Supermom

May 4, 2008

When Sally Pomante walked into the spotlight at the Leelanau Sands Showroom to claim the title of Miss Grand Traverse last month, it was a familiar moment. After all, she had won the same bodybuilding title as the “best of the best” 11 years ago.
Today, Sally, 51, looks rock-solid and ripped from her long hours in the gym and months of an extreme diet. At the April show, she won the masters 35-and-older class as well as the ‘short’ class in order to take the top title. Not bad for the mother of two grown children, Jen, 17, and Sara, 22. “In fact, I’m also a grandma, since Sara has two boys, ages three and one,” she says.
A resident of Kalkaska, where she lives with six pet dogs and operates her Champion Cleaning Company, Pomante has always been attracted to physical pursuits. She raced stock cars as an 18-year-old back in the day when she was running a ‘68 Camaro around the track in Elmira. She also tried figure skating and still enjoys kick-boxing.
But it’s body-building and sculpting where she really shines. She started weight-training in the wake of a divorce at the age of 38, winning both the Miss Grand Traverse title as well as first prize at the Bentley’s Gym show in Petoskey in 1997.
A member of Fit For You gym in Traverse City since 1995, she trains with owner Jeff Gauthier as well as personal trainer Steve Rife.

AN EXTREMIST
“Steve says I’m an extremist, but I feel that if I’m going to train, I’m going to make sure I win,” she says with a laugh.
Her win was literally a dream come true.
“Last year I had a dream that I should get back in competition,” she recalls. “And the dream was so real. I was at the gym and Jeff said in my dream: ‘You need to get back to training and get back in the gym,’ so I started training for the show on October 7th.”
That meant an hour-long workout Monday, Wednesday and Friday, isolating specific muscles for training. She’s continued her training beyond last month’s show: Monday it’s chest, biceps and calves; Wednesday means emphasis on the back, triceps and abs; and Friday it’s shoulders, legs and abs. On the ‘between’ days, she does an hour of cardio, usually kick-boxing.
But weightlifting is only half of what goes into winning a bodybuilding contest. “I started an intense nutrition program last November for the show on April 5th,” she says.
That meant a regimented diet that typically included 12 egg whites and oatmeal for breakfast; a snack of no-fat cottage cheese and yogurt in mid-morning; a lunch of chicken breast and potato; afternoon snack of a rice cake and peanut butter; and dinner being grilled fish and fresh green vegetables.
“Then at the end of your training, you don’t eat any carbs at all,” she says. “The only sweet I was allowed to have was from a yam.”
Two days before the show, things got really extreme, with Pomante being unable to drink any water for 55 hours. Cutting off liquids dehydrates the body enough to provide maximum muscle definition. “After the show, I went and chugged a liter of water.”
Currently, she’s weight-training with her daughter Jen, who is a junior at Central High School in Traverse City. “She’s quite an athlete,” Pomante says, noting that her daughter is in varsity basketball and is a catcher for the softball team. “Once the summer comes, we’re going to train together with Jeff at Fit For You, where I’m gearing up for body-sculpting. I don’t know if I’ll compete in Miss Grand Traverse again, but I might compete in Grand Rapids or Detroit.”

Kimberly Purdy Update:

TV 9&10’s Kimberly Purdy was the subject of an article by Rick Coates in April, regarding her competition in the GT Bodybuilding and Figure Championship. How did she do?
Kimberly took first place in the ‘tall’ women competition and second place in the masters women, ages 35-and-older.