Beyond the Bikini: What It Really Takes to Compete and Stay Healthy

In this episode of Below Her Surface, Lily sits down with FMG Figure Pro Champion, Coach, and gym owner Connie Louise to explore what it really takes to build an elite physique while keeping your health and your sanity intact. From her early bodybuilding days in the UK to running the all-female Sydney gym Glute Station, Connie shares the truth about comp prep, hormones, food freedom, and why looking the part shouldn’t come at the cost of feeling good. Together, Lily and Connie discuss: • The comp prep reality - how extreme leanness impacts hormones, sleep, libido, and mood, and why honest coaching conversations matter from day one. • Building the foundation - why slow, well-planned preps protect your health and deliver better results than crash dieting ever could. • The mindset shift - transforming your relationship with food from restriction and guilt to balance and freedom. • Glute obsession done right - the birth of Glute Station, Sydney’s first women’s strength space focused on lower-body training and confidence. • Muscle versus leanness - why you can’t build and shred at once, and how to fuel properly for your phase. • Healing from all-or-nothing - how Connie helps women unlearn “good” and “bad” food rules and reconnect with eating for strength and longevity. • Social media and body image - the hidden cost of comparison and why transparency around what it really takes to look stage-ready matters. • Her vision for women’s health - more education on hormones, less glamorising of extremes, and a reminder that there’s more to life than macros and mirror checks. If you’ve ever chased the “perfect” body, struggled with food guilt, or wondered what’s behind the stage tan and sparkle, this conversation will remind you that real strength is built below the surface.