| Where do you live? |
| Kellogg, ID |
| Snatch PR: |
| This would rip my arms out of their sockets! lol |
| How did you come to powerlifting or Olympic lifting? |
| I did a cancer fundraiser meet in April 2015 while I was training to step on stage as a figure competitor. I ended up not leaning out for the figure competition and found a USAPL sanctioned push/pull comp in May 2015. I asked my dad if he wanted to go watch me lift weights and he said yes. My dad was on oxygen full time and was battling pulmonary fibrosis, so my daughter and I were pushing him around in his wheelchair and dragging oxygen tanks behind us. After this comp, I went back to body building training until I signed up for another USAPL comp in August 2015. It was after this comp that I decided to switch over to powerlifting and remembered why I loved it so much my senior year in high school. And here I am, 4 years later, still powerlifting and still loving it! |
| Do you have any previous athletic or lifting experience? |
| I had played may different sports growing up including soccer, volleyball, softball, basketball, track, dance team, and any other sport I could find to play to satisfy my competitive nature. I also have competed in arm wrestling in 2000-2001. |
| Do you compete? Why or why not? If you compete, what do you like most about the competitions? |
| I do compete! Competing gives me a chance to try to improve on my last performance and see my friends that I’ve made by participating in competitions. And here again, it feeds my competitive nature. I met my BFF Lynne Richards at my very first push/pull and we have been inseparable since! We are dubbed “Pinky and the Brain”. She’s the Brain by all rights! She’s extremely smart and very knowledgeable with the human anatomy. |
| Do you have a coach or trainer? In person or online? How did you find your trainer/program? Do you have any advice for women looking for a trainer? |
| I have been training with my coach since Jan 2016. Although we live in the same area, he emails me my programming and we rarely see each other due to our differing schedules and family lives. My advice for hiring a coach would be to find someone who is knowledgeable and flexible with working around injuries. Because let’s face it, we all develop them at some point. |
| Where do you train? Gym, garage? |
| I train at Fuel Fitness in Coeur D’ Alene or Silver Valley Fitness in Kellogg. After I pay off my trip to worlds, I plan on saving up to invest in a home gym. |
| What is the hardest part about beginning lifting as an older woman? |
| Seeing younger women who have yet to hit their prime physically and knowing that I might have been just a little bit better if I’d had started sooner. With this said, I am still loving lifting and am learning that I am strong regardless of when I started. |
| How has lifting affected your health? |
| Lifting is my form of therapy. I am stronger and sleep better since lifting. I also have noticed that I have a stronger heartbeat which means it doesn’t have to beat as fast to pump the same volume of blood. This in turn has helped me recover from injuries and illnesses much quicker than prior to lifting. |
| What would you tell women just beginning this journey? |
| Trust the process. Gains will be made quickly when you first start but when you reach a certain level, gains are harder to be had. Stick with it. Listen to your body and do not train through pain. Soreness yes, but not pain. |
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