Lindsey Griffith | Overcoming Obstacles
What got you into fitness and working out?
I got into fitness when I was really weak and had a bad relationship with food. I wanted to get stronger so I started working out. I got a trainer and she helped me with different things.
What has been the highlight of your fitness journey, and what are your short and long-term goals?
The highlight so far would be seeing progress and seeing the changes that I've made. Seeing my PR's and how much stronger I've gotten like being able to deadlift 200 lbs and leg press 400 lbs. Just different accomplishments. Overall, how much I'm able to lift has increased a lot. When I started I could barely lift anything, now I can lift a lot more.
My goal is to get stronger and maybe compete in weightlifting and power lifting competitions.
You mentioned that your PRs have increased, what are they now?
My deadlift is 200 lbs. My squat is around 135 maybe a little more. My leg press is 418 lbs right now, and bench press is 120 lbs.
How has fitness helped improve your self-esteem?
Lifting has definitely helped my self-esteem because I've always been a really shy person. Lifting kind of gets me a little more attention because when people see my muscles, they are amazed by it. It kind of does help, and I have a lot more confidence.
What advice would you give to someone just starting to get into the gym?
I think if you're young and you just want to start lifting don't be scared to do it, just do it. Find a gym, start out light. It doesn't have to be super heavy, especially when you first start out. I would recommend if you can to get a trainer, cause they definitely do help. When I first went to the gym I had no idea what i was doing, and could've hurt myself. I got a trainer and she really helped me.
What defines health and healthy to you?
I think the word healthy to me is having a healthy mindset and loving yourself the way you are. It's wanting to improve your way of life, and just being as strong as you can be. A lot of people define healthy as dieting and working out a ton, but I don't really think that's what healthy really means.
What does your diet consist of, and what is your favorite cheat meal?
I usually follow a flexible diet approach. I do count macros, and I know a lot of people are like 'young kids shouldn't count macros', but I really like counting macros. It's helped me a lot. I eat different things, I love peanut butter. I mean I eat salads, definitely eat a lot of fruit and vegetables. I eat potatoes, I don't follow a low carb or low fat or anything like that.
As for my favorite cheat meal, I usually eat different icecreams. Maybe like brownies, anything sweet. I have a huge sweet tooth so like cookie dough icrecream, brownies, anything like that would be my cheat meal.
Most girls shy away from working upper body because they don’t want to bulk. What advice would you give these girls?
I would tell girls who are scared to get super bulky "that's bullshit". When girls build muscles it's different than guys. Unless they're taking steroids or something like that, girls build muscles differently and they aren't going to build as much as guys. If you're scared of working out cause you're going to get too bulky, that's just an excuse. If you enjoy working out, keep doing it. If you think you're getting too bulky just dial it down. You are not going to look like a guy.
What is your favorite muscle to work out and why? Where do your think your weaknesses lie?
That one is hard for me because it changes at different times. I do like working out legs but right now I'm really liking working out chest and shoulder. I love bench press and shoulder presses right now. My weaknesses are definitely lie in squats. I never liked squats. I'm bad at squats. it's definitely a weakness of mine.
What was an obstacle you faced and how did you overcome it?
I think an obstacle for me is plateaus and getting out of them like bench pressing. I thought my bench press would never go up so I started eating a little bit more and it went up. My squat has definitely gotten better form. With deadlift, I hit a plateau for awhile. It took me a very long time to get back where I was, and when I finally hit the 200 lb deadlift I was so happy.