Fire to succeed leads to the top for Chatham native

From the time she started fitness training in her early 20s, Chatham native Lindsay Pinsonneault had a desire to compete in body building.

That desire turned to determination and this year, in her first year of competition, her determination resulted in her first Canadian national title in Bikini Body Building.

And her dad, Ian Pinsonneault couldn’t be prouder.

“Lindsay has always been into fitness and trying to eat well.  She has always had the will to be the best in anything she does,” her dad explained. “She’s taking a few courses at school right now and if she’s not at the top of the class she’s disappointed.”

Lindsay, a former Ursuline College Chatham student is now 28 and living in Calgary where she signed with her first competition coach last year.

“I started with competition prep for six months and I was constantly training and meal prepping,” Lindsay said in a phone interview. “To compete, it becomes a lifestyle and you’re always working to take it to the next level.”

Her first competition was at the Northern Alberta Body Building Association event in May.

“I went in not knowing at all what to expect backstage and on the floor, and I just did my thing,” Lindsay explained.

Her self-confidence and training resulted in a first place in her class, Bikini Medium Tall, and Lindsay moved on to win the Bikini Overall title. From that win, she qualified for the Alberta Provincial Championships in June.

“I came in second in my class, and some people said to me, ‘That must be so hard for you to come in second,’ but no, placing second – that lights the fire. It makes you want to figure out what you did wrong and work harder,” the competitor said. “Second place qualified me to compete at the Nationals in Halifax and I was in the gym twice a day, six days a week and my goal was to make the top five.”

Her second place finish still qualified Lindsay to compete at the Canadian Body Building Federation (CBBF) National Championship in July in Halifax.

Heading cross country to Halifax was a new experience for Lindsay, who said issues like water retention from flying come up. Overcoming those issues, the body builder not only won her class, she went to win Bikini Overall. With that win, came a Pro Card with the International Federation of Body Building (IFBB), taking her from amateur to pro in her first year of competition.

Her story doesn’t end there either. Back in Alberta fresh from her national title, Lindsay attended the Alberta Body Building Association (ABBA) annual awards ceremony, walking away with Bikini Competitor of the Year and Rookie of the Year awards.

As a proud father, Ian knew Lindsay had the drive but the results of her first competitions were still a surprise.

“I really can’t believe how well she has done in her first year … she really didn’t start going into competitions until late spring and then went in three within about two months,” Ian said. “Then to have won two of them and come in second in the other is really amazing.”

At 28, Lindsay said she is a bit older than some of her fellow competitors, but that makes her win that much nicer and shows it is all about the fire to win and a person’s work ethic. People have told her they have an interest in competing, and set goals at personal bests, but for Lindsay, it’s about striving for the top.

“You have to have that fire to be the best; you have to want to be a champion,” she said. “I trained to be the best and that being said, I never expected it, but that was always my goal.”

Up next for the body builder is her pro debut Jan. 30, 2016 in Las Vegas at the Legends Classic, and four or five more competitions over the year. Part of her plan is to also come home to Chatham to see family and give something back to the community.

“Chatham is my home and I come home every summer,” she said. “What I’ve accomplished has opened the door to get in touch with people I haven’t touched base with in a while. When you reach a certain level, you tend to become a role model and source of information for people.”

Lindsay plans to get involved with the fitness community in Chatham and help people gain from her knowledge and experience with fitness and competing, when she comes home next.