So Dominique, give us the run down. Tell us a litle about yourself.
Well, I’m a full-time model with Ford modeling agency. I moved to Miami Beach over the summer to pursue modeling full-time. I am also finishing my bachelor’s degree in Business Management.
If you’re modeling full-time you must take care of yourself, how do you stay in shape?
Oh definitely, it’s extremely important for me to stay in shape. I hate going to a regular gym and doing an hour on a cardio machine then having to do weights though, so instead I do mixed martial arts. When I go back home to visit my family and friends I train in Orlando with The Jungle MMA and Fitness. Here in Miami I train at Knockout Zone, they have awesome cardio kickboxing classes and boot camp classes. I love taking the cardio kickboxing because I feel like it combines my cardio and weights and the whole workout is done in an hour. The classes are always different which is one of the best parts. If I’m on a treadmill or elliptical machine after 10 minutes I feel like I can’t do it anymore, not because I’m tired but I just get extremely bored so the classes at The Jungle and Knockout Zone are perfect for me because it’s never the same exact workout and I actually enjoy going to the gym.
Nice, sounds like you have a pretty active fitness schedule, but diet is equally important. Any tips for us in that department?
I incorporate a lot of fruits, vegetables, almonds, and lean protein, but I also have a major sweet tooth, so I eat dark chocolate as a treat haha. One of the biggest things that has helped me though is Nuvo Gene Tea. It keeps my chocolate cravings under control and helps me stay slim. It’s so easy to use and it actually tastes good and doesn’t have any side effects like diet pills can have. After I started drinking it, quite a few of the models I work with saw the results I got, and they now drink it also.
Nice plug, sponsors take note, you’ve got a winner here. But back to your MMA training, how did you get involved with all that?
Well, my dad used to train, and a few years ago I asked if i could go try his gym. He thought I would walk in the gym and turn right back around to leave, but instead it was the complete opposite. After watching for 10 minutes I couldn’t wait to try it myself!
So from there you actually went on to compete, is that right?
Yes, that’s right.
What led to that decision?
I was training in Muay Thai and submission grappling on and off for about a year but never took it very seriously until my friend, Seth Petruzelli, told me he thought I had potential and that I should think about competing. After some convincing from Seth, I decided I would give it a try. I started training with the pro fight team from The Jungle MMA and Fitness in Orlando. I went to a few grappling tournaments and loved it.
Bad ass! How did you end up doing at the grappling tournaments?
I am actually undefeated in my weight class!
Impressive. How did you win?
The first time I won on points and the second time was by guillotine choke.
Do you have a favorite technique?
Probably the gogoplata. I know that’s a weird answer but I feel like people don’t expect to see that submission so it works pretty well. Plus it’s easy for me because I have long legs and I’m flexible. I also really love a good rear naked choke too.
That is such a loaded answer, but I’m gonna leave it alone. How do you manage to train, compete, and still manage to model full time?
Well, I still train but I don’t compete anymore. I’ve toned down my training a little bit because I don’t think my agency would appreciate me showing up to a booking with bruises or a black eye, haha! I do still have people hold the Thai pads for me a lot and I still grapple, I’m just a little more careful.
The lens—and I’m sure many of our readers—appreciate your decision. So do you have a favorite fighter? Let me guess… GSP.
I have too many haha. And yes, I love to watch GSP and Anderson Silva but so does everybody else. Seth Petruzelli and Tom Lawlor are good friends of mine so I love watching them fight, plus they are hilarious, especially Tom at his UFC weigh-ins, and they both have great entrances on top of their spectacular performances in the cage. Dan Henderson is also a favorite of mine since I watched him as a coach on The Ultimate Fighter and I can’t wait to see his upcoming fight in Strikeforce against Jake Shields.
Dan is a great guy, we can’t wait to see that fight either! Speaking of Strikeforce, what’s your take on Woman’s MMA?
Well, obviously since I train and used to compete in grappling tournaments, I don’t have any problem with women fighting in MMA. I wish more people would realize this is a sport with professional athletes that train extremely hard. I think too many people are ignorant about the sport and just see it as two guys getting in a cage trying to beat the crap out of each other and that is why so many people disapprove of women fighting. I was at the last Strikeforce event where Chris Cyborg fought Marloes Coenen and that was one of the most exciting fights of the night. I think the women’s fights tend to be more exciting a lot of times because they seem to be more aggressive and there is always a lot of action.
This is definitely true sometimes. So outside of traning to kick all sorts of ass, what do you like to do for fun?
Before I moved to Miami I lived on a horse farm and I rode and competed in the jumpers for the last 12 years, so I still try to go riding when I get the chance. I also like to travel, go to the beach, hangout with friends, and go to the movies. I love trying new things and am very adventurous. I’m a little bit of a tomboy at heart so anything outside or challenging I’m usually the first to want to try it. Actually, I recently rode a mechanical bull for the first time. I think I’m the new Hard Rock bull riding champion…well, I don’t think they actually have a champion for that but if they did it would be me, haha!
Sooo, what you’re saying is, you are pretty much the perfect woman. Which leaves me with one final question. Are you single?
Haha, yes I’m single! I’m very independent and have so much going on in my life now and so much I still want to accomplish that I am very happy being single. Not to say if some guy came along and swept me off my feet I wouldn’t consider a relationship, but for the next few years I’m happy not having a boyfriend. One day I want to get married and have a family, but I don’t feel the need to rush it.
And with that, our faith in humanity has been restored. Thanks for the time Dominque!
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