People half her age couldn’t bench above 78-year-old powerlifter Linda Patterson. Now, the retiree from Albuquerque is slated to enter her first strength competition. Her interesting in working out started after a car accident caused her to lose some ability to extend her spine and had to have a knee replacement.  She also lives alone and has two granddaughters she wants to keep up with.

She set her sights on competition after going to see her trainer compete, and decided she wanted to do that too!  So she signed up to compete in the Masters 4 category at the Natural Athlete Strength Association Summer Nationals meet in Roswell, NM, for contestants ages 70 years and up. She will perform her best squat, bench press and deadlift.

“I would like for people to feel like they could do it and that it’s great for your mind and your body. I would just like to inspire people to go for it and just to try it,” she said.

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