DELAND, Fla. — The countdown is on to a huge bodybuilding competition right here in town. As we discovered this week, the competitors have day jobs that might surprise you.
Leslie Campbell, 40, is a flight attendant. “Every trip is different,” she told us, while working out with her trainer at an Orlando gym. “Every week is different.” She is used to 12-13 hour shifts.
Leslie is training to compete in her second-ever NGA (National Gym Association) Thunder Classic on June 25, 2022. Living a life in the sky poses challenges. She packs her protein shakes and snacks (consuming a gallon of water a day) to stay in fighting shape.
Leslie was never into sports. But at 15, she discovered workout tapes (yep, VHS). “I kinda just enjoyed working out how it made me feel, how my body started transforming, [and] how mentally happy it made me feel.”
The NGA prides itself on being a drug-free organization. All competitors are drug-tested.
The NGA Thunder Classic is Saturday, June 25, at 3 p.m. at the DeLand High School Auditorium.