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Hulda B Waage, also knows as the Vegan Viking, has smashed her own national record in the Icelandic Benchpress Championships. The lift adds to her range of records in the country known for strength sports.
The previous record (which was Hulda’s) was 140kg. This means she’s added a large chunk to the national best and leaves a large margin before her nearest rival.
‘It was so satisfying’
“I almost, or actually did cry a little bit,” Hulda told Great Vegan Athletes. “I’ve been benching this weight at training for more than a year but didn’t manage while competing until today. It was so satisfying!”
Powerlifting meets give participants three lifts, and Hulda broke her record with a 142.5 kg lift on the second lift.
Unsurprisingly, she has been working hard – although wasn’t convinced of her progress.
“I have felt like I’m constantly working and putting in work without gaining,” Hulda explains. “But I saw today that I’ve actually been doing well. I think everything is going according to plan.”
The Vegan Viking
Hulda has long held all the national records available to her. She turned vegan in 2014 after discovering it as a teenager and was voted Vegan Athlete of the Year back in 2017.
“I was watching videos on YouTube thinking about how I was going to lose weight after having my younger daughter,” she explains.
“I went through videos of Raw Christina, followed by Earthlings. Suddenly I remembered how much veganism meant to me and how I had blocked my feelings towards the meat, dairy and egg industry for all those years. No more! So in a week or so I went vegan.”
Hulda soon is set to attend the nationals next month – and will be in Dubai competing at the IPF World Championships the month after.
This article was originally published on Great Vegan Athletes
