Friday, February 18, 2022

Sue Kennedy – 25 years in bodybuilding and still going strong (VERY strong!) :

Sue Kennedy – 25 years in bodybuilding and still going strong (VERY strong!)
Sue Kennedy knows more than most women what it takes to be a female bodybuilder – she has been pumping iron for a quarter of a century.

Sue knows what it's like to spend Saturday nights curling bars rather than drinking in them, she knows what its like to diet when every one else is pigging out, and she knows what it's like to drag herself to the gym to lift weights when lesser mortals would be slumped in front of the TV!

Sue Kennedy knows the tough regime and the iron discipline required of any woman who dreams of becoming a competitive female bodybuilder.

But the 44-year-old businesswoman also knows the incredible, life-changing, feeling of having transformed her skinny teenage frame into a powerful, muscular, and sexy physique – the physique of a serious female bodybuilder.

She knows the sense of achievement that only bodybuilding can bring. She knows the confidence that comes with being physically strong and fit, and she knows the simple, inexplicable, joy of what she calls “lifting heavy weights!”

I loved muscle and grew quite easily so carried on

Today, after a quarter of a century, Sue has retired from competitions but this remarkable muscle woman is confident she's leaving competitive female bodybuilding in much better shape than she found it.

She told femalebodybuilders24.com: “When I started bodybuilding very few women competed in the physique classes, in fact the UKBFF - or EFBB as it was in those days - amalgamated the classes because there were so few entries.

“I'm really pleased to say that's no longer the case and over my time in bodybuilding I've seen a healthy increase in the amount of women coming to the stage. It's a pleasure to see and I hope it continues to grow in popularity and attendance.

“Female bodybuilding is gradually becoming more well known and, although there will always be those against it, at least the women get the coverage they deserve now, and in a much more positive light, on sites like femalebodybuilders24.com.

“It's starting to feature more heavily and more admirably and that's lovely, its hard enough training and dieting without having to deal with ignorance.”


Sue was inspired to pick up her first weight, like so many female physique athletes, after seeing pictures of Lenda Murray.

She said: “I saw a photo of Lenda Murray and wanted her physique. I went to a gym to tone up and got hooked. I loved muscle and grew quite easily so carried on.”

The pictures below show just how astonishingly successful Sue was at building muscle. She owned and ran gyms in her home town of St Leonards on Sea on England's south coast.

She lived on the premises and ate, breathed and slept bodybuilding.

As a result the 5ft 4ins (162cm) Sue muscled-up to a rock hard 185lbs, flexed a 42 inch chest, 15.5 inch biceps and some of the most amazing 17 inch calves in the whole of female bodybuilding!

And along the way she picked up more than he fair share of accolades and trophies. A a gym owner, coach and mentor, she has also helped countless other people, from bodybuilders to mums who just wanted to get fitter, achieve their dreams.

Female bodybuilder Sue Kennedy – Full Profile

Name: Sue Kennedy

Age: 44

Job: Self employed property cleaner for estate agents

From: Born in Canterbury, moved to St Leonards on Sea when I was 20

Height: 5ft 4ins (162cm)

Weight: 156lbs (70.5kg)

Body type: Physique

Measurements
Chest: 42ins

Waist: 30ins

Quads: 23ins

Biceps: 15.5ins

b 16.5ins

Lifts
Squat: Best pb was 310lbs (140kg)

Bench: Best I hit was 220lbs (100kg)

DB shoulder press: Log press 65kgs (143.5kg)

Contests and results
I competed five times between 2002 and 2009 at amateur level (qualifiers for the UKBFF British finals) I won three, came second once and third once. My only regret is that I never competed at the British finals as work always kept me too busy.


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