{"id":24317,"date":"2026-07-09T06:31:37","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T06:31:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24317"},"modified":"2026-07-09T06:31:37","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T06:31:37","slug":"couch-potato-mum-unrecognisable-as-she-becomes-a-bodybuilder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24317","title":{"rendered":"‘Couch potato’ mum unrecognisable as she becomes a bodybuilder"},"content":{"rendered":"


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\n Lyndsey Kelly, 47, weighed 13st 7lbs at her heaviest, eating takeaways at least once a week, drinking every Friday and weekend, and rarely exercising.\n<\/p>\n

\n But as she hit her mid-40s, Lyndsey thought it was now or never to turn her life around.\n<\/p>\n

\n She got a personal trainer<\/a> and started fitting in workouts at 4am, before she started her 12-hour shifts as a machine operator.\n<\/p>\n

\n Lyndsey found a love for weightlifting and now at 8st 8lbs she competes in bodybuilding competition.\n<\/p>\n

\n Lyndsey Kelly (Image: Lyndsey Kelly \/ SWNS)<\/em><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n The mum-of-one, from Bolton said: “I work 12-hour shifts so I get up at 4am and do 40 minutes of fasted cardio, then I walk to work and do a weights session in the gym<\/a> after my shift finishes.\n<\/p>\n

\n “At first it was agony, but after a couple of weeks you get into it, and it becomes routine.\n<\/p>\n

\n “I quite enjoy it now because I like the structure and the discipline, but that only comes with time.\n<\/p>\n

\n “I\u2019m not killing myself with cardio, it\u2019s just consistency.”\n<\/p>\n

\n Lyndsey says she was previously a “couch potato” who did no cardio and sat around drinking every weekend.\n<\/p>\n

\n She said: “I was eating too much, drinking too much, having takeaways and doing no exercise.\n<\/p>\n

\n “I’d just had enough.\n<\/p>\n

\n “I changed for my son.\n<\/p>\n

\n “I wanted to be a role model and show him what you can achieve.”\n<\/p>\n

\n In January 2024, Lyndsey decided to make a change and entered an online competition to win three months of coaching with a personal trainer.\n<\/p>\n

\n Although she didn’t win, the coach contacted her afterwards to ask if she still wanted to work together.\n<\/p>\n

\n Lyndsey Kelly (Image: Lyndsey Kelly \/ SWNS)<\/em><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n Lyndsey told Talk to the Press: “I thought the money I’d spend on coaching was the money I’d been spending on alcohol and takeaways anyway.\n<\/p>\n

\n “I pay for three months coaching at a time which costs me \u00a3350, which is cheap compared to some coaches out there, but it\u2019s a lifestyle choice.\n<\/p>\n

\n Lyndsey Kelly a (Image: Lyndsey Kelly \/ SWNS)<\/em><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n “I yo-yo\u2019d with my weight over the years, particularly when my son was young as he was my priority and I would put myself on the backburner.\n<\/p>\n

\n “But he is 16 now so I\u2019ve got so much more time.\n<\/p>\n

\n “I signed up with Craig two and a half years ago and I still check in with him every Sunday.\n<\/p>\n

\n “I know I can’t get away with anything.”\n<\/p>\n

\n Lyndsey swapped chicken kebabs for five meals a day which are carefully weighed out.\n<\/p>\n

\n Every single day, Lyndsey\u2019s menu<\/a> includes oats and yoghurt, chicken and rice, chicken wraps, mince meat with potatoes and vegetables, and sourdough bread with peanut butter.\n<\/p>\n

\n Her coach was a bodybuilding specialist so she got into bodybuilding straight away, eventually building up to enter the 2026 NABBA North West bodybuilding competition.\n<\/p>\n

\n Now her cardio work typically involves time on a static bike or on the Stairmaster, and most of her weight work focuses on heavy dumbbells.\n<\/p>\n

\n Lyndsey said: “Women always say that they don’t want to get too bulky and that they just want to tone up, but toning up comes from building muscle.\n<\/p>\n

\n “You\u2019re not going to turn into a man overnight by lifting weights.\n<\/p>\n

\n “It’s actually very hard for women to build muscle because we don’t naturally have the same testosterone levels, so its all about what we eat.”\n<\/p>\n

\n On June 13, the mum finished second in the NABBA North West bodybuilding finals.\n<\/p>\n

\n Lyndsey Kelly (Image: Lyndsey Kelly \/ SWNS)<\/em><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n She initially entered in the toned category but judges moved her into the athletic class because of her muscle definition and conditioning.\n<\/p>\n

\n She said: “I was really nervous, but what I’ve taken away is to just have fun, don’t take it too seriously.\n<\/p>\n

\n “Everybody is so lovely and puts you at ease.\n<\/p>\n

\n “You\u2019ve worked hard so it\u2019s time to show it off.”\n<\/p>\n

\n Lyndsey now shares her fitness journey with her 11,000 followers on Instagram @lynds.lifts.\n<\/p>\n

\n For anyone considering starting their own fitness journey later in life, she advises: “You’ve got to get used to it and give it time.\n<\/p>\n

\n “It can be a bit boring at first, but once you start seeing results, you realise it works.\n<\/p>\n

\n “Trust the process.”\n<\/p>\n

\n BEFORE DIET BREAKFAST – bacon butty LUNCH – Subway sandwich, pasties or pies DINNER – lasagne or spag bowl SNACKS – chocolate bars, flapjacks or crisps\n<\/p>\n

\n AFTER DIET MEAL 1 – sourdough bread with peanut butter MEAL 2 – chicken wraps MEAL 3 – chicken and rice MEAL 4 – mince meat with potatoes and vegetables MEAL 5 – oats and yoghurt\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n