I was born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela. After completing my university degree in mechanical engineering, I moved to the United States at the age of nineteen.

I worked in the engineering field for seven years before committing myself full-time to the fitness industry. I now work as a fitness director at Platinum Fitness Center in Pembroke Pines, Florida.

Besides managing the personal trainers and aerobics instructors, I work right alongside them. Among my favor classes to teach are step merengue, spinning, interval and body sculpting.

Photo by Terry Goodlad

I not only preach fitness, but I practice it. Weekly activities include five days of weight training, four days of sport-specific plyometrics, four days of dance choreography and three days of gymnastics training. To keep myself focused, I set goals for myself. One of my goals is fitness competitions.

I first started competing in the ESPN Fitness America Pageants in 1998. The pageants required a combination of beauty, poise and athletic ability. In the ESPN series I advanced all the way to the national level and then to the international level at the 1999 ESPN Fitness Universe.

After ESPN shows, I moved to U.S. Sport Aerobics competitions. Within this organization, I once again made it to the national level and competed in the 2000 U.S. National Sport Aerobic Championships. Following my stint in Sport Aerobics, I then crossed over to fitness competitions sanctioned by the NPC (National Physique Committee).

In less than 2 years I earned professional status after competing in the 2000 NPC National Fitness Championships. In 2002 I made my professional debut in the IFBB (International Federation of Bodybuilders and Fitness Competitors) which is the professional division of the NPC. After only two professional shows I qualified for the first time to the 2002 Fitness Olympia held in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The Fitness Olympia is the premier fitness show in the world and only the top fifteen women from around the globe are eligible to compete. Another noteworthy accomplishment was my first invitation to compete in the 2003 Fitness International. The Fitness International is an international invitation-only competition that is promoted by Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The Fitness Olympia and The Fitness International are two prestigious competitions that any fitness competitor dreams of competing in. Today I'm very proud to put three Fitness Olympia competitions and two Fitness International shows under my belt. Also, at the begining of 2004 I had the great oportunity of signing with Weider as an athlete and now I travel around the world sharing my experience as a competitor and preaching about health and fitness.

 GREATEST FEAR: Letting life's opportunities slip by. Life is short so be brave enough to experience it fully.

LIVING PERSON MOST ADMIRED: My parents. They made incredible sacrifices for my brother, sister and me.

GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT OUTSIDE OF FITNESS: Receiving my university degree and becoming a Mechanical Engineer.

MAIN SOURCE OF MOTIVATION/INSPIRATION: My main source of motivation comes from believing in myself and accomplishing things that other people thought I couldn't do. If someone tells me that I can't, then I want it that much more.

GREATEST CHALLENGES: Moving to a new country (USA) at a young age (19) and overcoming the barriers of a new language and culture. I know people that were doctors or architects in their own country and when they moved to the United States they were forced to start over by taking remedial low-paying jobs. From that point you can renounce yourself to that or you can muster the courage to start over and build a new life for yourself.

PERSONAL INFLUENCES AND ROLE MODELS: My husband James Grage. Without his encouragement and support I wouldn't be where I am today.

MOST ADMIRABLE QUALITY: My most admirable quality happens to also be my worst quality. "Terca"is a word in Spanish that means hard-headed or stubborn. That is the word that my family jokingly uses to describe me. When I set my mind to something I'm going to do it no matter what.

QUALITY YOU MOST ADMIRE IN OTHER PEOPLE: I admire people with a strong sense of commitment. I enjoy seeing people set their mind to something and then follow through with it 100% to completion.

QUALITY YOU MOST DISLIKE IN PEOPLE: Dishonesty. There is nothing in life that is more important to me than trust. It is an absolute requirement in all relationships whether it is friendship, marriage or a business partnership.

EARLY FITNESS INFLUENCES AND ROLE MODELS: I first started taking a serious interest in fitness competitions in 1997. At that time there were two competitors that I admired very much. One was Carol Semple who won the '97 Fitness Olympia and the other was Monica Brant who won the following year ('98). Monica was a real inspiration because I could relate to her. She didn't have the heavy gymnastics background that some of the other competitors had, yet with hard work and determination she was able to win the most prestigious title in professional fitness.

CAREER HIGHLIGHT: Stepping on stage at my first Fitness Olympia ('02) was the highlight of my career. Just being on that stage was a dream realized. Standing in that lineup I looked to my left and then looked to my right and I saw all these women, like Kelly Ryan and Jennifer Worth, which were the stars of professional fitness. I didn't care that year what I placed, I was just happy to be there.

CAREER LOW POINT: Right after turning pro at the '00 National Championships my first husband (Alberto) told me congratulations, but that would be the last show I would ever compete in. He decided that he was tired of the competitions and he didn't want me doing them anymore. He would tell me that even though I got my pro card, there was no way I could compete at the same level as the other pros. To finally get my professional status, yet never compete as a pro, to be so close to my goal yet so far away, was terribly disappointing. It wasn't until meeting my current husband, James Grage, in 2001 that he convinced me to pick up the pieces and pursue my dream.

HOW HAS FITNESS INFLUENCED YOUR DEVELOPMENT AS A PERSON? Going through a divorce was really hard on my self-confidence. When I set my mind to competing again, I felt my confidence come back. There is something incredible about setting your mind to a goal, working as hard as you possibly can and then achieving it. I found that competing didn't hurt other parts of my life (marriage, work, etc.) instead it strengthened them.

WHAT YOU WOULD CHANGE ABOUT FITNESS: I would like to see the sport spread out more into the mainstream. Fitness has the potential to inspire women all over the world. One thing that is important though is making sure the fitness "look" is still achievable. We need to make sure that the level of conditioning doesn't get to the extreme where your average fit woman can't relate anymore.

IMPACT YOU HOPE TO HAVE ON THE FUTURE OF FITNESS: I was just a normal woman who worked in an office all day as an engineer. With commitment, persistence and hard work, I've made it to the top of the sport. I hope that inspires other women out there to chase after their dreams, knowing that you don't have to have some special background (e.g. gymnastics) to achieve your goals.

MAJOR CONTEST HISTORY
Fitness Competitor:
IFBB (INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF BODYBUILDERS):

2004 Joe Weider's Pro Fitness Olympia 10th place
2004 GNC Show of Strength 7th place
2004 New York Pro Fitness Competition 3rd place
2004 Arnold Schwarzenegger Pro Fitness International 6th place
2003 GNC Show of Strength Pro Fitness Competition 5th place
2003 Joe Weider's Pro Fitness Olympia 6th place
2003 Night of Champions Pro Fitness 3rd place
2003 Arnold Schwarzenegger Pro Fitness International 7th place
2002 Joe Weider's Pro Fitness Olympia 11th place
2002 Pittsburgh Pro Fitness Competition 3rd place
2002 Atlantic States Pro Fitness 6th place

NPC (NATIONAL PHYSIQUE COMMITTEE):

2000 NPC National Fitness Championships *IFBB Pro Card 2nd place
2000 NPC Southeastern USA Fitness Championships 1st place
2000 NPC USA Fitness Championships 8th place
2000 NPC Debbie Kruck Fitness Classic 4th place
1999 NPC National Fitness Championships 3rd place
1999 NPC Southern States Fitness Championships 2nd place
1999 NPC Debbie Kruck Fitness Classic 2nd place
1999 NPC Florida State Fitness Championships 1st place