“Granny Guns” goes viral documenting journey competing for Ms. Health & Fitness

Marlene Flowers believes that it’s “by no means too late” to alter your life.

“Granny Weapons,” as she goes by on social media, is a 65-year-old auto store proprietor and bodybuilder who says she had a wake-up name seven years in the past.

“I had consuming issues and well being points. Once I was 58, I needed to get surgical procedure,” says Flowers. “After that have, I knew that I wanted to make a change.”

So she did. Flowers first started figuring out and maintaining a healthy diet. Then, three years in the past, she determined to raise weights and found a ardour.

“My son is my coach, and he’s the one which bought me into weightlifting,” says Flowers, who reveals off her muscle tissue in social media train movies. “The folks at my gymnasium inspired me to enter competitions.”

The Pittsburgh-area native has been featured in a number of information packages and tales throughout the nation, and is at the moment a candidate for the duvet of Muscle and Health’ HERS Journal. Followers can vote for Flowers as soon as per day within the journal’s Ms. Well being & Health 2022 contest with a Fb login, and can even donate to nonprofit Properties for Wounded Warriors for extra entries at $1 per vote. As of press time, she’s at the moment third in her group.

Her whole journey is being documented on-line by her son. Her TikTok account, which launched in November 2021, boasts over 19,000 followers and over 1 million likes.

“It was not till a couple of month in the past that I noticed that I went viral,” Flowers says. However she stresses that household and kindness, and never fame, are her precedence.

“I’m the oldest out of seven youngsters and ever since then, I needed to set the instance,” she says. “I like the eye, but when I’m able to encourage folks for a more healthy life, then I’m glad.”

Flowers provides that it’s her family members and people who find themselves impressed by her who maintain her going. “Typically I take into consideration why I’m doing this,” Flowers says, “however when somebody offers us a praise, it was like religion.”

Flowers encourages anybody looking for a more healthy life-style to observe her path.

“You don’t want to have an incredible physique to train. The objective is to really feel good not look good,” Flowers says. “Exercising could also be powerful however when you do it, you’ll really feel higher.”

She says this mentality additionally doesn’t simply apply to train. “If you fail at one thing stand up and check out once more,” Flower says. “It’s inside us to attain what was destined for us.”

It took going by means of loads of unhealthy occasions to get to the purpose she is at, based on Flowers, however she says she goals to serve for instance to others going by means of tough conditions, letting them know that they shouldn’t permit these exhausting occasions to beat them.

“I’ve been by means of lots, however I fought by means of it,” Flowers says. “Individuals who have been by means of unhealthy occasions are usually not victims, they’re survivors. I’m a survivor.”

Along with touchdown the duvet of Muscle and Health HERS, the winner of the Ms. Well being & Health competitors will win $20,000 in money. To vote for Flowers, go to mshealthandfitness.com/2022/marlene-fl. The competition ends at 7 p.m. on Thu., June 2.