Rachele Brooke Smith

Rachele was born November 7 to Tracy and Dr. Kris Smith. She is the second oldest of five children. Growing up in Arizona, Rachele developed a wide variety of interests including skiing, tennis, break dancing and teaching. She graduated from high school in 2006 and continued her education in Utah. Currently, she is majoring in Psychology and is pursuing a Masters in Human Services and Management.

Since her arrival in Hollywood less than five years ago, Rachele has been featured as a dancer in the Robert Zemekis adaptation of A Christmas Carol, the Zac Efron comedy 17 Again and in Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel. Rachele also danced as an Ironette in Iron Man 2, and most recently was a featured dancer in the new musical Burlesque, starring Cher and Christina Aguilera.

New Olympia Qualifications for 2012 and Beyond

For those unaware, the 2012 Olympia is aiming to be more elite with some new changes. Here's the official IFBB Advisory Notice on Olympia qualifications, beginning next year:

Photo credit: IFBB Pro

When you stop to think about it, it's a great way to make the Olympia more special then it already is. Yes, this does mean there will be LESS competitors on the Olympia stage from this point forward, but the Olympia is supposed to represent the absolute BEST of this industry, right? I have no problem with it. Besides, For those divisions that might lack a few competitors, invites could be issued. So placing in the top 3 in ANY competition is still important, as it can do a long way in possibly seeing yourself on the Olympia stage beginning next year and the years to come. Also, there's men's and women's physique that's going to be part of the Olympia soon. The rest of this year's shows are NOT affected by this rule. This will take place at the start of the 2012 season.

I'll admit, when I first heard about these changes, I wasn't too keen on them in terms of women's fitness is concerned, as there are not as many shows for fitness as there are for figure and bikini. But after reading this, my worries died down...for now, at least. I guess we'll just have to wait and see how much this will truly affect women's fitness.

What are YOUR thoughts on the new Olympia qualifications? Do you think this will positively or negatively affect women's fitness? Post your thoughts below or send a Tweet to us at SaveFitnessNow.

NPC Fitness Spotlight for September 2011: Babette Mulford

The NPC Fitness Spotlight for September 2011 belongs to Babette Mulford!

Photo credit: FitnessRx

Babette is an NPC Fitness Competitor from Iowa. She was, as most competitors were back in their days as a child, and active person, doing water ski, soccer, track, flaggirl, and cheerleading, among other things. Prior to becoming a fitness competitor, she competed in figure and bodybuilding. In fact, she started out as a bodybuilder (as it was the only thing offered for her at the time), then she went into fitness, then did figure for a while (as well as a few marathons) and now she's back home in fitness. Her journey started when she was part of a dance team and danced at an intermission of an area bodybuilding competition. She stayed after the intermission and totally fell in love with the sport. Her love has transformed into a lifestyle that has seen her place very well in several competitions, as she strives to one day become an IFBB Fitness Pro.

Photo credit: FitnessRx

COMPETITION HISTORY
2011 IFBB North American Championships3rd
2011 NPC Team Universe & National Fitness Championships6th
2010 NPC Junior USA Championships1st
2010 NPC Team Universe & National Fitness Championships4th
2010 NPC Junior National Championships3rd
2009 NPC Team Universe6th
2009 IFBB North American Championships3rd
2009 NPC Junior National Bodybuilding, Fitness & Figure Championships5th
2008 NPC Junior National Bodybuilding, Fitness & Figure Championships5th
2007 NPC National Championships8th
2007 NPC Junior Nationals Bodybuilding, Fitness And Figure Contest4th

You can learn more about Babette in an interview she did with Jason Adams of Promoting Real Women at http://promotingwomen.blogspot.com/2010/12/babette-mulford-interview.html.