Interview Of The Week with Rusha: A life story embodied in art
Rusha is from Argentina. She believes in always doing things from the heart. She has lots of tattoos and a look that people admire. She is a pro athlete bikini model with a popular social media presence although she doesn’t consider herself a model or influencer. She is building her fitness gastronomy business and working on creative projects. Today she is a successful woman but it all started from a difficult adolescence.
How did your career start?
When I was around 17 I was very skinny, I had lots of bad habits and toxic people around me. I needed to change my body, my soul and my life. That’s how I ended up at the gym one day – that was the start of a long journey towards learning to love myself, one that turned into my passion.
You have lots of tattoos. Are they about this journey?
I’ve always loved tattoos since I was a little girl. It’s not about style or fashion or creating a personality for myself. It is my identity, my life story embodied in art. When I look at my tattoos I see all the stages of my life. Some of them I like better than the others but all together they show the person I am today. They are also a testament to the past and what I’ve lived through. All my tattoos are symbols with strong meanings and powerful connections to my feelings, mistakes, people, moments, places ... my personal mythology.
There are so many amazing looking fitness models. It is very hard to stand out and social media can create great pressure to have a unique image. How do you feel about that?
Personally, I feel that what makes us special and unique has nothing to do with our aesthetic appearance. Of course, in our world image is important but in my case what took me far was my heart, my desire and my strength. I never gave up, no matter how difficult the path got.
At first very few people believed in me because I was not the same as everyone else but deep in my heart I knew I had to keep going. I felt that everything I desired and thought was noble and genuine. I wasn’t out to prove anything to anyone, it was real and it was for me. We all have the right to dream and fight for our dreams. No matter what race, religion, personality or aesthetic we are all powerful in our deepest truth.
Maybe it was not your focus but you actually became a social media influencer...
I don’t consider myself a model or influencer. I am simply one more person who likes to share her lifestyle, her humble experience and her passions. When it comes to social media my motivation is communication. I want to put a positive message out there to people. I want to help and motivate or inspire others – that is where the real value lies for me.
I don’t think you need anything particular to be out there. Simply be who you are and have good, sincere intentions. Be honest and ask yourself “Why am I doing this?”, “What’s the purpose and meaning of this?” If your answers are pure you have a good place to start – then learn, make mistakes, evolve and enjoy. But if your answer is about some pursuit of fame or ego then you might just risk wasting your time, perpetuating insecurities and experiencing an unsatisfying journey.
You are busy with many different things. How do you fit everything into your day?
I am a person of habit and discipline but at the same time I get bored very easily and I’m constantly on the move, changing and growing. I follow a diet, I exercise and I meditate but every day is different. Sometimes I study literature and work on my novel while listening to jazz or classical music and sometimes I work on my creative projects, images (Rusha is the creative director of a digital agency, called KID) or my fitness gastronomy business that I’m planning to start next year. I also enjoy spending time with my family - with my partner, Juan, and my 4 pets (my 3 Sphynx cats, Julius Cesar, Zafiro and Kokul, and my dog, Hiroshima). I love them so much! I honestly think animals are so much better than us. They don’t have anything to learn in this world. They are here to teach us.
I see you don’t like to waste your time...
My Fitness Fast Food shop in Buenos Aires keeps me very busy at the moment. It will be a very innovative business as in my country we don’t have any places like that.
I don’t really look at bodybuilding as a career but I still want to compete with WBFF and win a Pro trophy (WBFF is one of the most recognized beauty & fitness federations in the world – BWG note). Fitness is my passion and competing for me is a way to connect with the world. Doing international shows was one of my dreams. As a pro athlete you have to perform at your best. The process of competition prep makes me understand my weaknesses and my strengths and helps me leave my worries and insecurities behind. Participating in shows provides an opportunity to travel and meet amazing people, learn about different cultures and languages, get sponsorships from brands I’ve always admired and share my passion with others all around the world.
And last but not least I want to publish my first novel, a gothic fantasy story, that I’ve been working on for 2 years.
WBFF Show
