AMATEUR SPORTS
An athletes dream

Barbina earned her first trophy at the San Jose NPC bodybuilding championship earlier this year. Following up, on August 20 she placed first in her Bikini class at the NPC Central Valley Classic in Modesto.

Growing up in San Jose, Calif., Barbina Leal always dreamed she would grow up to be a professional athlete. "As far back as I can remember, my dad had me playing all kinds of sports: boxing, basketball and swimming, to name a few.

Growing up with my two brothers and with mostly all boys in the neighborhood, I was pretty much your typical tomboy. In high school I added softball and powder-puff football, and even tried out for water polo. At the end of my freshman year I met my future husband, who was, naturally, a jock and a sports fanatic.

We spent our early years either at sporting events, playing sports together or versus each other. He always said, "You are the most competitive person I've ever met." Funny though, after I finished school there was nowhere for me to burn that competitive fire. I got caught up in work and life all together.

That is until Jan. 23, 2009, when I delivered my daughter. At that time I had 198 pounds on my 5-foot-3 frame; I knew it was time for a change. I started to hit the gym and at first progress was slow.

Then one day I saw a women's fitness magazine with a National Physique Committee bodybuilding bikini champ on the cover. By this time I had worked my way down to 142 pounds. I said she looks fantastic, that's what I want to look like. My husband said to me, "You can get in that kind of shape, and even compete." Right then the fire reignited. I thought, Why not?

So I started to read up on the sport of bodybuilding, especially the newest and fastest-growing bikini division. After gathering all the information I made my leap into two-a-day workouts with a strict diet, and from then on my competitive nature did the rest. On June 4, two years after weighing 198 pounds, I hit the stage at the NPC Nevada State Championship at 115 lbs. The tomboy who hated dresses and never thought of herself as sexy was a bikini athlete. I took sixth place, just missing out on a top-five trophy.

Happy but not satisfied, I decided to work even harder and prepare for the San Jose NPC Bodybuilding Championships on July 9. I said nothing less than a top-five finish and bringing home some hardware was acceptable. Pushing myself physically and mentally more than I ever had with any sport, and with the support of my family, I reached my goal. I brought home my first trophy.

Being the competitor that I am, I won't stop until I walk off the stage with a first-place trophy. The sport has already opened so many doors for me. I did my first photo shoot for Anthony Laudani Kettlebell Fitness. My Facebook fan page BikiniBina is growing in "likes" daily. I am currently working on a photo shoot that will land me in my first magazine.

What a ride it's turning out to be. I always dreamed of being a pro athlete in magazines, only I thought it would be in a sweaty jersey, not a bikini. Funny how things work out, and it just goes to show that with hard work, dreams can come true.