Whether she’s stepping into the ring or onto the stage, raising a daughter or running her business, Angelike Psoinos Norrie dominates everything she takes on. That’s why she’s a five-time magazine cover model, a hugely successful entrepreneur, and a role model to thousands of women worldwide. But it takes more than an impressive resume and an amazing bod to be a Lady Boss. If there’s anything we’ve learned from our latest cover athlete, it’s that flexing your spiritual muscles should always come first.
SFM: How do you balance being a mother, wife, business woman, and athlete?
APN: Honestly, everyday is so different. But when I focus on being me rather than each of those titles, it’s easier. With motherhood and marriage, fitness, work, etcetera, it’s all about being present. If I find myself overwhelmed, I will literally slam my feet on the floor and try to get my own attention. And once I can get present and out of my head, I can then focus on prioritizing. What must be done right now? What “spiritual muscle” will it take to get it all done? Is it integrity? Did I make a promise that I need to follow through with? Is it discipline? Am I doing the work to honor the process or am I floundering my way through this goal? Am I doing this out of love or do I feel obligated and lead by fear? These are all the steps I take when I am trying to balance life without looking like a circus act.
SFM: You were crowned Miss Bikini America. Why did you stop competing shortly after?
APN: I just didn’t agree with a lot of what was going on. I felt there were a lot of politics and unhealthy practices for the sake of vanity. While I loved the idea of building my body and getting on stage, being judged against other women didn’t do it for me. It didn’t make me feel alive.
SFM: Now for the big question: will you ever compete again?
APN: If I competed again it would be so my husband can watch me compete, and so I can say that I could do it again. There’s probably one more show in me, but you know what, the more I think about it, there’s nothing inside of me telling me to do it.
SFM: In your 20s, you were a world class martial artist. Do you still use kickboxing in your fitness training?
APN: Martial arts are like riding a bike for me, but you have to keep your skills sharp. When I do get a chance to hit a bag, like when I was on set for STRONG, I just take myself back to the time and place where I learned to dance with it.
SFM: What is your current training schedule like?
APN: I work out an average of five times a week. My workouts are typically splits where I “sculpt” one to two body parts at a time and then “shrink” with cardio and functional, high intensity workouts.
SFM: What is your nutrition like?
APN: Very balanced. I eat five to six times a day and really watch my macronutrients. I don’t really count calories anymore. I am very in tune with what my body needs or needs to cut back on, based on how I am performing and how my clothes fit.
SFM: What are your favorite quick and healthy meals?
APN: My staples are lean ground turkey, bison, or chicken breast with a giant kale salad. I always keep quinoa and brown rice handy too. When I don’t feel like making a big feast, that’s my go-to.
SFM: What advice do you have for women balancing multiple roles and responsibilities?
APN: Here are my top three take-home tips:
1) Focus on honoring yourself in managing it all. By making time for yourself to build your body, mind and spirit, you expand your capacity to carry all the extras. By loving yourself you are more capable of loving others unconditionally. If you do things out of pressure and obligation, there lies a hidden resentment when you wake up feeling empty, overwhelmed, sick, tired, etc. Remembering to honor yourself is the key to honoring others and the process to success.
2) Focus less on what you are after and more on who you need to be in order to make it come to fruition. Sometimes that single shift tells you that what you thought you desired wasn’t who you are at all. You just got caught up in trying to compare yourself or “have what she’s having”. Legacy is left by who you are, not what you acquired along the way.
3) Do not lose power to things that don’t love you back. Sometimes I will walk into my house and have a sink full of dishes, loads of laundry and emails I need to get to and the thought of doing it all will send me into a tailspin. Ask yourself what is most important at that moment. Have you set aside time to honor yourself or your family? If not, I am not going to give that time away to the chores that are robbing me of joy at this moment.
Tell us your favorite…
PIECE OF GYM EQUIPMENT: Dumbbells
BRAND OF SHOES: Nike for style. Brooks for comfort
MOVIE: Beauty and the Beast
SPORTS TEAM: Green Bay Packers
MUSIC TO WORKOUT TO: Techno and hip-hop
FLAVOR OF ICE CREAM: Coconut
THING ABOUT MARRIAGE: Unconditional love
THING ABOUT MOTHERHOOD: Same as marriage. But I will add; she is my greatest accomplishment to date
Read more about Angelike in the Nov/Dec 2014 issue of STRONG Fitness Magazine. Click here to subscribe!
What’s Angelike like behind-the-scenes? See for yourself in this exclusive video of her on set for her STRONG cover shoot.
Photography by Paul Buceta | Videography by Pouyan Fard
