GGS Spotlight: April Van Hoose

Name: April Van Hoose
Age: 36
Location: Pikeville, KY

What does being a GGS mean to you?
I love lifting heavy things and I also encourage my 3 girls to be healthy and fit! I think GGS is so much more than tough girls who lift weights. For me GGS inspires girls of all ages to be strong in body, mind, & spirit. With all 3 anything in life is possible!

How long have you been training?
On and off since High School, but consistently since 2005. I first did Figure competitions from 2006- 2009, then Fitness and Tri-fitness competitions from 2010-2012 along with fitness modeling.

Favorite lift:
Deadlift

Most memorable PR:
When I benched pressed my body weight. I was so excited!

Top 3 things you must have with you at the gym/in your gym bag:
My gym is in my home, but if I go out of town I need my workout journal (always write it down and have a plan), protein shake with supplements, water.

Top 5 songs on your training playlist:

• Suck it Up! by Head PE
• The Fighter by Gym Class Heroes
• I Stand Alone by Godsmack
• Till I Collapse by Eminem
• I Will Not Bow by Breaking Benjamin

Most hilarious pick-up line you’ve heard at the gym:
I work out at home, but honestly when I did go the gym I wouldn’t talk to anyone!  I would put on my headphones, crank up the music, and have a look on my face like, “Don’t talk to me!” I worked out there for at least five years and seriously could only tell you a handful of the names of people who trained around the same time as me. When I am in the gym I am there to work!

Favorite post workout meal:
Usually a banana protein shake is immediately post workout, but as a meal I love enchiladas with rice or ice cream as a treat.

Favorite way to treat yourself:
A massage or pedicure.

Favorite quote:
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. — Marianne Williamson

Favorite book:
Secret Things of God by Henry Cloud

What inspires and motivates you?
I think I get inspired by so many different people. From my favorite competitors to one of my clients, I love seeing people go out of their comfort zone to achieve something.

I am motivated by me! I want to live my life being the best that I can be.

I want to show others that dreams are possible and age is just a number.  I will always set goals for myself no matter what age I am or obstacles I face, because when we are satisfied with life then there is no longer a purpose to live.

What’s the coolest “side effect” you’ve noticed from lifting heavy?
I guess it was pretty cool at a training seminar at the Arnold when I could hold two 100-pound women on my shoulders.

Next training goal:
I am planning on doing a Powerlifting meet next Spring!

If you had to choose 3 words to describe yourself, what would they be?
Determined, loving, and giving.

What do you want to say to other women who might be nervous to start lifting heavy?
I have been a trainer for 8 years, and not only can lifting weights transform your body physically and give you the tight tush and tiny waist you want, but the power you will feel from lifting will make you addicted to it. The gym will no longer be the place which you dread going to, it will become your playground to have fun and get insanely strong all at the same time!

To keep up with April around the web, check out her website and her Facebook page.