Elizabeth Smart feels “liberated” after starting competitive bodybuilding

Elizabeth Smart says she feels “liberated” after starting a new chapter in her life as a competitive bodybuilder.

Smart, 38, is widely known as a child safety advocate after surviving a kidnapping and months of abuse as a teenager. In a recent interview with CBS Mornings, she explained that entering bodybuilding has been both rewarding and frightening.

She said stepping on stage in a bikini for the first time was especially difficult because she had always been a modest person. “It felt like the most vulnerable thing I could possibly do,” she said.

Despite her fears, Smart continued competing. By her fourth competition, she won first place in her category. She shared her achievement online and said the experience has helped her feel more confident and free.

Smart explained that for years she worried about being taken seriously. She feared that showing a different side of herself might affect her work as an advocate for survivors of sexual violence. Now, she says, she feels she can be more than one thing at once.

“I can be a bodybuilder, I can feel strong and confident, and I can still do my work supporting women and children,” she said.

Smart also described bodybuilding as a way to appreciate her body after everything it has endured. She called it a “celebration” of her strength and resilience.

Elizabeth Smart was kidnapped in 2002 at age 14 and held captive for nine months before being rescued. Since then, she has become a prominent voice for survivor advocacy.

She says her new path in bodybuilding is part of her ongoing healing and a way to fully embrace life.