A winner in our hearts

There is no pain-free way to any victory in the world of competitive bodybuilding. It is an intense sport not made for the fainthearted because it takes a supreme amount of discipline and determination.

Beyond the extreme physical and emotional challenges she had to endure, my dear friend Therese Ibay-Yupangco describes her experience as the most humbling spiritual journey of a lifetime. At 52, she lifts up her latest accomplishments with profuse gratitude to God. She recently won (fourth runner-up) at the NAC Ms. and Mr. Universe 2014, an international bodybuilding competition held in Germany.

Tillie, as she is fondly called by her batch mates of Assumption High school class of ‘79, is well loved for her sweet, patient disposition and gentle spirit. A strong guiding force in her life is her mother Nena de Leon-Ibay who taught her to keep strong in faith. “Believe that God is always with us, guiding us and presenting each one according to individual talents the opportunities to serve him and accomplish his will...Never think it cannot be done because with God it will be successful,” Tillie remembers the lessons she learned from her mom.

Tillie’s college education began in Santa Monica College in Los Angeles, California in 1982 where she spent a year and a half as a Chemistry major. She was in the dean’s list, eligible for Alpha Gamma Sigma honor society, but her passion for the arts persisted. Noting this, her supportive father, the late Dr. Jun Ibay, sent her back to the Philippines to enroll at the University of Santo Tomas where she happily completed her Bachelor of Science in Architecture degree in 1988. Tillie, who loves paintings, pieces of sculpture and designing interiors, graduated magna cum laude in Interior Design at PSID in 2003. She continues to enjoy her work as a property developer and interior designer.  Her marriage to  businessman Gary Yupangco has been blessed with four pretty and intelligent daughters — Monica (24), Gabby (21), Claudia (19) and Dani (16).

Ten years ago at age 42, Tillie began bodybuilding just to keep fit and healthy. Having the talent and physical ability drew her deeper into it. To her surprise, she managed to join and win some competitions easily early on.

In 2014, however, right when she thought her competitive days were over at age 52, there was this little voice pushing her to take on the competition even for the last time. Unlike the past years when she was much younger, there was now a huge clamor of resistance from concerned loved ones and well-meaning friends, myself included. When I first heard of her decision to compete, I was afraid for Tillie. After all, it is not easy to compete against younger, stronger ones or so we all thought. But there was no stopping Tillie who was so focused in her preparations. 

She would get up early every morning to go to the gym for an intense workout. Her coach Roman “Dondon” Cortuna, a two-time  Mr. Universe Bodybuilding champion, was always there to encourage her.  She followed a stringent diet cutting out all the chocolates she loved, replacing deliciously cooked meals with small portions of tasteless, salt-free, oil-free, sugar-free meals. “I can’t discount how excruciatingly heavy the weight lifting could get every morning. But strangely, I enjoyed these all the more knowing that it would facilitate the growth of my muscles, then I would finish with a smile. I used to shy away from challenges that’s why I did not like contests. But I felt like I finally realized the true meaning of a challenge, finally understood it and felt it at last.”

God’s abiding presence gave Tillie abundant grace and patience as she attended noonday Mass after each training session before going home. She says, “I found myself praying against all odds, even my own doubts. If this is what the Lord wants me to accomplish for whatever mysterious reason He has, then I will do it to the best of my ability.” In order to keep focused, Tillie had to painfully detach herself from loved ones who did not want her to compete until she finished the contest. “They wanted me to quit the sport believing it was not good for me. This created a heavy struggle within myself and against myself to keep positive.”

She kept up a daily hour with the Lord even in the gym, meditating on the rosary and Bible verses as she quietly did stationary biking.

Being aware of the challenges she would face, our Assumption batch mates decided that the best way to support our dear Tillie was to accompany her with our prayers all the way to her competition in Germany. Our Batch ‘79 Viber prayer page was all abuzz night and day with non-stop prayerful encouragements from classmates here and abroad.

Finally, Tillie decided to first join a competition called the Mutant Bodybuilding contest held on Nov. 23, 2014 at the PICC in Manila. Being one of the most sought-after competitions, it attracted many Filipino athletes, even those abroad, to come home to compete. “I was not sure in the beginning if I could join due to many objections from people around me.  But somehow, I knew it was part of God’s will for me so I kept going. When they called my name, I found myself surprised for there I was and came to be the overall woman champion of this first competiton,” says Tillie.

Barely a week after, she put all our hearts on the edge by flying off to join her second competiton called the 2014 NAC Ms. and Mr. Universe Competition held in Norderstedt in Hamburg, Germany on Nov. 29. The pain she endured on this second competition was so intense as she had to shed some pounds to qualify in her chosen division.

In childlike Tillie fashion, she says, “What kept me sane was this thought that stuck to me like Band-Aid, ‘You worry because you didn’t pray, so if you pray don’t worry’.” Amidst the pain of her thirst and fasting, she offered up all her suffering for the well-being of our beloved classmate Liza Latinazo who is battling cancer and was going through treatment in Manila while Tillie was in Germany. At the same time, Liza was devoutly praying for Tillie day and night.

When the judges turned over their decision, Tillie, who made it among the six finalists, won as fourth runner-up in the Ms. Figure Over 40 division. This accomplishment is what she calls her most difficult but most triumphant victory ever.

Thank you Lord and everyone for praying for Tillie! She went through a lot of sacrifice to achieve this victory and offered up her pains for our dear Liza’s recovery! That makes our lovable Tillie a true winner in our hearts and in God’s!

 Tillie humbly dedicates her two victories first and foremost to our Lord, to her family and to the Filipino bodybuilding community. She fervently hopes that her own experience will inspire the next generation.

“Never ever hold back working on your God-given talents to be the best you can be,” she concludes.

(Would love to hear from you at miladayjewels@yahoo.com.)