I bet this Hmong girl can lift more than many of the men here

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Fresno trainer aims to win Ms. Hmong CA 2027

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – A Fresno personal trainer will be competing in the Ms. Hmong California 2027 competition. She says the journey to this point has been full of twists and turns, but she’s taking the challenge head-on.

22-year-old Mallie Yang says this is her first pageant, but she’s no stranger to new challenges.

“When I was 14, I started going to the gym,” Yang said. “I had no idea what I was doing. But I would wake up my dad at 5 a.m. to take me to the gym, and then come back home and get ready for school.”

Yang says she started going to the gym as an outlet; eventually she found success as a powerlifter and personal trainer at the Iron Office. “I knew that working out was something that I loved,” Yang said. But powerlifting… allowed me to figure out, like, ‘Oh, I am strong. I’m stronger than I thought!'”

Yang also practices Muay Thai and says that allows her to tune out distractions and “clear her mind.”

But with pageantry, Yang has had to learn new skills and step out of her comfort zone.

“I think I was never really girly,” Yang said. “You know, it’s easy to have your makeup on and look pretty, but to act elegant, to walk elegantly, how gracefully can you speak? Is something that I think I’m learning.”

Yang says her job as a trainer allows her to help other women find their strength, and she hopes competing in Ms. Hmong California will allow her to show the beauty that exists in women’s strength as well.

One of Yang’s clients, Heather Walker-Janz, says Yang has helped her find new confidence and strength since Walker-Janz started training with her as a client.

“When there was a point where I was gaining weight, Mallie was there to tell me and provide the education of, ‘Hey, this is a time of you’re building muscle, you’re building strength. It’s not all about getting skinny.’ That was really helpful,” Walker-Janz said.

With family and friends backing her, Yang’s supporters are sure Mallie will walk away with the win with her head held high.

“[It’s] really inspiring to see another woman in the strength community really pushing their goals and their dreams,” Yang’s coworker at the Iron Office, Nina Chanth, said.

“She’s always been a very confident girl. She’s very ambitious,” Yang’s niece Adrian Lee said. “I’m confident she will win.”

Yang is also hosting a fundraiser on her social media, allowing anyone who wants to support her to buy a $10 ticket for a chance to earn 12 free personal training sessions with Yang. The raffle will end Sunday, November 15.

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