LOCAL LIFE
ONE OF THE HAWKESBURY’ S FINEST...
Lauren putting her clients through their exercises at her Women’ s Fitness Collective gymnasium. by Greg Martin
Well, I headed off to interview a strong woman- a physically strong woman.
But after chatting with the delightful Lauren McMillen, I quickly discovered her strength stretches far beyond muscle. It extends to family, work ethic, and the 75 women of all ages who proudly call her Women’ s Fitness Collective gym in Richmond their second home.
It was the 31-year-old’ s physical prowess that first grabbed my attention.
Lauren is the third strongest woman in Australia- you wouldn’ t want to kick sand in her face down at the beach( Baby Boomers know what I mean)- and the 18th strongest woman in the world.
She claimed that remarkable world ranking while competing in the under-73kg division at the prestigious 2024 Strongman Games in Arlington, Texas, held from November 20 – 23.
The event attracted around 400 competitors from 32 nations. Women in Lauren’ s division faced four brutal events- and I nearly developed a hernia just listening to her describe them.
“ We had to repetitively log press for 60 seconds with a log weighing 79 kilos and deadlift an awkwardly shaped 204kg timber frame for 60 seconds,” Lauren said.
“ Fair dinkum- unbelievable,” I interrupted. But wait, there’ s more!“ We then deadlifted 206 kilos up a ladder and finished the competition by carrying a 79kg sandbag up and over a series of steeples, again within a 60-second time limit,” she explained.
Lauren earned her invitation to this elite event by finishing third at the Australian Championships in Bendigo last March- a podium placing that automatically qualified her for Arlington.
While Lauren’ s physical strength is impressive, true success also demands mental toughness.
And it’ s safe to say Lauren is strong in the grey matter too. Much as I admire her achievements as a competitive strongwoman, they are almost overshadowed by her incredible work ethic.
Lauren grew up in Glenhaven with parents Rod and Cheryl, and older brother Jaryd. She completed her schooling at
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6 ISSUE 189 // FEBRUARY 2026 theindependentmagazine. com. au THE HAWKESBURY INDEPENDENT