People can achieve unimaginable feats only if they stick to their resolve. Time and time again, individuals have proved this belief to be true. And Pratibha Thapliyal is no different.
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Gold at the event in Madhya Pradesh
The 41-year-old homemaker from Pauri Garhwal in Uttarakhand has clinched gold at the 13th national senior women’s bodybuilding championship, organised recently by the Indian Body Building Federation in Ratlam, Madhya Pradesh.
What’s more remarkable is that Pratibha, the mother of two teens, brought in this laurel in only her second event and just a couple of years after taking up the sport.
But things were not so glittery for her five years ago as she struggled with increased thyroid levels.
‘My thyroid levels had risen to 50’
“My thyroid levels had risen to 50 against the level of five. The doctor advised me to work out. I joined a gym with my husband Bhupesh and lost 30kg in a few months,” Pratibha told Times of India on Friday.
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Soaring with the new-found vigour, Pratibha took part in her first competition last year in Sikkim as “Uttarakhand’s first female professional bodybuilder” and finished fourth.
‘Attitude of those who taunted me changed’
“I was hesitant to take up the sport at first, given the costume competitors are required to wear. Actually, when I first started bodybuilding, the women in my neighbourhood taunted me. Their attitude has changed now that I’ve won gold,” a smiling Pratibha said.
She revealed that her husband, Bhupesh, who is also her trainer and dietician, was the first to notice that her muscles and penchant for lifting weights had developed.
“He then asked me to take up the sport and assured me full support,” she added.
“During her school and college days in Rishikesh, she had played volleyball and cricket. She even led the state volleyball team before we got married. So, when I asked her to get into bodybuilding after seeing the response of her muscles to weight training at the gym, it seemed like a natural progression,” Bhupesh said about his wife’s journey.
He added, “Failing to get a podium finish in Sikkim, Pratib has worked very hard and spent seven hours at the gym daily with a strict diet. As a result, she won the gold in just her second event. We hope the state recognises this and helps her train better.”
Pratibha’s sons, aged 15 and 17, study in classes 10 and 12 at a school in Dehradun. The gold medallist is now gearing up for the Asian and world championships and hopes to repeat her feat.
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