Tia Spence of Aiea was already in fine shape when she decided to compete as Hawaii’s representative in this week’s Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant in Miami.

The petite 29-year-old New York native leads an active lifestyle and is an avid paddleboarder who enjoys tennis, beach volleyball and other sports.

But knowing she would be facing 100 other Hooters employees from the United States, Brazil, Mexico, the Czech Republic, Costa Rica, Great Britain, Japan, Korea and Canada, Spence wanted to put her best bikini body forward at Saturday’s pageant. So she turned to performance trainer Leslie Tabbal-Kaleiwahea at UFC Gym BJ Penn in Kakaako, who offered nutritional advice and started her on a rigorous one-month program of full-body workouts, boxing and other drills.

Tabbal-Kaleiwahea said Spence, who is 5-feet-2 and 110 pounds, needed only to reduce her body fat by about 7 percent. Her program included a nutritional plan to balance calories and consume more lean meat and raw vegetables while undertaking cardio, interval and circuit training and boxing at the gym four to five days a week.

"Any trainer will tell you the key is eating right — making better decisions about your food and not eating so much processed food," Tabbal-Kaleiwahea said. "It’s a lifestyle change. There are no quick fixes."

She also worked with Spence on readjusting her posture. Many women and girls feel they have to push out their chests and backsides to be alluring, wreaking havoc on back muscles and spinal alignment.

Tabbal-Kaleiwahea, 27, knows a little something about pageants. She was named 2011 Miss MMA Hawaii and was a Miss Hawaii USA contestant.

When it comes to bikini tune-ups, she said women worry most about their bellies and booties. Guys, on the other hand, like to work on their abdominals and upper body before hitting the beach.

Simple exercises to work the "glutes" (gluteus maximus muscles), which shape the bottom, include ball squats, lunges and stair-climbing or "step-ups" onto a platform, according to Tabbal-Kaleiwahea.

For targeting core muscles, try planks and using a Bosu balance trainer, a thick, rubber dome on a round platform. Kettlebells and boxing are great for upper body strength and toning, as well as cardio fitness, she said.

As a result of her training, Spence lost 7 pounds and toned up for the swimsuit pageant, which will be televised on FX at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Spence has been with Hooters at Aloha Tower Marketplace for nine years, working her way up from server to manager. She says she is very focused on her job and "is striving to move up" in the restaurant chain, perhaps as an events coordinator. She already organizes and hosts the Honolulu restaurant’s bikini contests, charity fundraisers and other special events.

The winner of the Hooters international pageant will receive a $50,000 cash prize and be featured in promotional material and national TV commercials. To vote for the Viewer’s Choice award, go to www.facebook.com/Hooters.

We asked Tabbal-Kaleiwahea to demonstrate three simple exercises to help the rest of us tone up for the unofficial swimsuit judging that takes place every day on Hawaii’s beaches.

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UFC Gym BJ Penn is at 805 Pohukaina St.; 672-2655, www.ufcgym.com.