Our November 2024 Iron Ager of the Month is Miriam Lawrence.
Why are you a fitness fanatic? What do you do to stay fit?
I was a pretty avid (though quite mediocre) athlete as a teenager, but once I got out of high school, a combination of knee and back problems plus desk jobs caused me to basically stop exercising in any meaningful way. I was lucky enough to find Zumba in my early 40s, and it was a great fit because I love to dance. I still do it as my primary form of cardio.
But my real fitness journey started at 48, when I started lifting weights. I wanted to “get toned.” The strength program I started with was excellent and incorporated a lot of barbell work, including the movements that powerlifters call the “big three,” as they are the lifts that are used in a competition: the back squat, the bench press and the deadlift. And I got completely addicted.
I enjoy most modes of strength training, but there’s something about using a barbell that puts me immediately and strongly in touch with a very deep part of myself. I started powerlifting, did my first competition at age 50, and since then have competed, won medals and set records on both the national and international scale.
Any recent events/results/achievements you would like to share?
I just competed at Powerlifting United Nationals, where I increased my best total score by 6 lbs, got a PR on the bench press, and won a gold medal. It wasn’t a perfect day, but I am clearly continuing to get stronger and technically better even though I’m aging, and despite having had a very challenging year recovery-wise due to menopause-related issues, especially insomnia.
Do you have any goals or upcoming events you would like to share?
In 2025 I hope to achieve PRs in all three lifts and total (my top lifts currently are squat 102.5kg/226 lbs.; bench 55.5kg/122 lbs; deadlift 112.5 kg/248 lbs at 138 lbs bodyweight; total 585lbs). The next competition on my calendar is 2025 PLU Nationals next summer.
What advice or life lessons would you offer to other Iron Agers?
Never could I have guessed when I started this journey how much it would transform me, body and mind and soul. It turns out that physical strength is even more empowering inside than it is outside. I always felt like a reasonably confident woman, but lifting heavy weight has taken my confidence and self-belief to a whole new level, in every facet of my life, both professional and personal. It has enhanced my ability to deal with failure and adversity. And it teaches me profound spiritual and life lessons on a daily basis.
My coach’s motto, which I believe with my whole soul, is “Adapt or Die.” No matter how difficult the circumstances, keep showing up. There’s always something you can do, even if you’re injured or feeling bad. 9 times out of 10, moving and doing SOME sort of training will make you feel better. If nothing else, it will help you remember your inner fortitude.
And here’s a big one: you never know who’s watching you, or who you may be motivating. Sometimes my inner critic starts chattering at me that I’m small, I’m old, and no one cares, especially younger people. Sometimes I even feel certain they must be laughing at me, and I start wondering why I’m bothering at all.
It’s always in these moments that someone–whether another Masters athlete or peer, or someone who could be my child or grandchild–tells me they find what I do and what I share inspiring.
I lift to keep my body strong and healthy as I get older. I lift as a way to challenge myself, and constantly work to face and overcome those challenges. And I lift to try to inspire other older people, especially women, to pick up a barbell and discover a sense of power they never dreamed was possible.
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Follow Miriam on Instagram: @mirslam
Read her blog “That Badass Broad” HERE
CLICK HERE to nominate someone (or yourself) to be featured as an Iron Ager of the Month
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