14 DAY TRIAL // At 46, most women are spending more time at home than at the gym, but Sharon Madderson is not your regular woman. Having started bodybuilding at 30, she's now vying for the Miss Olympia title – and says she regrets nothing about her life.
Mrs. Madderson hails from Cramlington, Northumberland and is already a grandmother. She met her husband at the gym and is now aiming for the biggest distinction she could possibly get.
She still has to enter other competitions before she wins (hopefully) the Miss Olympia title, but she says she's determined to do it – she's never been so determined in her life.
The contest will take place in September this year in Las Vegas and, in the meantime, Mrs. Madderson talks to the Daily Mail about the pressure she's under before competitions, and how bodybuilding has changed her life.
“I thoroughly enjoy the contest preparations before the show but on the day I can get very nervous,” she says.
To prepare for Miss Olympia, Mrs. Madderson, who is a mother of three and grandmother of two, sticks to a very strict diet which is meant to help her build muscle mass.
It includes porridge, chicken and fish, and plenty of vegetables and, of course, many hours at the gym.
Asked whether she has any regrets about turning to bodybuilding, the “granny” doesn't hesitate: not a single one.
“I never paid much attention to my body really, that’s just not like me, but I was inspired by the bodybuilders at the gym and I was truly amazed at what they could do with their bodies. I knew then that this was for me,” she tells the British publication.
“After a short while I began to notice and feel the difference my efforts were making to my body, this incredible feeling helped to motivated me further and I entered my first bodybuilding contest in 1999,” Mrs. Madderson adds.
Thanks to her determination, she was the first British woman to compete America's Arnold Classic Contest, an event obviously named after Hollywood actor and retired politician Arnold Schwarzenegger.