75-year-old Korean granny started lifting weights to overcome chronic pain - now she's a competitive bodybuilder

Oh granny, what ripped arms you have!

A 75-year-old South Korean woman, Lim Jong-so, recently made the headlines as she came in second in the senior category of a bodybuilding competition where she competed against women aged 38 years and older.

According to a viral video by BBC that was published on Oct 15, Lim said that she started working out to manage the pain after she learnt that she had spinal stenosis, a chronic back condition.

She said: "My doctor said it wasn't treatable, but I was desperate."

Even surgery would not guarantee a full recovery, but Lim was told that exercise would help as she needed to "build muscle". That was when she turned to weight lifting as a form of treatment but it was an excruciating experience for her.

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=502077307309075[/embed]

"At first, it hurt so much that I used to scream when I did it. But, I was very desperate. If I don't do it now, then I may not work again."

Lim said she met with her trainer three times a week and pushed through the pain until she realised that she got better after her trainer observed that she was no longer screaming.

"One day, he (my trainer) asked 'How's your leg?' And guess what? I wasn't in pain anymore," she told BBC.

It was at this point that Lim's trainer asked if she would like to train as a bodybuilder, an idea which she scoffed at because of her age and the skimpy outfit.

Lim explained: "That bikini was a tiny piece of fabric. I couldn't fathom wearing it!"

That wasn't surprising as Lim lived in a conservative society where the wife "follows the man in everything".

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"My husband was a very strict man. I had to follow his lead. He didn't like me wearing any kind of sleeveless outfit," she said. Lim had to wear long-sleeved outfits because her husband didn't want other men to see her.

Eventually, she relented after her trainer pointed out that not everyone had the body to pull off such a bikini and it was an honour of sorts. After registering for the competition and collecting the bikini, Lim went home to try it out while she practised and studied the bodybuilding poses.

"That was the moment that I wore this bikini at home and saw myself in it for the first time. But it wasn't just the bikini, I also had to wear 15cm high heels for the competition. I had never ever worn heels that high before, so I was really worried that I might fall in front of everyone," she admitted.

Her first competition didn't go down so well, but Lim remembered how "popular" she was and "all the applause and all the screaming" she received so she decided to practise harder for the next competition, even sacrificing sleep at times.

And it paid off as she clinched the second position.

What started as a way to overcome her chronic pain became an uplifting tale of the human spirit which showed how a person is never too old to learn.

Lim said: "I see a lot of people giving things up when they're old. They think, 'Now I'm getting old, there's nothing I can do.' But I just want to tell them, even if you're old, do not ever give up on anything.

"Everyone has their own dreams and you just have to keep holding on to your dreams. Just keep trying to do that and keep challenging yourself."

bryanlim@asiaone.com