I always think about the first day I came to FCW at the time. I remember walking in, and I had sparkly-sequin UGG boots on, sparkly-sequin jacket on, and matching sequin backpack.
I remember, even when I started with WWE, it was a different ball game. There were all these restrictions and things we couldn't do, and now, it's really empowering to know we can do anything that we want and what the guys can do. It gives women the opportunity to show why we're more than divas and why we're WWE superstars.
My coach would push us off the balance beam and teach us how to fall. That helps with your body awareness, your air awareness, but even the training I had in cheerleading, gymnastics, bodybuilding, nothing prepares you for what you go through in the ring.
I love 'Talking Smack.' It is so much fun. We just literally go out there and say whatever we want. Somehow, it's never planned, but somehow I end up bickering with Daniel Bryan every single time.
It was a great time being with Blake & Murphy. I always made sure that, even if their matches weren't going the way they wanted to, they went the way that I wanted to.
Blake & Murphy and I used to be best friends. They helped me discover who I am. They taught me that Bliss was good, but bad is better. Because of the boys, I was able to really express who I am instead of being the pixie princess I was pretending to be.
Blake & Murphy were winners, I was a winner, and winners usually gravitate toward each other. They helped me, so I helped them in any way I could. I knew they were able to retain their NXT Tag Team Championship on their own, but when the matches weren't going the way they wanted, I made sure to step in. We were an unstoppable group.
Blake & Murphy didn't seem to appreciate who I was and what I was doing for them. After losing the NXT Tag Team Championship, they went on a long losing streak. They needed me yet just used me as an accessory.
Bodybuilding gave me a healthy way to gain weight and learn to balance my life. Earning my pro card within a year, I got to do something I enjoyed and be healthy at the same time.
Bodybuilding helped me to realize that I don't have to look like the girls in the magazines and that it's OK to feel good about my curves.
My dad is the biggest Lexie fan - ever since I was in gymnastics, he went to ever gymnastics meet, every cheer competition, every bodybuilding show.
When I was 7 or 8, I'd go to bodybuilding shows with my family because they had friends who were into it, and it became something I wanted to do one day. I wanted to look big and strong.
I enjoy seeing how many boos I can get.
When I first joined with Murphy, I had to make a character change. I wasn't confident in myself about that at all, but I remember my mom telling me that once something clicks with me... I had to... come in and kick the door down and let everyone know who I am.
When it comes to the Alexa Bliss character, everyone says the character has to be an extension of yourself turned up. But I feel like I am the complete opposite of Alexa Bliss.
I noticed the more muscle I put on, the more cushion and padding I had, the better my performances were getting. I decided I could be this little, stick-thin thing out there and be hurt all the time, or I could show my athleticism, and if it comes with a little bit of weight on the side, it is what it is.
If someone does something that makes me mad, well, chances are it'll probably make other people mad if I do it, too. I like to think, 'What's the meanest thing, the rudest thing I can say right now?' Or how can I completely discredit someone? That's just my mentality.
A lot of my inspiration comes from everyday people.
I wasn't featured in NXT. I never had a TakeOver match. I never held a title. I wasn't a featured athlete. I knew, going in to SmackDown Live, I had to kick down the door and take every opportunity for what it was, and sometimes in WWE - and in life - those opportunities don't come back.
In a healthy way, I'm super competitive. I want to do everything to the best of my ability. If I'm not giving 110 percent, then it's not worth doing. That's really been the whole thing of my career so far, even down in NXT. I want to be the best I can physically be.
