Melissa Haywood

The 26-year-old British Army corporal from Wiltshire, Salisbury, who served in Iraq in 2007 in the Adjutant General's Corps, has just won the best bikini body award at the UK Bodybuilding Championships. She's more used to covering up in weighty military fatigues and camouflage face paint. But it seems Melissa Haywood is also very comfortable stripping down to less. A lot less.
British soldier Meslissa Haywood as she is known on the front line, left, and as she is known in the bodybuilding world. Melissa - who weighs 9st, is 5ft 8in tall and has a bust size 34DD - competed in the championships in Manchester over the weekend. Speaking on the Fit Body Promotions website, the champion - who served in Iraq as part of Operation Telic 10 - said: 'I love nothing more than sweating my butt off in the gym and reaping the awards for it!'
Melissa is married to fellow soldier Kieran, and when she is not training spends her time posting inspirational messages and photos to her 1,500 Twitter followers, detailling her strict diet and gruelling exercise regime. The health-conscious soldier is a big fan of wheat-free protein cakes, peanut butter, chicken and broccoli and Options hot chocolate. Her favourite motivational mantras include, 'What's my secret? It's a new diet pill called Get Up And Work Your Butt Off Every Day!'; 'Wake up with determination, go to bed with satisfaction'; 'You can feel sore tomorrow or you can feel sorry tomorrow: you choose'; and 'Stop rewarding yourself with food - you are not a dog'.