{"id":807958,"date":"2026-07-17T13:58:12","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T13:58:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/807958\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T13:58:12","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T13:58:12","slug":"she-didnt-join-a-gym-until-71-now-she-can-deadlift-100kg-and-do-pull-ups-heres-how","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/807958\/","title":{"rendered":"She didn’t join a gym until 71. Now she can deadlift 100kg and do pull-ups \u2013 here’s how"},"content":{"rendered":"

Barbara Phillips<\/a> only stepped into a gym in her 70s, but within three years had developed a level of strength that many trainees half her age would be proud of.<\/p>\n

‘I joined a gym for the first time in 2022. I was 71. I didn’t know what I was doing. I had never used machines or lifted weights<\/a>,’ the now 75-year-old wrote.<\/p>\n

In September last year, she achieved a 100kg deadlift PB<\/a>. Then, in March this year, she completed 3 strict pull-ups<\/a> from a dead hang. ‘Nice early 75th birthday present,’ she wrote.<\/p>\n

Her achievements are especially impressive given the additional challenges posed by her health.<\/p>\n

‘I had both hips replaced, the second one, five months ago, complicated by sepsis which forced me to take six weeks off earlier this year,’ she wrote<\/a> last August. The septic episode proved nearly fatal<\/a>, and she spent weeks in hospital receiving daily IV antibiotics. Another illness ‘sidelined<\/a>‘ her last June, and she also suffered a fractured tailbone in October 2025.<\/p>\n

How Barbara built up to a 100kg deadlift\"Image<\/p>\n

Barbara increased the weight on the bar slowly but steadily.<\/p>\n

‘Fitness goals are a long game. [It took] about 18 months to go from deadlifting 80lb (35kg) to 220lb (100kg),’ she said<\/a>. ‘But all along the way, nearly every lift was a PR and that’s the motivation to keep going!’<\/p>\n

Gradually making her workouts more challenging through progressive overload<\/a> was central to her training.<\/p>\n

‘I started small and added a little weight week after week. Even then, progress was not linear. Small steps [and]consistency lead to big results,’ she added.<\/p>\n

Today, she can perform 32 deadlifts<\/a> with 135\u2013200lb (60\u201390kg). In May, she competed<\/a> in her third powerlifting competition, where she recorded a 60kg squat<\/a> and a 92kg deadlift.<\/p>\n

How she built up to 3 pull-ups\"Image<\/p>\n

Instagram | Barbara Phillips<\/p>\n

‘It’s taken me two years to get strong enough to do three pull-ups,’ Barbara revealed<\/a>. She started with a 30-day dead hang challenge<\/a>.<\/p>\n

‘This helped me not only build strength but also develop a consistent habit of showing up every day,’ she said.<\/p>\n

Consistent practice helped her progress from 20-second to three-minute dead hangs. ‘I used a band but still had to push off with one foot.’<\/p>\n

She then reached a PB of eight ‘cheat<\/a>‘ pull-ups (‘always keeping my elbows slightly bent’) before achieving her three strict pull-ups in March.<\/p>\n

Barbara’s current pull-up routine<\/p>\n

Aside from dead hangs, Barbara’s pull-up drills mainly involve:<\/p>\n

Lat pulldowns<\/a> (4 x 7 reps) in supersets \u2013 where two exercises are performed back to back with little to no rest \u2013 with dips (4 x 10 reps)Narrow-grip cable rows (4 x 7 reps) in supersets<\/a> with push-ups<\/a> (4 x 10 reps)Inverted rows (3 x 12 reps)Inverted rows with feet on a bench (3 x 12 reps) <\/p>\n

One of our most frequently asked questions here at Women\u2019s Health? How to build muscle and burn fat at the same time. So, we asked superstar trainer Oyinda Okunowo<\/a> exactly how to do it. In this 4-week plan \u2013 created exclusively for Women\u2019s Health COLLECTIVE members \u2013 you\u2019ll get the workouts and nutrition guidance needed to help you on your way to better body composition. Tap the link below to unlock 14 days of free access to Oyinda’s plan and start training today.<\/p>\n

Get the plan<\/a><\/p>\n

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