bikini, earning my professional status in the WBFF federation. I, then, went off to compete in Toronto, at the WBFF World Championships, which is basically the grand finale of all WBFF shows. Making my Pro Debut on that stage with a confident and positive attitude, I placed first runner-up and could not be more honored. Paul Dillett, the president of the WBFF Federation has been nothing, but amazing. He understands the wants and needs of the athlete, as he once was a World Class Competitor himself. He is very generous in catering and supplying the athlete’s with nothing less than the “Best of the Best”, with the WBFF federation.
WP: Can you tell me any photographers you’ve worked with, or someone you’d like to work with?
Some photographers that I have worked in the past that really stand out, not only with their professionalism, but their strong creative abilities are: Alan Barry and MTM Photography.
After winning Fitness Atlantic 2010 Overall, I had the honor to shoot with the uber-talented Alan Barry as one of my gracious winnings. My photo shoot with Alan took place in a beautiful mansion in Brookfield, Connecticut. With high class, sexy, beautiful images being created from inside with the gorgeous living room fireplace and marble flooring to the modern white leather sofas, it was almost impossible to be topped. We, then, continued our shoot to outside in the backyard. Not only having gorgeous sunshine for the weather, but the rich colorful flower garden and stone in ground pool was the topping on the cake. Every single thing on this day contributed immensely on making it a photo shoot to remember.
As for my photo shoot with Michael Misialek from MTM; what an incredible experience that was. We shot inside his studio, which was huge. I had my own changing room with mirrors and great lighting that would always assure my hair and makeup were perfect. The styles of photos were more of a darker, yet glowing and mysterious, look. We did some “sweaty” fighter kind-of-looks and some high-fashion images, as well. It was a total blast, as we were laughing and having fun the whole time, making it a memorable experience for sure. Not to mention Mike is the “king” of perfect lighting. If there is one shadow in an image he doesn’t like, he won’t stop until he gets it perfect. Which in my opinion is what I like, knowing that I will get nothing less than a perfect image from him.
Photographers that I would like to, or plan to, work with is Greg Burns. He is a well-known and admired photographer. He creates such incredibly beautiful and exotic images. He will be at the Fitness Atlantic Show in April this year and I really look forward to working with him.
Another well sought-after photographer that I plan on working with at Fitness Atlantic weekend is Imirage Photography. Every single shot that he has taken has been nothing but stunningly gorgeous. I really enjoy the art of photography and all the concepts and hard work put in to shoots, from both the model and photographers. Just like modeling; you have to “feel” it in images, with photographers, it’s truly an art. Either you have it, or you don’t.
WP: What supplements do you currently take?
Supplements I am currently taking are:
Women’s Multi-vitamin
Fish oil
Probiotic Acidophilus
Vitamin D
WP: What are your pet peeves?
Pet peeves? PHONEY BOLOGNA’S! Let me first explain to you, I am one of the most genuine, down-to-earth, real people you may ever meet. I can’t even begin to express how much it erks me when people act fake. This is such a small industry, that every competitor is clawing and scratching their way to get to the top. As for me, I believe in hard work and dedication to this lifestyle. I would never stab anyone in the back, or be fake to anybody, in order to be a success in this industry. That’s words from a true diva!
WP: What do you consider to be important in life and why?
To me, what’s important in life is to genuinely love yourself for who you are and to be a strong, confident and successful individual, which in return will reflect on others around you. Being truly happy with your life is the foundation to opening yourself to loving others around you. So, first things first, you have to love yourself. My family is extremely important to me. Without them and my faith in God, I would not be where I am today. I cannot thank them enough for their love and support. They have helped make me who I am today; being brought up with strong morals and always striving for the best in life. I believe it is important to live out your dreams; I am a huge dreamer, and a lot of what I have today was simply just a dream of mine at some point in my past. Believing in yourself and continuously striving for what you want will make any dream into reality; my life is a true testament to that.
WP: Any shout outs?
I would like to give a shout out to the love of my life, Professional Body Builder, most amazing man on earth, my best friend and soul mate: Sean Francis Larson. He has been there for me through it all; through my training, prep, winnings, shoots, a shoulder to cry on, a friend to laugh, be silly with, being there through my recent surgery, etc. With his unconditional love, endless support, and belief in me, I believe in myself and that I can and will achieve anything my heart desires. With that, Sean, I can’t thank you enough, for being you and being my number one fan.
WP: Give me an example of your workout.
Monday: Legs/Light Cardio
Tuesday: Abs/Back/Cardio
Wednesday: Chest/Shoulders/Cardio
Thursday: Cardio
Friday: Legs/Light Cardio
Saturday: Bi's/Tri’s
Sunday: Off.
WP: Give me an example of your diet. What do you normally eat each day?
Meal 1: Chobani greek yogurt with a cup of fruit (berries, an apple, banana)
Meal 2: Grilled chicken on a whole wheat wrap with fresh arugula and spicy mustard
Meal 3: Salmon and veggies and 1 slice of Ezekiel bread
Meal 4: Grilled chicken, sautéed green beans and garlic (in extra virgin olive oil)
Meal 5: Sirloin Steak and mashed cauliflower
Meal 6: Cottage cheese and cinnamon
WP: Could you tell me about your future projects?
Some future projects I have in the works are making my very own Ebook with my recipes in it. I have tons! I have so many tasteful and healthy way of cooking, and I am so eager to share them with the others who may struggle staying interested, and not getting bored with their diets.
I am also, currently, a Licensed Cosmetologist and specialize in M.A.C. makeup and will be doing professional hair and makeup at Fitness Events and photo shoots. I will be at the WBFF Fitness Atlantic Championships this April 16th, in Wallingford CT at the Oakdale Theater. I have always done my own makeup and hair in any competitions I have competed in. Having the right hair and makeup on stage is always a huge plus for your stage presence, and general scoring, along side with a shining glow of confidence.
WP: Is there anything I have forgotten to mention that you would like to bring to light?
I enjoy, tremendously, being in this industry. I enjoy the work that I put into my training, to my health, and promoting an overall, wonderful lifestyle. There are so many ways to be a success in an industry such as ours. Personally, in this industry, I am not a cover chaser; not that I wouldn’t be incredibly honored to land a cover. That is definitely on my to do” list on my vision board. I feel that I am not just a beautiful face. I enjoy expressing my knowledge about my competitive lifestyle and having a voice in the industry.
WP: It has been an honor interviewing you! Thank you so much! I wish you all the best of luck!
