Georgia Woman Becomes a Weight Lifter after Almost Becoming Paralyzed

A woman from Georgia almost became paralyzed due to a horseback riding accident but recovered and even became a weight lifter, according to the Daily Mail.

Georgina Hodson, 27, met a horseback riding accident in 2007 when she crashed into a tree. Some of the injuries she incurred included a broken nose, a cracked head and damaged vertebrae. Her attending physicians feared that she may have also injured her spine resulting to her being paralyzed but she didn't. "I had a freak accident and there was a very real chance I had seriously damaged my vertebrae and my doctors feared that I may be paralyzed. I had to have 75 stitches in my forehead and my nose had been smashed off my face," she said.

As part of her recovery, Hodson, who just measures five feet and two inches began doing gentle and light exercises in the gym and eventually progressed into weight building to regain her strength. "I'm not only physically strong, I have an emotional strength which has driven me forward and has helped me through my recovery," she lamented.

"At school I had always been picked on for being little - I used to get called 'squirt' because I was so small but when I started power lifting and training I felt empowered and I realized I can become strong," she added. Hodson has just broken a British record by lifting 154 pounds, despite only weighing 105 herself. "I actually managed to do something that no other woman in my weight class in Britain has done before. I managed a 67.5 kilogram squat, but then I decided to try and break my own record and managed to lift 70 kilograms." Hodson regularly trains with her husband who is a personal trainer.