Osteoporosis can't slow down 55-year-old weightlifter

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- There is a belief that when you age, the days of hitting the gym are behind you. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Weightlifter Sharon Lederer is proving that, even with osteoporosis. For over a year, Lederer has been working with senior performance coach, Chris Slocum, at the Memorial Hermann IRONMAN Sports Medicine Institute.

"I thought it was going to be easy, but it was really difficult," said Lederer. "I've been working with Chris for the last year and a half, trying to get stronger, and I have gotten stronger."

Osteoporosis makes your bone brittle, so many stay away from weights, but Sharon's doctor recommended weightlifting to add to her bone density.

"There is a big fear there that you don't want to lift, or fracture because my bones are brittle," says Brian Duncan, Director of Human Performance at Memorial Hermann IRONMAN Sports Medicine Institute.

"The truth is your bones are brittle but as long as you are on the right nutrition plan, starting that loading in a gradual manner is absolutely what your bones need," he said.

Even in her mid-50s, Lederer is in the best shape of her life.

"I work out here, I run outside, I do barre class, I am just active," she said. "It's a lifestyle, it is not a short-term solution."