Some people describe an epiphany as having been “hit by a truck.” For Suzanne Luhr, this isn’t just a figure of speech.
The lifelong Wyoming resident was in her 50s when she was literally struck by a truck, cycling down a busy Laramie street on a lunch break from her job as a geologic map-maker at the University of Wyoming.
The collision left her with a broken femur — “I totaled my bicycle and I totaled my leg,” as she puts it — and put her out of work for a month.
It also put her on the path to becoming a champion powerlifter and a sponsored athlete.
But that comes later.
To recover from the accident, Luhr — whose feathery gray, shoulder-length hair and rectangular glasses make her look more like a librarian than a lifter — started physical therapy, which got her back on her feet.
But after a while she noticed she was overcompensating with her right leg, especially when mounting stairs or climbing rocks on her regular hikes.
In her 68 years, Luhr has been more active than most: She’s been a caver, a hiker, a motorcyclist, a horseback rider — and, oh, there was also a skydiving stint in the late 1980s. But up until a few years ago, she had never actually set foot in a gym.
It was her second round of physical therapy that led her to one, where she was introduced to some basic lifting techniques.
“That brought me back from the brink,” she recalls.
Today, she’s not only a powerlifting champion, she’s also one of five ambassadors for AARP’s Senior Planet initiative, which sponsors athletes over 60 who have “proven that age does not need to be a barrier for wellbeing,” says the program’s Senior Communications Manager Sean Cruse.
Designed to celebrate “the enduring spirits” of active older adults across the US, Cruse tells The Post that Senior Planet selects its ambassadors from a competitive pool of hopefuls. The application involves a personal essay describing their relationship to fitness and “how they hope to inspire the Senior Planet community at large.”
Others in Luhr’s cohort include a 77-year-old endurance cyclist and an 84-year-old wellness entrepreneur.
Before she was selected to represent Senior Planet, senior-specific fitness opportunities had already begun to transform her life.
It was a friend from her co-ed senior strength-training class — at the gym she joined for physical therapy — who first suggested she try powerlifting. That was only just last year.
“There’s a lot of men, but I can outlift some of them, which is funny.”
Suzanne Luhr
In the months since, the hobby has become a passion — beefing up more than just her 5-foot frame, but also her self-esteem.
“I never had confidence like that before in my body,” she says. “It’s been a thrilling experience. I’m feeling better now than I think I ever have, physically.”
Luhr entered the sport without knowing anything about it, eager for something to keep her from stagnating in her routine.
She’d also learned from her strength training instructor that at her age, it was more important than ever to be building muscle, which can curb osteoporosis, assist the metabolism and provide many other benefits as people (especially women) age.
Before her first competition, she remembers receiving a list of rules from the organizers. “I read them and read them and reread them again,” she says. “That’s how I learned, jumping in with both feet.”
The competition experience has been exciting, if mostly a blur. “They call you up, and the adrenaline’s going so fast and hard that you can lift about anything,” she explains.
So far she’s competed in three meets, including the Wyoming Senior Olympics.
Deadlift is her best event (clocking in at 205 pounds) and also her favorite, followed by squats. (For those, she maxes out around 145.)
“I’m a wimp at bench,” she admits, lamenting that she’s benching “only” around 80 pounds while she rehabs old shoulder issues.
There are times when she feels her age during workouts, whether it’s “old injuries coming back to scream at me,” or something else telling her to pump the brakes.
On those days, even if she’s surrounded by younger gym-goers forcing themselves to their limits, she knows the value of taking it easy to protect her joints.
“I’m learning when not to push too hard.”
But even if she slows down every now and again, her brute strength is undeniable. Given her small stature, she estimates she’s the strongest in her class, “pound for pound.”
“There’s a lot of men, but I can outlift some of them, which is funny. I enjoy it,” she says. “But I don’t rub it in.”
