As you get older you expect to do less heavy lifting.
Unless, of course, your name is Ernestine Shepherd, 79, of Baltimore, who was cited as the oldest competitive female bodybuilder by the Guinness Book of World Records in 2010.
She’s hardly alone in her desire to buck convention. There’s a contingent of senior women in the Toledo area equally determined to raise the bar.
These ladies are not lifting two, three, or five-pound dumbbells, but 50 and 100-pound barbells — and more. And some of them began to train within only the last couple of years.
Like Ms. Shepherd says, many area women have discovered that “age is nothing but a number.” They’re out to become stronger and to remain active with their families and to keep up with grandchildren.
Some wanted to regain strength and muscle tone after traffic injuries, but they all want to feel and look better and remain healthy.
“I was recovering from a car accident and I came in to regain my strength. I said I am strictly here to burn fat and get my strength back,” recalled Sandee Tarjanyi, 57, of Oregon, who works out at Black Swamp CrossFit in Sylvania.
While Ms. Tarjanyi was active before suffering injuries in a traffic accident, she said walking and rollerblading were not enough and that nothing was helping her to realize her goal. That has now changed, as she can probably deadlift about 100 pounds.
“My goal was to complete the workout, because they are tough.That’s my reward for myself and continues to be my goal. When it gets easy and if I’m feeling that it’s not challenging enough for me, I add five more pounds to the weight bar,” said Ms. Tarjanyi, the office manager for an energy company. “I can lift over my head probably 55 or maybe 65 [pounds]. I’ve been doing this for 18 months and I’ve experienced incredible changes in my body.”
In fact, her “bat wings” — as women describe the flabby flesh that’s lost muscle tone behind their upper arms — are gone.
“I feel good about me,” Ms. Tarjanyi said.
More and more women are learning about the benefits to strength training and lifting weights, and that it’s not only for men, or for women aiming to become bodybuilders or to get that bulky, muscular look.
Patta Murray, who oversees the two fitness centers at the Perrysburg YMCA, works with some women who want to be in good shape to enjoy activities with their children and grandchildren.
“A benefit like increased bone strength is well-known,” Ms. Murray said. She urges women not to be afraid of these activities, as she said they can also help women gain more confidence in movement and a better sense of balance.
When Michele Miller, 60, began working out at the Sylvania CrossFit two years ago, she used PVC pipe because she was afraid of injuring herself. She eventually was able to deadlift 35 pound barbells. Now she’s more advanced, as the mother of four — from ages 26 to 35, and grandmother — and dead lifts 185 pounds, she said.
It helps that weight lifting enthusiasm runs in her family. Two of her daughters and her son also lift. In fact, her daughter who lives in Idaho can lift almost 300 pounds, Ms. Miller said.
“When I started using weights, I did a little bit at a time,” said Ms. Miller, a nurse. “I kept telling them I don’t want to hurt my back and they said if I lift right, I wouldn’t hurt my back, and I didn’t hurt my back. I lift from 55 to 85 [pounds] over my head, but it was gradual.”
Two years after starting, Ms. Miller has lost 15 pounds and gained muscle. “I only lift as much as I can not to get bulky. I will never get to that. I am just toning, and it’s really working my back areas where it’s a lot smoother and more muscular.”
When a physician told Ms. Miller that it’s good to lift but that “you have to lift right,” she decided to take the challenge.
“And I feel so much better in my mind. It’s like your psyche is so much better and you are like, ‘Hey, I can do that,’ and I can do a lot of things now at my home that I never did before. I’m really happy with it.”
Abbey Mortemore, owner, trainer, and coach at CrossFit in Sylvania, said a growing number of women are paying attention to the activity.
“As we get older we all lose muscles. Working out and strength training is one of the best things you can do,” Ms. Mortemore said.
She cautioned not to just go out and try to lift weights without guidance.
“Weight lifting is something that needs to be coached and taught. Proper form is important. Safety is really important,” Ms. Mortemore said. “It’s also important to notice that weight lifting is not about lifting the most weight all the time, but doing it properly that best benefits your body.”
While Judy Barber, 75, of Toledo has been active for some time, some workout programs were not challenging enough. Then she began to work with a personal trainer at the Fort Meigs YWCA in Perrysburg.
“I wanted to be able to keep up with my children and grandchildren,” said Ms. Barber who, with her husband, Dale, are the parents of four children, grandparents of 11, and who will soon have their sixth great-grandchild.
Now, Ms. Barber — who worked in clerical accounting before retiring from Toledo Public Schools — probably has little trouble keeping up with anyone. She can lift 60 pounds over her head and about 60 with her legs on the machines.
Springfield Township resident Vicki Sweeney, 69, also works out at the Y in Perrysburg, where on the machines she has pressed as much as 140 pounds with her legs. The retired Perrsyburg physical education teacher wouldn’t let her age hinder her goal, as she, too, babysits some of her grandchildren.
“I wanted to get stronger and it’s really helped me a great deal,” said Ms. Sweeney, who’s worked with a personal trainer for a couple of years. She said the exercises have helped joint and muscle pain. Her family and her doctor are pleased.
“In the first year I lost about 40 pounds and I’ve gone down about four sizes,” she said. “But of course, your eating habits also have to change. I feel better; a lot better. I think I’m in better shape than I was 15 or 20 years ago. Retiring helps with that a lot, because you don’t have the stress and strain of work.”
Julie Roderick, 57, of Petersburg, Mich., started lifting weights at Fitness4All on Monroe Street in Toledo only two months ago, and already reports “tremendous results.”
“Every two weeks you get measured, and I’ve lost nine pounds and 9 percent of my body fat. I started at 20 percent body fat,” said Ms. Roberick, a U.S. Postal Service carrier.
Ms. Roderick began lifting to regain muscle tone also after suffering injuries in a traffic accident. She wanted to run a 5K with her daughter, and kickboxing and running didn’t give her the desired results.
“I figured the running would be hard on my body and I needed to build muscles that were damaged in the accident. I figured weightlifting was the way to go. And I wanted to get into shape and be in the best shape I could be,” Ms. Roderick said.
Apparently she’s well on her way. She said that on the various weightlifting machines “you might lift 70 over here but only 30 over here. It’s only been two months, so there is always room for improvement. It can only get better.”
But to get better, you have to get started. Like Ernestine Shepherd, these women have shown that age is no excuse. After all, Ms. Shepherd was already 56 years old when she began to work out and lift weights.
Courtesy of: Toledo Blade