Bob Proctor, the renowned author and motivational speaker, is considered one of the pioneers for the Law of Attraction, a concept based on manifesting your goals and dreams into reality through human thoughts vibrating at specific frequencies.
It’s unknown whether Athena Vas was a follower or student of Proctor’s from afar, but one thing is clear. If she sees a goal for herself or determines she wants to do something in her mind, she wastes no time putting in the work to make it happen.
“I am the definition of never giving up, no matter what your obstacle is.”
Early Career as a Math Teacher
Vas recalled growing up as someone who was misunderstood and usually picked last for games or events. She does have positive memories from her childhood, though, like her time figure skating and getting her first pair of dumbbells from her uncle when she was six years old and falling in love with training by age 12. After going to multiple commercial gyms, Vas’ mother took her to New York Sports Club in Whitestone, NY.
“The basement looked like a dungeon, and I thought that would make me feel powerful. And I wanted to be around other bodybuilders.”
Once the iron bug bit her, Vas made training a foundational aspect of her life. Even after she grew up and became a math teacher, and despite a full day of teaching and taking care of her sick mother at the time, Vas kept a pair of dumbbells in her classroom to work with and used bands when she was in the hospital with her mother. While those sessions beat not doing anything, it wasn’t enough for Vas to feel like she did something meaningful.
“Doing the sissy workouts with those light dumbbells wasn’t working for me.”
Time to Make Her Move
The math degree Vas obtained proved to be little more than a fallback plan in case her dreams of filmmaking weren’t realized. After her mother passed away, she realized that her dreams weren’t going to come true sitting in a classroom.
“Life is short,” she says with emphasis. “I had dreams of competing since 2014. After my mother passed away, I moved to California.”
Vas instinctively knew that to achieve the dreams she wanted, she needed to be around people that were massively successful. That’s why she immediately joined Gold’s Gym in Venice, California. If there was anywhere to make bodybuilding dreams into reality, “The Mecca” was it.
“Arnold Schwarznegger mentored me on how to pose. Robby Robinson, Silvio Samuel, Michael Lockett, and Rick Valente were also mentors. Samir Bannout was like a second father.”
Once Vas saw her own potential, both with her physique and life, success came in waves. She joined the cast of Season 2 of The Bachelor Greece. She won!!! Next she was featured on the series Got to Get Out, produced by Jimmy Kimmel. And later become a published book author and a keynote speaker.
Finally Getting Onstage
Vas’ initial goal of getting on a bodybuilding stage had yet to be realized, but that was about to change. Vas was a regular at Gold’s Gym Venice since 2022, preparing for her moment, and 2025 would be the year it came. She entered the NPC and the newly created Fit Model division, which is a more streamlined category that focuses more on shape than separation. Many athletes in this category see Bikini Olympia legend Ashley Kaltwasser’s early looks as the standard, but Vas admired another athlete as well.
Vas said, “I personally think there’s no one better than Laura Michelle Prestin. She was able to be feminine, muscular, petite, and beautiful.”
Vas took the inspiration she gained from Prestin as well as mainstream stars like Britney Spears and applied it to her preparation to compete. She would win six individual titles in 2025 alone, including victories at the NPC Fitworld and Adela Garcia Classic. By the end of the year, her ultimate goal was realized when she competed on the Olympia stage as part of the 2025 Amateur Olympia.
Vas stated proudly, “That was what I set my goal to be, and it happened.”
What is Next?
Vas wastes no time looking at the future and setting new targets for herself. She already has plans on dominating the personal development space and is in the early stages of producing her first film, a Greek American comedy. She isn’t ready to share details yet but expects it to be an entertaining way to give viewers a temporary escape from the stresses of life.
“That is my biggest goal, to bring joy to people.”
Vas also lives and shares her life as a positive example to others so they know that they can achieve their dreams as well. She hopes that even if people around them are trying to put out their spark, they make the choice to pursue greatness as she has.
“You have to know you are f***ing worthy. Everyone is worthy.”
Athena’s Upper Body Workout
Vas takes pride in the way she tackles her training, pushing herself to get stronger and better every time she enters a weight room. Knowing other future athletes could be inspired by her success, Vas shares her workouts occasionally, such as this one on her Instagram page. Along with the training routine, she reminds her followers that you can’t just go to the gym when you feel like it.
“The real way of working out is the old-school bodybuilding way. That’s the only way to see real results,” Vas explained. Success isn’t built overnight—it’s built through consistency, discipline, and showing up even when you don’t feel like it.”
- Lat Pulldowns – 4 sets x 10–12 reps
- Seated Cable Rows – 4 sets x 10–12 reps
- Dumbbell Shoulder Press – 4 sets x 10 reps
- Lateral Raises – 3 sets x 12–15 reps
- Face Pulls – 3 sets x 12–15 reps
- Dumbbell Bicep Curls – 3 sets x 10–12 reps
- Tricep Rope Pushdowns – 3 sets x 10–12 reps
Keep up with Athena Vas by visiting her website and following her on Instagram @iamathenavas.