TAMPA, Fla. — Some 100-year-old grannies knit others play bingo, but not Edith Murway-Traina she likes to bench press.
ABC Action News first told you about the weight-lifting grandma from Tampa three years ago, when she was powerlifting more than 150 pounds three days a week.
This month, she turned 100-years-old. If that wasn’t exciting enough, she’s also being honored by Guinness World Records.
“I like to do things that people think I can’t do,” said Edith.
The great, great, great grandma never even picked up a barbell until she was 91-years-old, when her 75-year-old friend Carmen invited her to pump some iron.
“And here I was lifting weights pretending I was Charles Atlas,” said Edith. “And I thought it’s not so bad, maybe I can do this again another time so I did.”
“Sometimes she’s tired, sometimes she doesn’t feel like coming to the gym, but she fights through it,” said training buddy Carmen Gutwirth.
Edith soon found herself working out with a trainer at Jaguar Crossfit three days a week. Then she raised the bar even further and started entering competitions.
“It is such a challenge and to do it at that level at that age is mind-blowing,” said trainer Bill Berkley, with Strong Life Tampa Bay.
This year, Edith caught the attention of Guinness World Records, recognizing her as the world’s oldest competitive powerlifter.
“It’s like everything else in this world if you don’t try it you’ll never know if you can do it,” said Edith.
The 2021 edition of the book, with Edith’s name, officially hits store shelves next month. Edith said it’s an honor that resonates all the way back to her childhood with her mother.
“She loved the Guinness Book of Records and she used to thumb through it lots of times see all the people who could do things that people said they never could,” said Edith.
Edith hopes to inspire everyone who reads the book, and says the lifting is just as beneficial for her mind as it is for her body.
“When I lift that up and I get some applause that’s all I need, that does it for my ego,” said Edith.
Edith’s next competition is scheduled for November.
