How this young mother became a bodybuilding champ

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Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Bodybuilding is not new in India, but women bodybuilders still manage to raise eyebrows and pique curiosity. A common question that’s lobbed at women bodybuilders is ‘why?’.

For Hyderabad-based Syed Asifa the reason came after she became a mother in 2017. “After experiencing postpartum trauma, I started running to get fit. Meeting other athletes inspired me and led me to the gym and the world of bodybuilding," she says.

The 29-year-old is now set to participate in the 15th World Bodybuilding and Physique Sports Championships in the Maldives from 5-11 November. Asifa did her first 5km run as a new mother in 2017 when she was 22. Between 2018 and 2020, she completed her post-graduation while also training and competing in half marathons across the country.

But it wasn’t until July 2019 that she ventured into bodybuilding. It didn’t take too long for her to push herself and compete at the district, zonal and national levels. “In 2023, I won a district level competition in Karimnagar, Telangana, and the fourth position at the nationals in Ludhiana, Punjab.

This year, I won the overall championship in Katpadi district, Tamil Nadu," she says. In March this year, she competed in a national bodybuilding event in Shirdi, Maharashtra, and secured the fourth position. In June, she was selected for the World Championship in Kochi.

“I’ve competed and won several titles, including the Telangana Amateur Bodybuilders and Fitness Association Championship, where I won first place," she beams with pride. The selection process for the 15th World Bodybuilding and Physique Sports Championship was rigorous, Asifa recalls. The Indian Body Builders Federation (IBBF) held a selection trial on 11-12 May in