Trish Swander: Past and Present

Trish Swander. A name from the past. From the days when getting my female muscle fix involved furtive purchases of Women's Physique World magazine. There she is. One of three cover girls from issue 64, December 1998. And on the inside, more of Trish all tanned and shredded in that silver bikini. Not the kind of images you forget in a hurry.




So when I saw that "Trish Swander" was listed as having finished 4th in the Physique Division at the NPC USAs, well, I don't mind telling you, I got a little bit excited.




A click later and there she was. Trish Swander. A name from the past right here in the present and looking pretty much as she had done back in 1998, despite the fact that we are talking 16 years later and by my reckoning she is in her late 40s. If you are looking for a woman to use as your advertisement for the benefits of the sport of female bodybuilding, you could do a hell of a lot worse than choose Trish.




In fact, I soon discovered, the USAs was not Trish's big comeback. That had happened about a month earlier at the Adele Garcia Classic in Pflugerville, Texas. And a triumphant return to the stage it was too, with Trish taking home the trophy.



Well, Trish posted on her Facebook page at the beginning of March, I never in a million years thought these words would ever roll off my tongue again, but here it goes... I AM 16 WEEKS OUT!!!!!!!! The last time she had been counting down to a contest was in 2001. The contest was the North Texas and Southwest USA, and Trish, competing as a heavyweight bodybuilder, won her class and the overall title. And, as befits such a huge trophy, she received it from none other than Betty Pariso (below, left).



Her journey to muscle, though, had begun a good fifteen years before that when, as a teenager, she had met and later married her trainer (then and now) David Swander. By the time she started competing in the late 90s, both as a bodybuilder and as a powerlifter, Trish was already in her early 30s, and a mother of two. She was sometimes compared to Rachel McLish, partly because they were both born in the Texas town of Harlingen, but also because of her more mainstream, more feminine muscular aesthetic at a time when the truly huge, Iris, Heather Foster, and Theresa Bostick, were winning national amateur titles and swelling the pro ranks.



And Trish still has a very clear idea about the aesthetic she wants to have in her new career as a Physique competitor. I am thrilled to have placed 4th at the USA, she says, but a little disappointed that the judges favored the less conditioned girls. These ladies had great bodies, I just prefer the leaner, more defined look for myself.



Good news is, we won't have to wait very long to see that lean, defined look again. As much as I would have loved to have won the USA title, Trish told her Facebook followers after the USAs, I will not waste a minute of my time dwelling on it. No one said earning a pro card would be easy or even fair. I have more work to do to prepare for another shot at it next month at the North Americans in Pittsburgh.




Seems this name from the past is determined to make a name for herself in the present.



Enjoy!