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Elizabeth Smart is showing a new side of herself, and she is not apologizing for it.
The longtime child safety advocate revealed this week that she is now competing in bodybuilding shows, sharing that the sport has become a powerful way to celebrate her body and push herself in a new direction.
Smart, 38, recently competed at the Wasatch Warrior bodybuilding and fitness competition in Salt Lake City, where she said she earned top finishes in multiple categories. She has now taken part in four bodybuilding competitions.
Smart said posting stage photos was not easy for her at first. In an Instagram post, she admitted she worried people might judge her, stop taking her seriously, or somehow view her as less worthy of the advocacy work that has defined much of her public life.
But in the end, she said she did not want to keep living cautiously or hide a part of herself that brings her pride.
"I am so proud of my body, and I want to celebrate it," Smart wrote, adding that her body has carried her through "every worst day" and "every hellish grueling experience." She also said she refuses to be ashamed of trying something new and wants to embrace life as fully as she can.
That is what makes this story hit.
For Smart, bodybuilding is not just about posing on a stage or collecting trophies. It is about ownership. It is about strength. And it is about refusing to let the hardest parts of her story be the only thing that defines her.
