Jones-McCloy wins several body building awards
Leslie Jones-McCloy is pictured with her trainer John Blackstone. (Submitted)
In early 2021, Leslie Jones-McCloy wasn’t happy with the way her body looks. “I was 51 and feeling frumpy. Out of shape. I felt tried and weak.” She decided to start doing exercises at home. “It was up to me to change the way I looked. The first week was horrible. I kept thinking ‘What am I doing?’”
Her boss and friend, Tracy Wyler, was giving her tips to help with her workouts and encouraged her to go to Blackstone’s Gym in West Lafayette. “Tracy had been going there for years, so I tried it and I’ve been hooked ever since. John (Blackstone) asked me what my goal was when I first went and I told him to tone all over, but especially, my abs. He wrote a workout and diet plan for me.”
As she progressed, Jones-McCloy competed in a few power lifting competitions held at the gym and did pretty well. “Some people suggested I try the body building, but I didn’t think I could. I was too backwards to think about wearing a bikini in front of people – I hadn’t worn one in 30 years. But after more working out, I started to think maybe I could do it. The thought never really left my mind.”
She decided in April of this year that she wanted to try the body building competitions. “John and Susie were so supportive of me. John designed my workouts and Susie helped with posing practices. As an athlete, you don’t know what your body is capable of. My body has never looked like this. There were times I got discouraged, but John kept telling me to trust the process. Diet, exercise and being committed to it got me here.”
Jones-McCloy attended posing clinics once a month. “Pros would be there to show us how to pose for the judges. Posing is showcasing your body and all the hard work you’ve done. You have 15- 20 seconds to show the judges what you have so you have to pose the best way possible. I practiced posing an hour a day, after my workouts. I wanted it to be second nature so it just flows – and so, when I was nervous, I wouldn’t have to think about it. It took a lot of training and a lot of dieting to get here. The diet isn’t bad – just choosing to eat healthier.”
John Blackstone said, “Leslie was in our gym seven days a week. I trained her five days, and she came in the other days and did cardio and ab work. She is so dedicated. She had to learn to walk in 5” heels and the posing is so important, too. What she accomplished and won is just unheard of for a woman who has never competed before.”
On Oct. 8 Jones-McCloy and her team traveled to Lorraine Palace Theater for the Natural Northern USA competition. She won the over 50 Masters Class, the Overall Masters, True Novice and her height (5’4”) in the height classes. After winning her height class, she competed in the overall height and came in second. She lost by one point to a woman who had competed before.
Blackstone said, “She beat everyone, except that one girl. She competed against girls 30 years younger and won. Her goal was to win the over 50 class. She entered the other classes just to see how she would stack up and she won. She qualified for the national competition.”
Jones-McCloy said, “I was so nervous. I wasn’t going to look at the audience, only at the judges. I was shaking so bad, but people said they couldn’t tell. I kept telling myself to show confidence. The judges even watch you when you are on the sideline. They kept putting me center stage. I was 52 against women in their 20s. It was just so awesome.”
“I stuck to John’s guide. That was my Bible. I did what he told me to do. I’m excited that I qualified for nationals, but I’m not sure, yet, if I’ll go. I do want to go next fall again. I’m still in disbelief. I donated all of my trophies to the gym. I hope that someone will see them and be inspired to work harder and reach their goals like I did.”
“It’s been awesome. I’ve made so many friends. The support and camaraderie have been great. It touches me how many people have reached out to show their support. Honestly, it hasn’t really sunk in, yet.”
“I never dreamed that at almost 53, I would do something like this. I hope I can motivate and encourage others to follow their dreams.”
