Talicia Garrett channelling her physical strength to overcome mental obstacles

“When women lift heavy in the gym, they will eventually look too masculine.”

“Women should leave the heavy lifting to the men.”

One thing in life is for certain, there will always be naysayers. Some folks still believe such phrases that simply reduce what is expected of women. Women, on the other hand, being such beautiful defiant human specimens, have rightfully rebelled. Amongst the rebellious is Talica Garrett, gold medallist at the May 2022 GAPLF Intermediate Powerlifting Meet.

 

Since deciding to train for powerlifting in early 2022, Talicia Garrett (Tali) has not only continued to look amazing but has been able to destroy mental barriers whilst increasing the stack of plates. “I was a mess when I started but with every training, I prepare myself to give my best, remain focused and treat every set as if it’s my best,” said Tali in an interview.

Competing for the first time, Tali dominated the +84kg Women’s Open Raw weight class, copping the gold medal. As exciting as winning gold is, this was a humbling experience because, “I went to do it for my mental health and to say, yes, I can do this. Whatever came after was just a bonus.” 

Tali expressed that if it was not for her team, the Hybrid Elites, she would have quit from the beginning. “When I used to get frustrated, teammates Bjorn, Wazim, Matthew, Joey and Jackey would always cheer me up and encourage me,” said the gold medallist. Her coach, Paul Adams, who is also a member of the team, never holds back on giving constructive criticism that will motivate Tali to improve. “No man is an Island, and you can not excel in the sport alone because there will be bad days and it will be those same teammates [that] will push you and motivate you.”

It was her beloved team that kept her going even after sustaining an injury. A 25lb plate fell on Tali’s foot during her training in June to compete in the Raw Nationals slated for July. The contact broke two of her toes. “It was a miserable six weeks on bed rest.” Tali also had to undergo therapy for an additional four weeks and recalls how 225lbs felt like a “mountain of weights” on her back, which was prior to her injury, warm-up weights. Tali was resilient and stopped at nothing to get back on her feet and back to the bar and with her team she said, “I bounced back and got stronger than before.”

At this point, naysayers kept warning her of lifting weights, but Tali would not encourage any of it. She praised techniques learned in powerlifting for helping her to become “emotionally stronger.” “Hardly anything moves me,” shared Tali who continues to consistently train. 

The health benefits of powerlifting are tremendous, according to Tali. “It builds strength, stronger and healthier bones and muscles, builds confidence and it’s a good outlet to build your mental health.” Tali’s encouragement is to “Don’t study what people will say or the negatives, whatever you set to do just do it and the right people will fall into place.  Do it for you and remain focused.”