Lang Toun bodybuilder turns professional after win in Miami

Suzanne King, who now lives in Bristol, won the World Bodybuilding Championships in Miami in October – granting her a Pro Card to compete at the highest level.

The win came after two successful – one win and one runner-up – attempts at the British Natural Bodybuilding Federation.

Suzanne has been training since she was 14, saying she “always wanted to lift weights and develop my body to stay fit. I enjoyed sport at school and played hockey for Scotland under-18s.”

Two years ago she started entering competitions after “getting the bug again” – culminating in her win in the United States at the age of 47.

Suzanne had competed in a few competitions at “about the age of 16 or 17” in Scotland after lifting weights at the Shape-Up Gym (now called Bodyzone) in Kirkcaldy. She still trains there when visiting the Lang Toun.

Reflecting on her win, she admits that she did not expect or plan to be turning pro when re-entering competition.

“My thought was I am just going to do one show and see how I get on,” she said. “To go from there to Miami, it’s amazing when you look back.”

Her plan is now to take next year off from competing – “it’s very tough on the body and mind” – and will look into entering professional competitions in 2018.

Discussing her winning routine, she said: “I would weight train about five times per week, concentrating on specific body parts. If that means getting up at 4.30am to do cardio before starting work at 7am then that’s what I had to do.”