Alora Griffiths hits the gym every day. Sometimes twice a day. Sometimes two gyms.
The real work is done at Android Bodies on lower Wyndham Street, a stripped-down old-school joint where the fanciest piece of equipment are some idle kettle bells sitting in the corner.
People come to Android to pump iron.
Seven days a week the 23-year-old Rockwood native and St. James high school grad shows up and stretches, dons the knee supports and lifting belt, straps on the cherry red Beats By Dre headphones then grunts and grimaces her way through a short but intense workout.
Last set of the day is a series of squats with 270 pounds on her shoulders. It ends with her dropping the bar to the floor with a loud crash. Now it's off to another gym for cardio and weight machines to round out the session.
All the hard work is paying off.
Just before Christmas Griffiths took first place in the 132-pound weight class at the Arnold Class Pro Show in Columbus, Ohio. She also took home $500 for being named best female lifter in the show.
Not bad for someone who has only been power lifting for 18 months.
Competing isn't something Griffiths chooses to do, it's part of who she is.
It started when she played hockey growing up, choosing and earning the right to play goal on a series of boys rep teams rather than stick with the girls. Then came rugby, cross-fit competitions and now power lifting.
Competing is something Griffiths lives for.
"I've always been a competitor," says Griffiths.
"Whatever I've ever done: hockey, rugby, cross-fit, whatever, I compete. So when I got into power lifting there was no doubt that I was going to compete."
On April 16 she will be competing in the Canadian Power Lifting World Qualifier being held at the Guelph Holiday Inn: a day-long event that will feature 100 of the best male and female power lifters in this half of the country competing for prizes and the chance to go to the world championships this summer in Louisiana.
Power lifting competitions consist of three different lifts: bench press, squat and dead lift. Griffiths, who weighs 130 pounds, had personal records of 180 pounds (bench), 325 pounds (squat) and 405 pounds (dead lift).
"I do not want to be the strongest in the gym. I always want to be chasing, be pushing one another," Griffiths said. "You don't want to be comfortable in anything."
An army reservist for three years, Griffiths does contract work at the Bruce Nuclear Power Plant in quality control for a living.
Android Bodies owner Brody Arndt is awed at Griffiths' dedication and progress.
"There's no days that go by without her coming into the gym. Grinding every day to make it happen," says Arndt.
"Dead lifting 405 pounds is something 300 pound women can't do. So to do it at 132 pounds is one of the biggest feats of strength you can pretty much imagine."
Griffiths' competitive streak could be taking a whole other avenue later this year.
She had a tryout with the Canadian bobsleigh team in Lake Placid recently and has been invited to another tryout at the end of the summer.
If power lifting doesn't ever become an Olympic Sport, she hopes to get there as a member of the bobsleigh team.
"After the power lifting meet in Guelph I'm probably going to take an off-season and work on my speed and explosiveness. Hopefully I can make that team," she said.
