While perusing the net this afternoon, I came across multiple stories centered around the amazing elder bodybuilder/fitness enthusiast, Ms. Ernestine Shepherd. Her story is truly inspirational and leaves one with the notion-there really are no (more) excuses. I just joined a second gym last week to break up the monotony and although I am energized, one still has to connect with stories such Shepherd's to realize that with the right mental fortitude anything can be accomplished. Shepherd, who is 73 years young, trains six times a week and runs approx. 80 miles in the same duration. And perhaps it stories like these, that remind me that we must root out the strain of self defeatism and victimization that literally paralyzes some folks of color from accomplishing goals they are fully capable of achieving. Here's more of Mrs. Shepherd's journey, courtesy of ABC News:
Body Building Grandma Ernestine Shepherd Bench Presses, Runs Marathons At 73
Grandmother Up Every Day at 3 a.m. and Says 'I Feel Better Than I Did at 40'
By SARAH NETTER
April 27, 2010
Taut abs and rippling muscles aren't exactly the stuff grandmothers are known for. But then again neither are marathons and cell phones that play the theme to "Rocky."
Body building grandma, 73, runs marathons, benches 150 lbs.
At 73, Ernestine Shepherd is in better shape than most people decades her junior. Up at 3 a.m. every morning, she spends her days running, lifting weights and working out other senior citizens at the Union Memorial United Methodist Church in Baltimore. She also works as a certified personal trainer at her gym.
"I feel better than I did at 40," she said. "I am very, very happy."
In less than 20 years, Shepherd has morphed from a "prissy" woman who never exercised to the Guinness Book of World Records' oldest female bodybuilder.
A die-hard "Rocky" fan -- "Sylvester Stallone is my man," she cooed -- Shepherd is preparing for a body building competition this weekend.
"I feel now that I am a very strong, positive and confident woman," she said. "Years ago I concerned myself about what people said concerning me. But when you get 70-something and you don't have that many years in front of you, you don't concern yourself with that."
Instead, Shepherd concerns herself with her carefully formulated diet -- 1,700 calories a day, mostly comprised of boiled egg whites, chicken, vegetables and a liquid egg white drink -- and packing in the workouts needed to maintain her stunning physique.
Shepherd runs about 80 miles per week and bench presses 150 pounds. Bicep curls are done with 15- and 20-pound dumbbells.
Married for 53 years and grandmother to a 13-year-old, Shepherd said she is exactly where she wants to be.
For the article in its entirety, click on the link below:
Body Building Grandma Ernestine Shepherd Bench Presses, Runs Marathons At 73
And not to be outdone, here's another peer of Mrs. Shepherd's reminding us that age truly is just a number:
