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back end of a Pinto, bench press a refrigerator with the Thanksgiving turkey inside, and squat, in pounds, the length of one of Tiger Woods’ drives.All in a day’s work for the world female powerlifting champion.Nelson, a 44-year-old Stephens City resident, is a steroid-free lifter who certainly has plenty of marketable qualities for a sport that hopes to soon become an Olympic event.“If you’re looking for a great spokesperson, you can’t ask for anything more, said Frank Nelson, Lynne’s husband, training partner, and A-No. 1 fan. “She’s doing everything she’s supposed to be as a mother. It takes a special person to be able to do that.“And she’s good. That’s the key.Lynne’s most distinguishable moment is yet to come.She’s been invited to the United States Olympic Training Facility in Colorado Springs in November, when she and other top powerlifters will put on an exhibition meet for members of the Olympic committee.“I’ll be part of the Olympic family,” Lynne said. “Not many people get there. So that’s nice.Lynne is bound to dazzle.Weighing just 148 pounds, Lynne has a 315-pound squat, a 200-pound bench press, and a 400-plus-pound deadlift.And those are just averages.Lynne once deadlifted 479 pounds in a competition. According to Frank, the record-keeper and organizer, that’s the 14th best deadlift all-time among any women’s weight class.“You have to have a certain personality to do it,” Lynne said. “You are out there lifting on your own, surrounded by people. There’s nobody else there. So you have to be a little bit of an exhibitionist.”It was on her final deadlift that Lynne won her AAU world title in Richmond last October.Lifting against women half her age in the open competition, Lynne squatted 315 and benched 177 to head into the deadlift portion tied for the lead.Lynne missed her second lift, and was left staring at second place. But, tired body and all, she found the gusto to yank up 389 pounds, giving her the overall victory by just four pounds.Her poise may have been the difference. Most lifters would have been too exhausted by their third lift.“I’m a very conservative lifter,” Lynne said. “I don’t make noise. I don’t dance around. A lot of them scream and yell. I’m just a calm lifter.”Lynne won’t be able to defend her title this fall, because it’s scheduled for the weekend before her trip to Colorado. But she should have time to come back and reclaim it in two years, at the ripe age of 46.Lynne, who didn’t start seriously lifting until she was nearly 40, believes she can set some age records.The competition, not the drudgery of working out on a regular basis, is what keeps her interest.“Every two months, she’s going to quit,” Frank said. “... You just look at her sometimes and she’s jut beat. But then she’ll go out and have a phenomenal meet.”Said Lynne: “I love a physical challenge. I love the competition. There are times I want to give it up, but I know I can’t. When you work and you have children and when you’re trying to just steal that hour or two before you have to go home and make dinner and drive everybody everywhere. That’s the hardest thing, is working the time in. Sometimes, it’s overwhelming.”Lynne has a 14-year-old son, Sam, and an 11-year-old daughter, Abby. Both are from a previous marriage.She also works 40 hours a week at the Winchester Medical Center laboratory as a Medical Technologist.Lynne married Frank, a former Warren County High School head football coach and a current physical education teach at the school, in 1999.“It’s like coaching again, only coaching her,” Frank said. “As a matter of fact, I come down harder on her at times than I did some of the kids. I don’t think she’s even reached her potential.”In order to keep defying her age, Lynne squeezes a 90-minute workout at Gold’s Gym four times a week into her schedule.But remember, if you’re out at the gym and she snarls at you with that look of “I’m going to twirl you like a helicopter,” don’t be offended.She’s very focused. Very intense. And very, very busy.“Nobody ever talks to ine,” she said. “I’ve got limited time. I don’t mean to be that way, but I’ve got to get so much done in an hour and a half. I’ve got stuff to do at home. I’ve got laundry to do.”
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Winchester Star
Winchester, Virginia, US
Wed, Jul 23, 2003
Page 22
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MD, USA 03 Jun 2025
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