Roz's Story: Feeling the Power and breaking records!

Roz's Story: Feeling the Power and breaking records!

Nov 26, '21

“Never underestimate a short-arse”

I enjoy weightlifting because I like surprising people.  But it’s not something I have always done.

During lockdown, I started walking (mainly to try and hang on to some sanity!) and on one of these walks I noticed a new gym in the neighbourhood. I don't know about anyone else, but for me the best gym is usually the most convenient and this gym was 10 minutes’ walk from my house, so it seemed like a good idea.

However, this wasn't just any gym, but the British Powerlifting Federation Academy. So after the lockdowns, in May 2021, I made some enquiries, and fortunately they were more than happy to take on an unfit and overweight beginner...

Part of the reason I started lifting was because my sister-in-law has been doing Strongman for a couple of years and that looked like so much fun I wanted to do something similar! Before starting, I'd been going to the gym on and off (mostly off!) for a number of years, but usually just as a fitness thing. As I am still very much a beginner, my weekly training is pretty straightforward; I go to the gym twice a week, for an hour each time, and work on one of three disciplines – bench press, squat and deadlift.

Having started training in May 2021, I had my first ever competition in October 2021. On the morning of the competition, I prepared myself exactly like any other morning  - up early, cup of tea, feed the five cats, shower and then pop on my Molke to give me that extra boost. My favourite bra for lifting is my Molke Power Bra which coincidentally matches nicely with the weights, and I wear my Brew Bra for a nice change sometimes!

Funnily enough, I bought my first Molke (a Raspberry Original) during the same month that I started at the gym, so I've been wearing them just a few weeks longer than I've been lifting. I'd heard about Molke via a bra-measuring Facebook group - having been in some kind of bralette since pregnancy (my youngest is now almost 13), I thought I'd give a "real" bra a try. So I measured up, spent two comfortable and four agonisingly painful hours in an underwire bra and I swore never again. Regular bralettes weren't really doing the job anymore, so I went ahead and ordered a Molke, and I've never looked back since! 

Anyway… back to the lifting!

For my first competition,  I was so happy that I was actually there to begin with, however my proudest weightlifting moment so far has to be qualifying for the International Powerlifting League World Championships in November 2021 and getting two British records (in deadlift and bench press) into the bargain!

If you’re thinking about trying weightlifting, I say give it a go, honestly! Competitions are divided into age and weight groups, so whatever your age or size, you're on a level playing field. The youngest member of my team is 16 and the oldest is 84, and I'm somewhere in the middle at 48!

And remember…. Never underestimate a short-arse! 

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