Weightlifting grandmother trains in the gym more than 16 hours a week

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Mary, from Trumbull in Connecticut, USA, said: “I started seriously going to the gym ten years ago when I realised I’d put on a lot of weight - I remember it hit me when I looked in the mirror and thought ‘that’s not me’. “I’m not the average 70-year-old - and I have no intention of giving up now!” Retired Mary dabbled at the gym in their younger years but didn’t begin taking it seriously until she hit 59, when her mother died. Mary “sat around feeling sad” for two years following her mother’s death in 2007, and put on weight, reaching 12st 8lb, which she said felt uncomfortable for her small frame. “Even now, years down the line, I still see myself making improvements - and it keeps me going.” Super-fit Mary trains for more than twenty hours per week at the gym, doing three fitness boot camps and two personal training sessions.