Elizabeth Smart is adding a new hobby to her docket: bodybuilding.
The child safety activist posted a photo of herself on April 21st participating in a bodybuilding competition.
Recent Bodybuilding Competition
Smart appeared on stage at the Wasatch Warrior bodybuilding and fitness competition. The event was on April 17th and 18th in Salt Lake City, Utah. She posted a picture of herself on Instagram from the event, flexing her toned muscles while posing in a bikini and heels.
Underneath the photo, she wrote, “When I posted the pictures in my (Instagram story) of me standing on stage in a bikini, it probably shocked many of you, and I understand the shock because had you asked me if I would ever compete in a bodybuilding show a couple of years ago I would have said, ‘absolutely not! Never in 100 years!'”
She added, “This was a big change for me, it was hard, it pushed me, challenged me not to give up. I am so proud of myself for doing this. I am so proud of my body, and I want to celebrate it.”
Bodybuilding to Show Strength
Bodybuilding was Smart’s way of appreciating her body’s strength and resilience.
“My body has carried me through every worst day, every hellish grueling experience, it’s created and nurtured three beautiful children, my body has risen to every single challenge life has presented it with, and carried me through so I refuse to be ashamed of it,” she wrote.
Though it wasn’t just an easy click of a button. Smart struggled with posting photos of her bodybuilding competitions because she was “too afraid” she would be “judged.” Or, that she would “somehow [be] perceived as less than or now unworthy to continue work as an advocate for all survivors.”
When she realized the thoughts were “eerily familiar” to survivors, she went and clicked the “post” button.
“I refuse to feel embarrassed about trying something new and am embracing my chance at life to the absolute fullest I can,” she added.
“I am interested in many things, and as I get older I realize more and more how important it is to make the most of today, we don’t know what tomorrow brings. And I don’t want to reach the end of my life and look back and feel regret for only living a half-life, not going after all the things I want to do and try.”
She finished her post by writing, “I only hope that we all find the courage to chase new experiences, goals, bettering ourselves, and most importantly happiness.”
Abduction Victim Now Advocate
Elizabeth Smart was 14 years old when she was abducted from her bedroom in Salt Lake City in 2002. She was raped and assaulted several times before police rescued her nine months later.
Now, she is a bodybuilder, a married mom of three, and an advocate for missing persons and sex abuse victims.
At first, she didn’t want to speak about her trauma. Then, it became a way to show others how to heal and take control of her own story.
She shared in an interview with Netflix’s Tudum in January, “After I was rescued, when I first got home, I did not want to talk about what happened with anyone. And when the trial finally happened, I remember sitting up on the stand, giving these answers, and feeling like there was no context around them.”
She added, “I remember thinking that if all of this was going to be out there anyway, I wanted it to have some meaning, and for it to serve a purpose. I wanted to have some ownership over my story. That helped me decide to share it.”
Praise for Smart
Praise for Smart has flooded her comments.
One viewer wrote, “Unexpected but all I see is a survivor who has taken her power back.”
Another added, “Now your strength is visible on the outside, too.”
Her coach, Robyn Maher, also congratulated Elizabeth Smart.
She wrote that Smart is the “toughest person I know. An amazing mother, an example to all women, kind-hearted, genuine, humble, charitable, loving, and also a badass. Yes, you can be ALL those things at once.”