AUGUSTA - Laryssa McCloud was stressed out from working on her doctorate one day in 1994. So she went to the gym and tried to lift a barbell. <br>
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She was shocked at how hard it was. But she committed herself to working on it. <br>
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Two years later she won the first of two World Natural Powerlifting Federation championships. <br>
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McCloud now is a postdoctoral fellow at the Medical College of Georgia studying the early impact of diabetes on blood vessels in the lungs. <br>
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She's also featured in the current issue of Muscle and Fitness Hers magazine. <br>
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She says being successful at both requires a great deal of discipline. <br>
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But the 34-year-old's first priority is in her research. She quit competing in 1998 to focus on her studies. <br>
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She still holds the record in her division for the deadlift, having lifted 440 pounds. For the championships, she had the highest combined total in several different lifts. <br>
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She now works in the Vascular Biology Center and has one of six integrative cardiovascular biology fellowships at the medical college.
