Barbie Thomas lost her arms in an electrical accident when she was just two. Her arms were scorched down to the bone leaving them ‘like charcoal’ This weekend she competed in the NPC Junior USA Bodybuilding Championship in Charleston, South Carolina. Though she didn’t win any major awards, she got a standing ovation from the crowd

This past weekend at the NPC Junior USA Bodybuilding Championship, only one bodybuilder among hundreds of the men and women competing got a standing ovation.

Though she didn’t win any major awards, armless bodybuilder Barbie Thomas had the Charleston, South Carolina crowd cheering and on their feet.

The 37-year-old mother-of-two lost both her arms during a horrific electrical accident as a toddler – but that hasn’t stopped her from pursuing her bodybuilding dream.

She said: ‘I’d say  to anyone, you can do whatever you put your mind to.

‘The only  limitations are the ones you put on yourself. Everyone has limitations and  handicaps in some way or another – mine are more visible than yours  maybe

Competition organizer, Tres Bennett, was first introduced to Thomas when she requested that her trainer be allowed to come backstage – a request he normally rejects.

But was astonished when she said: ‘I need him to help me put on my costume. It’s because I have no arms.’

They have been firm friends ever since.

No limitations: Thomas, pictured on stage this weekend, believes you can do  whatever you put your mind to

Thomas says she can do anything an average person can do – except she uses her feet.

That includes brushing her teeth, making dinner, taking milk out of the fridge, texting, shopping, putting on makeup and even driving.

‘Everyone has limitations and handicaps in some way or another – mine are more visible than yours maybe’ 

The single mom – who has been married three times – began bodybuilding back in 2003.

She said: ‘I used to read about all the fitness competitors in magazines – and I thought that was the coolest thing ever. I wanted to be like them and do the things they were doing. I thought it was amazing.’

Thomas decided to take the plunge into the sport after years of doubting herself and wondering if she’d even qualify because she didn’t have arms to do the competition mandatories: ‘I finally called the locale chairperson and talked to him about it; and he gave me the green light. 

Managing motherhood: Thomas admits there are certain challenges when it comes to  raising her two sons, but says she just uses her feet where others might use  their hands

‘So in 2003 I entered my first fitness competition and loved it. Now it’s in my blood and I can’t live without it.’

Thomas lost her arms when she was two years old. She climbed onto an electrical transformer and grabbed the wires. The electricity entered her hands and surged through her body – scorching her arms down to the bone and turning them into something ‘like charcoal.’

Rare skill: Thomas demonstrates how she uses her feet to text on her phone

 The doctor said I wouldn’t live – and if I did live, I’d probably be a vegetable,’ she said.

‘But God had a different plan for me; I’m still here, healthy, and alive and well.’

Not only is Thomas alive and well but she continues to push her body to the limits by dancing, swimming and playing soccer.

‘My first few fitness competitions I did get some funny looks,’ she admitted. ‘I’m sure people were wondering what I thought I was doing up there. Obviously it’s a physique competition and I’m missing part of my physique and I don’t have the symmetry of what they are looking for.

‘But after I did my routine for the first time, people realized that I was an athlete just like the rest of them – and I did belong up there.’

 Anything is possible: Thomas believes that the mind is a really very powerful  thing – and so is attitude
When not competing, Thomas loves doing the things a normal mom would do and enjoys looking after her two sons.

She added: ‘Yes there are the challenges and trials that come with bringing up kids. I don’t think mine were any different – I just had to use my feet. But I got through it and my kids got through it.’

‘Sometimes I have to sit on the floor or sometimes I have to sit on the counter – but its still the same stuff you do. The mind is a really very powerful thing and so is attitude – and if you keep a really positive attitude and believe in yourself and believe that you can – then anything is possible.’

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