COLUMBUS, Neb. -- Hard work and dedication -- that’s what Samantha Salinas is all about.

“I really have to wake up before everybody else,” said Salinas. “I have to know that this is part of my job."

Salinas has recently made a career in female bodybuilding.

Because of COVID in 2020, she actually just started doing shows last year.

“I originally tried to start in 2020 but we all know how the world went,” she said. “I officially started shows in 2021. So, just over a year that I’m into it.”

When it comes to her inspiration to go into this type of career, Salinas said it was about getting more out of life.

“I just kind of wanted to push myself a little bit harder,” she said. “I knew I needed something outside of my everyday routine.”

Going to her first-ever show around other contestants competing and winning crowns made her want to do more.

“I went to the show just to have fun and I got to meet all of the girls that were already crowned and had titles and they just inspired me so much,” said Salinas.

She said that experience was like a light bulb inside her head to give this new career a try.

“It was like a light switch,” she said. “Like, that’s what I want to do with my life.”

Now, she will be competing on the world stage in Las Vegas with hundreds of contestants from around the world.

She added it’s almost unreal with how far she’s come in a short period of time.

“It’s very full circle for me,” she said. “I kind of always wanted to be in the limelight. I wanted to go off and be an actress, model of some sort and to be able to do that now and come home and feel the love and the support that this town has given me my whole life is amazing."

WBFF Worlds in Las Vegas will be from August 10th to the 14th.