As Tammy Zanotti approached her 50th birthday last year, she knew it was time to give competitive bodybuilding a go.
The mother-of-two, who lives 400km north of Perth in Geraldton, had been lifting weights for about five years and was determined to show off her hard-earned muscles on stage.
“I always said I wanted to do this when I turned 50,” she said.
After 18 months of rigorous training, strict dieting and constant contact with her coach, Ms Zanotti entered her first bodybuilding competition, the Natural Bodybuilding Australia WA titles, last month.
She won first prize in the 50+ sports model category and came second in the beginner sports model category, where she competed against women half her age.
“How empowering is that?” she said.
“I was the only 50-year-old on stage, but, you know, I’m here to represent the older generations.”
Ms Zanotti has since completed a second state event, where she was again among the medallists, and is off to the national titles this weekend.
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‘Hard work’ pays off
When Ms Zanotti is not training at the gym “for hours” every day, she works full-time as a business manager at a local school.
Her dedication to bodybuilding sees her waking up at 3.30am to fit everything into her busy schedule.
When she’s done lifting for the day, she then practises her bodybuilding posing.
“It’s hard work; I’ve had ups and downs, there was some days where it felt like torture,” she said.
“It’s not for the faint-hearted … but it’s so worth it.”
Zanotti said she had to train rigorously and maintain a strict diet. (ABC News: Evelyn Manfield)
Defying age and social stigma
Geraldton-based personal trainer Maddison Parsonage said there was a strong bodybuilding contingent across the city’s eight gyms.
But she said most women tended to drop away after reaching their 40s.
Having competed herself, she said Ms Zanotti’s decision to enter was admirable.
“It just goes to show that age has nothing to do with it,” Ms Parsonage said.
“We dip into those stages where our hormones drop, and our muscle mass starts to decay quite drastically and quite quickly.
“So being able to maintain that and going into weightlifting, they’re both going to have the same amount of benefits in terms of reserving that muscle mass that we have.”
Ms Zanotti credits her success to her coach, Sydney-based Jack Hallows, who has been by her side virtually throughout her journey.
“It’s the best feeling as a coach because you see people working towards this for years, and to see it come to life and to see them get exactly what they were hoping to achieve is beyond words,” Mr Hallows said.
Tammy Zanotti (centre) in her first competition at 50 against bodybuilders in their 20s. (Supplied)
Age is just a number
Ms Zanotti has played many sports in the past but has put her own endeavours on the back burner to raise her children.
Now that they are adults, she said she’s being “a little bit selfish” and focusing on her dreams.
“I don’t consider myself to be 50, I suppose these types of things keep you youthful,” she said.
“I love the fact I’ve just competed on stage with younger girls and I looked like I still belonged up there.
“You don’t need to sit around and just do the plain old 50-year-old stuff, just go and have some fun in life.”
Zanotti (left) was successful in her first body building competition. (Supplied: Fitfam)
While resistance training – exercise that uses weights or resistance to strengthen muscles – has grown in popularity, Mr Hallows said it was more common to see a younger demographic lifting weights.
“That’s why I love Tammy’s results so much,” he said.
“All these preconceived ideas that you can only do these things when you’re in your 20s and 30s, because once you hit 30, everything slows down and it gets more painful.
“It’s basically a big, metaphorical middle finger to that. Age is just a number, and she’s absolutely proving that right now.”
