Hammer Time

A former basketball phenom, IFBB Pro League figure pro STEPHANIE HAMMERMEISTER is now devoted to a life of fitness, and her message for others is simple: Be yourself.

- Shawn Donnelly

Once upon a time, Stephanie Hammermeister could ball. “I still hold a couple of school records,” Hammer­ meister says. “And I was team captain my senior year.”

A standout guard at Southern New Hampshire University, Hammermeister had opportunities to extend her basketball career overseas after graduating.

Instead, she hung up her high­tops, moved to San Diego with her fiancé, and began lifting weights at a local gym. That’s where she kept hearing the same advice from fellow gymgoers: “You should compete!” Finally, she decided to listen.

Hammermeister prepped for 15 weeks, entered an amateur figure show, and promptly took first. Within a year and a half, she was finishing just outside the top 10 at the 2016 Olympia.

And while Hammermeister is currently taking a break from competing to focus on training others, she still boasts an admi­ rable physique. Here’s what the former hoops star told us about her fitness philosophy, her fantastic last name, and her favorite cheat meal, which sounds both insane and delicious.