What it takes to compete in a strong woman contest

Shelley Lilly has always been competitive, so when a fellow gym member encouraged her to enter her first "strong woman" competition last year, she decided to give it a try.

"When I train at the gym, I train more for strength than for physique, so I just wanted to see how I would fare," she shared.

The 42-year-old Summerside, P.E.I., native won that first contest and since then has competed in several others, placing well each time.

Lilly said she needed to be strong growing up on a small mixed farm, and now enjoys moving "some different objects you wouldn't normally think of moving, and just to see how you can do you can surprise yourself."

I think women worry way too much about the scale.- Shelley Lilly

She'll be one of four women competing in a strong woman competition Saturday at the Evangeline Area Agricultural Exhibition and Acadian Festival in Abrams Village, P.E.I., where she said she's "just looking to have a good time and hopefully move some weight."

Organizers can pick different events for a strong woman contest, Lilly explained. They often involve tire flipping, dead lifting a car or all-terrain vehicle, log-lifting, and "the farmer's walk" in which competitors hold heavy weights and see how far they can walk in one minute.

"I did one on July first weekend, where we pulled a truck," Lilly said.

In Hansport, N.S., this summer, she also dead-lifted a 159-kilogram (350-pound) ATV.

"I did that over there 11 times, so I was really surprised at that," she said. "And the truck pull, I had never done before, so I was happy that I had moved it the 53 feet that I got to move it in the time limit."

'You still look like a girl'

Lilly, who does contract work at the Summerside tax centre and is a server at The Silver Fox, encourages other women to try competing to be a strong woman if they're interested.

"Personal opinion I think women worry way too much about the scale, because someone who's muscular and someone who's not can have the exact same weight," she said.

"Women, I think they don't believe they are stronger than what they [think they] are, you've just got to put out the effort."

Lilly was concerned that training for strength events would bulk up her physique too much, but she avoids over-training and that hasn't happened. She also tries to avoid injuries to her back by wearing a supportive belt while lifting weights.

And exhibiting her strength hasn't taken away from her femininity, Lilly said.

"Throw on some makeup and do your hair and put a dress on, you still look like a girl," she said with laugh.

'A healthy competition'

In fact, the training year-round, two or three times a week with a personal trainer for about an hour each time has helped her do better at work, slinging cases or kegs of beer.

"It definitely helps when you're carrying trays of food and running up and down the stairs," she said. Her regular customers are very supportive and encouraging of her competing, she added.

There are national and international strong woman contests, but Lilly said competing there is not one of her goals.

She enjoys the competitive atmosphere and the social aspect the same handful of women often compete against one another, and she says it's fun to see how they do.

Growing in popularity

"It's just a healthy competition," she enthuses. "I love it."

She plans to compete as long as she enjoys it and is uninjured.

Lilly also hopes the sport continues to grow in popularity, noting the competition at the Lobster Carnival in Summerside this summer attracted a lot of spectators.

People were asking, "Who pulls a truck for fun?"she said.

Lilly trains atAdrenaline Athletic Club in Summerside with personal trainer Daniel Archibald.

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