WINTER PARK, Fla. – Emily Bader said it was mind over matter when she decided to compete at this year’s Praelium Weightlifting meet in Altamonte Springs.
“I wanted to try to do it so badly. I wanted to prove to myself that I could do this and that I could lift the weights that I set as my goal,” Bader said. “The biggest challenge is when you walk out to lift the weights you have only one chance and if you mess up, you’ve messed up.”
From her Winter Park home, she said her determination only gave her the strength to achieve her goal and win first place in the master’s women 59-kilo weight class and age group of 75 and older.
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“My goal was to lift 50 lbs in what is known as a clean and jerk, which I lifted 51 lbs,” she said. “I was really challenged with the idea of trying to do this and so I started lifting 11 pounds and now I’m lifting 50 pounds.”
The 80-year-old recalled walking into the competition where the majority of competitors were men, was intimidating.
“At first, I thought ‘What am I doing here?’ And then I realized they are so supportive of me, and it was amazing how many bumps I got from those men saying ‘Way to go girl,’” Bader said.
What’s more impressive is that the grandmother of two is lifting 50 pounds while dealing with osteoporosis — a condition in which bones become weak and brittle.
“Most people would say I have osteoporosis, I cannot risk lifting weights,” she said.
To her doctor’s surprise, weightlifting has been a blessing to her health.
“In the last bone density my back is a little bit better than it was before,” she said. “The bloodwork that is done has just been unbelievable. My doctor says I’m more like a 55-year-old than an 80-year-old.”
The change hasn’t just been in her health but her body, too which Blader said her grandson teases her with.
“They say ‘Emi look at your guns’ and I went what? They wanted to see my arms. These are called guns, but I didn’t know that,” she said. “I’ve learned that I could do whatever I set my mind to do, even at 80, and I would like to encourage other women to have that same attitude.”
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