Lady Lifter Spotlight: Laura!

Name: Laura Porter

Blog: lauralifts.tumblr.com

Twitter: laurabygaslight

Location: London, UK

Age: 36

What types physical activity do you enjoy?

Mostly just lifts related to powerlifting, although recently I’ve been learning the Olympic lifts, and I’ve started doing some circuits for conditioning. I also walk *everywhere* – like most Londoners I don’t have a car, so my feet are my transport!

How did you get started in weight lifting? How long have you been lifting?

I have never, ever enjoyed any form of sport or exercise. Until my 30s it baffled me that people actually took part in sports for fun. But when I hit 31/32 I realised I was very unfit and was getting breathless when running for the bus. So I decided to take advantage of my then-workplace’s gym and had a few personal training sessions to get me started. All I really wanted to do was improve my health, not lose weight.

The trainer had me doing the usual things like running & weights machines, which were OK but not very enjoyable. To be honest, I’m not built to run (I’m short & heavy) and found endurance cardio a toil. So I decided to find somewhere I could lift “proper weights”, and after some searching I found weight & powerlifting courses run by a local council in Bethnal Green, east London.

What I didn’t realise is that Bethnal Green Weightlifting Club is a long-established & well-respected club, and that I’d signed up for a powerlifting (as opposed to Olympic weightlifting) session. So I had no idea what I was in for – I had never heard of powerlifting! But I was hooked right away, learning the 3 power lifts from an experienced coach and discovering that the sport really suited my physique & made me feel awesome!

I’ve now been at BGWLC for 4 years, learning under the same coach (Martin Bass). Everyone who attends the club is encouraged to compete, and I’ve taken part in 5 3-lift competitions and one deadlift competition so far. I train 3 times a week at BGWLC, then once or twice at another gym, doing conditioning or Olympic lifts.

Favorite workout or lift?

Deadlift! I don’t deadlift as often as I’d like (mostly I train “around the lift”) so I love it when I get to actually deadlift.

Current lifting-related goal:

In 2013: post a total at the GBPF British championships in October, and squat 100kg by the end of the year.

In 2014: deadlift 2x my bodyweight (140kg) & try some strongwoman events.

Long term: try not to get injured before I turn 40 (another 3.5 years!) as I’ll be more competitive in the masters age class.

Piece of advice for new lifters or those reluctant to try:

Don’t be put off if you’ve never exercised before, if you’re over 30, or if you’re overweight. Anyone can start lifting!

I’m not here to say “lifting will make you lean / look great!”. Lifting & eating in the right way might help make you lean & aesthetic, but that was never my goal and it doesn’t have to be yours. I have always been overweight but, for the most part, I never minded so much. I started lifting because I wanted to be strong.

I’d love it if more plus-size ladies started lifting, as – for one thing – larger ladies can be really, really strong (see Sarah Robles and Kristin Rhodes, for example). You don’t need to be fit to start lifting, and you certainly don’t need to look like those ladies you see in “fitspo” images.

I’m lucky in that I found the fat acceptance/size acceptance movement before I started lifting, so I was already confident; I’ve also always worked in male-dominated industries, so I had no issue walking into a very “manly” weightlifting gym as if I owned it! But lifting has improved my confidence (both in myself & socially) 100 fold. I used to be quite shy, but after lifting in front of dozens of people at competitions, I can’t be shy any more.

People shouldn’t be scared to walk into the weights room at a gym. The big guys in there might seem intimidating, but they also love to talk about lifting,  give tips & help. In my humble opinion, if you pay a sub to a gym, you have as much right to be in there as they do. Don’t ever be shy!

I also want to say that while I don’t look like a lean, mean lifter, I like to let my trophy shelf speak for me. I may not have that fitspo-esque body, but I have a bunch of medals and an invitation to the GBPF British championships in 2013. Those are just as legitimate as a toned tummy!

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How would you like to be the next in the spotlight? I love to spotlight ladies in all fitness levels; it does not matter if you are a brand new lifter or a seasoned veteran! Check out the past spotlights and contact me for details if you would like to participate, or nominate someone who should!