Tosca Reno

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Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Arnold 2012 Recap


Posing with Eat-Clean Diet success stories Allison Earnst, Carolyn Channell & friends!

The Arnold 2012 has come and gone.  This was one of the most challenging Arnolds I have ever attended as I went solo.  That certain special man known variously as Tough Love Bob, Bob Kennedy and Mr. MuscleMag, was unable to join in the mad chaos that is the Arnold as he was in poor health.  He has never missed an Arnold since they first began all those years ago.  We are working on rebuilding his health and our team of hard working muscle, fitness & eating-clean enthusiasts represented in fine form as we carried his torch for him this past weekend.

Eat-Clean Diet Ambassadors Jill Holland & Amanda Baker
The booth was jammed from morning until evening with happy Eat-Clean enthusiasts, Oxygen lovers, MuscleMag and Reps! fans who, of course,  wanted to oggle hot MuscleMag girls in booty shorts.  Over in the books department everyone went home with something special and so many books flew out of there we sold out of most.  T-shirts were a big hit this year as were autographed photos.  I had a blast signing everything from bare arms to books.  There was everything from tears to laughter, flexing, posing, hugging, kissing and carrying happening all day long.  Our Eat-Clean ambassadors Amanda and Jill leapt into the fray hanging out with fans and doing what they love best - talking the Eat Clean talk.  Rachel, Kiersten, Wendy, Meredith & Amy did their sales pitch, kept up with social media and charmed the likes of Lou Ferrigno and Andy Haman.  We all hammed up for pics with Tanji Johnson, Jen Hendershott, Lindsay Messina, Elaine Goodlad and a huge list of fitness favorites.  The gals from Oxygen - Diane, Stacy K and Stacy J - joined in the fun flexing and flirting right along with the crowd.
Can you tell I'm nervous?
On Saturday evening I was a case of nerves.  I had to stand in for Bob accepting his Lifetime Achievement Award.  What to wear?  I went for a killer Rachel Zoe tux in sweet purple and a hot bustier.  Classy but not too stuffy.  Val did my hair and makeup as beautifully as ever.  Thank goodness for her.  Off I went to the event with Rachel and Kiersten (also in hair and makeup done by Lori Fabrizio and Sarah Scotford).  Soon it was time for me to go on stage.  I found myself standing next to Arnold himself backstage.  I gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder and he turned to me and said "Ohh!  That was the shoulder I had surgery on.  Take it easy."  He said it with a smile otherwise I might have been concerned the Governator might Terminate me (lol).  Before I knew it we were in the spotlight on stage looking out at a crowd of thousands.  Arnold spoke kind and generous words about his long-time friend and icon in the sport - my very own Bob Kennedy.  My heart was pounding and I hoped above all else I would not say or do something stupid right there in front of everyone.  But this was a celebration and I wanted to keep it joyful though we were dealing with Bob's illness back home.  I knew Bob would want me to be respectful of the hard work he had put into the 60 or so years he had invested into the sport of fitness and bodybuilding.  I was beaming with pride for him.  Arnold handed me the trophy and we both felt the flood of affection from the audience for Bob.  I have to add that there just may have been a bit of celebrating with the Oxygen girls, Val, Lori and Sarah and my daughters.  There should be a few pics to prove it!!! LOL!
Having some much-needed fun with Val, Stacy, Kiersten & Diane.
What a weekend!  What a fabulous group of fans and friends.  I am filled with inspiration for the rest of the year.

4 comments:

  1. Tosca, I hope Bob is okay. You did a fabulous job accepting his award. It's such a shame he couldn't be there. All the best to you and your family.

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  2. Praying for Bob, Tosca! I hope he gets better soon! You looked lovely as you accepted the award. Wish I could have been there but I had to settle for watching online :) PS LOOK AT YOUR TRICEPS IN THAT LAST PICTURE!!!!!!!! Holy guacamole. You are amazing!

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  3. Hope Bob gets better soon! Wish I could have been there too, my goal is to be a success story there in person next year! Long live clean eating! I'm the girl from thewhitedish.wordpress.com blog. Love you! You look beautiful and are an inspiration!

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  4. Hoping Bob is recovering. That had to be challenging to be there without him. You looked outstanding--your message speaks for itself!

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