Competitive bodybuilder Kayla Rawlins is already moving before most Michigan State students start their day.<\/p>\n
Rawlins, a MSU Digital Storytelling major, wakes up between 3:30-4:30 a.m. every morning to complete her cardio workout before heading to class, structuring her life around a demanding schedule of going to the gym, meals and being a full-time college student.<\/p>\n
Each day is structured down to the minute, a discipline that began long before her own journey. With her parents also being former bodybuilders, the gym\u2019s been a constant since she was little.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome of my earliest memories are of being in the gym daycare,\u201d Rawlins said. \u201cThey would bring us and that\u2019s kind of where we grew up. It was just always a very comforting place for me because it\u2019s so familiar.\u201d<\/p>\n
Growing up a competitive cheerleader, Rawlins, who stands 5-1, began lifting in high school to gain strength, and quickly realized bodybuilding was something she wanted to pursue seriously.<\/p>\n
That decision led her to a lifestyle defined by routine and discipline \u2013 especially during competition prep, when bodybuilders increase cardio, follow strict meal plans and adhere to daily schedules to prepare for the stage at competitions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you switch into that prep mode, you do everything on a schedule,\u201d Rawlins said. \u201cYou’re not skipping a single day. It doesn\u2019t matter if you don\u2019t feel like it, it doesn\u2019t matter if you\u2019re super busy, you kind of have to fit it in.\u201d<\/p>\n
Balancing prep with college responsibilities can be mentally and physically demanding, especially as competitions approach.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would say probably the hardest part is when you get to the second half and you\u2019re super depleted,\u201d Rawlins said. \u201cYou have a lot of brain fog and I\u2019m still walking to class, going to class, doing projects. It\u2019s really hard to mentally focus. I literally scheduled my days out by the minute.\u201d<\/p>\n
What made those challenges even more defining was what Rawlins faced outside of the gym. In Jan. 2025, she lost her childhood home in a fire, a traumatic event.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was going through a lot in my personal life, and so things were really hard for me,\u201d Rawlins said. \u201cI kind of felt like I needed some kind of structure and a goal and a purpose to get me through the year because things were so thrown off.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rawlins struggled, at first. Instead of stepping away from bodybuilding, she leaned further into it, using the sport to regain control. Even though Rawlins hadn\u2019t planned to compete last year, she decided to prepare for a show in November.<\/p>\n
\u201cI found that bodybuilding gives me structure. It gives me a reason to keep going,\u201d Rawlins said. \u201cI went through my whole prep and I got on stage, and it was one of the best experiences of my life because I really proved to myself that even though these terrible things happened, I didn\u2019t have to let that define my entire year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Balancing school and prep means passing up parts of the college experience .<\/p>\n
\u201cIn college, a lot of people, their entire life revolves around going to class and going out,\u201d Rawlins, 21, said. \u201cWhen it comes to bodybuilding, it\u2019s so much more strict. It doesn\u2019t allow for as much flexibility. People don\u2019t really wrap their heads around everything that goes into it.\u201d<\/p>\n
It came full circle in November when she competed at the NPC Western Michigan Bodybuilding Championships in Kalamazoo, putting a year of loss and resilience into perspective.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou just feel like a princess because you did all this work for 20-plus weeks,\u201d Rawlins said. \u201cI was just on cloud nine the whole day because I\u2019m like, \u2018I did this through this really challenging year for this moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rawlins placed first in all three of her classes and finished second overall. She said the experience still meant more than the results.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t need results to feel satisfied with my performance,\u201d Rawlins said. \u201cI knew that I brought so many improvements and it really helped me turn things around and push me through those hard points in my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
The moment also represented something bigger between her and her mom, who sacrificed her own bodybuilding career to start a family.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy mom stopped competing because she wanted to have kids, so she didn\u2019t get to go as far as she wanted to,\u201d Rawlins said. \u201cSeeing me get on stage and do all those things that she was doing at a young age and live out that dream [meant a lot to her.]\u201d<\/p>\n
The moment also extended beyond her family to the friendships she built through the sport. Lydia Grembos, her freshman year roommate and fellow bodybuilder now in her first competition prep, celebrated alongside after the show.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe both love peanut butter and we love Reese\u2019s [of all kinds],\u201d Grumbos said. \u201cSo after her show, I bought Reese\u2019s for us so we could eat them together. It was like a \u2018wow, we\u2019re best friends\u2019 moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grembos had been interested in bodybuilding since she was 15, but began to pursue it more seriously in college, alongside the guidance of Rawlins.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve always asked her questions about diet and food or workout splits,\u201d Grembos said. \u201cShe\u2019s always given me those answers immediately.\u201d<\/p>\n
While navigating her first prep, Rawlins provides a steady source of support as Grembos navigates the challenges.<\/p>\n
\u201cPrep is such an up-and-down spiral. There’s a lot of cardio, a lot of discipline with your food and cravings,\u201d Grembos said. \u201cSometimes talking to someone that\u2019s only a little bit ahead of you, it\u2019s like, \u2018Okay, I can breathe, take it day by day, hour by hour.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Having someone with experience helped Grembos navigate bodybuilding, but she also believes that Rawlins\u2019 dedication to the sport stands out beyond the guidance she\u2019s received. Rawlins\u2019 discipline is something she\u2019s consistently noticed.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe will make sure everything is checked off before she does anything else,\u201d Grembos said. \u201cShe has a very strong work ethic. It\u2019s not easy being a bodybuilder, especially in prep during school, and I give her so much props for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Beyond her local bodybuilding friends, Rawlins also created an online community through her TikTok account by sharing her experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wanted to have a little platform where I can just document my entire journey and hopefully inspire other people, connect with people,\u201d Rawlins said. \u201cI\u2019ve met so many people online just by sharing my journey. It\u2019s given me a huge sense of community.\u201d<\/p>\n
As a digital storytelling student, Rawlins hopes to further combine her passion for bodybuilding and creating media, using her filmmaking skills to share the stories behind the sport after college.<\/p>\n
\u201cI found that there\u2019s this empty space that could be filled where I could share the stories of bodybuilders and educate more people who aren\u2019t into bodybuilding on the sport,\u201d Rawlins said. \u201cTo be able to showcase that to other people and inspire them through film, video or documentary is my dream.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rawlins said bodybuilding ultimately changed how she sees herself \u2013 but it\u2019s only just the beginning. Now entering a new prep cycle, she is continuing to push herself toward her ultimate goal: getting her professional card.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve just learned that I\u2019m capable of achieving literally anything I put my mind to,\u201d Rawlins said. \u201cWhen you\u2019re showing up, you\u2019re doing something hard every single day, and you\u2019re seeing how that pays off. It just gives you the confidence to apply that to other areas of your life.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n