Business figure

She was just another person living a nine-to-five life.

Sick of the routine, Miss Vlatka Dragic, a Croatian-born Australian, left her accounting job and moved from Melbourne to Queensland in search of warm weather and a healthier lifestyle.

Initially, she struggled to find a job.

Then she decided to become a professional bikini model. Her life changed dramatically.

Now the 27-year-old is getting ready to compete professionally in the World Beauty Fitness and Fashion competition in Las Vegas, US, after being crowned the Australian bikini champion in Queensland earlier this year, the Mail Online reported.

Miss Dragic will leave for Las Vegas next week and is the favourite to win the US$30,000 (S$38,000) top prize in the competition, Gold Coast Bulletin reported.

The competition will take place on Aug 16.

She has launched an e-book, a personal training business, appeared on magazine covers around the world and has become a role model to young women.

She said: "What I'm all about is working really hard on my body but also keeping that healthy-looking feminine figure, and that's the look that a lot of girls, especially on the Gold Coast, are trying to achieve.

"I'm living my dream and inspiring heaps of girls."

Miss Dragic is preparing really hard for the competition. She said: "We have to have really good muscle tone and muscle separation for the competition, which is really hard to get and involves 12 weeks of strict dieting."

The double degree holder in marketing said that since she moved to Queensland, she has not become a healthier version of herself but spends all her time inspiring others to do the same.

"I was never really overweight, but I was chubby. I wasn't toned," she said of her transformation.

This article was first published on August 10, 2014.
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