A smile stretches across Debbie Lynch's face as she looks around her home away from home, the gym at Santa Fe Spa. Exercise has become her life, her passion, and her newfound talent.

Just this summer, Lynch entered the New Mexico Fitness bodybuilding competition in the masters figure division. Little did she know she would walk away with the first-place trophy. "It was something I never thought I would do," the Santa Fe native said.

She scored higher than any other age group or height. The competition, held at the Hard Rock Casino in Albuquerque, brought in bodybuilders from around the state. Lynch's division, the masters figure, is judged on muscularity, symmetry, and definition. The figure division is one rung below bodybuilder on the competitive lifting ladder. The difference: the women in the figure division wear five-inch heels and a two-piece bathing suit. Bodybuilders compete barefoot.

Lynch was always physically active growing up. A self-described tomboy, she played volleyball, basketball and softball, and ran track in high school, winning athlete of the year an unprecedented two years in a row in her junior and senior years.

"You put her in something and she's going to win it," Lori, Debbie's sister, said.

She has continued her active lifestyle throughout her adult life, but never thought of using her well-defined muscles for anything other than increasing her self-confidence and happiness. It wasn't until her sister and friends at the gym told her she should enter a competition that she began to consider the idea.

"I didn't see myself the way they saw me," Lynch said.

Allen Chavez, a four-time winner in the New Mexico Fitness competition and fellow gym addict, jokes that he made Lynch join the competition.

"She's really dedicated, she gives it her all," he said of why he thought she would be perfect for competing in bodybuilding.

So, just 35 days before the competition, she registered and began training. Her sister, Lori, researched the competition and gave her the know-how on what to do to win.

Lynch began lifting weights seriously five years ago. Previously she had simply taken pride in staying in shape. Then, in 2003, a tragedy in the family showed her the significance of her life's passion.

"In the gym," Lynch said, "I find the answer to almost anything."

Her older brother, a Santa Fe police officer, died in an accident on his Harley Davidson motorcycle. Lynch was riding with him when it happened. She says that ever since that day, her priorities have changed.

"I traded in the iron horse for iron weights," she said.

The gym is her outlet for a broken heart or the loss of a loved one. When she works out, she finds peace.

It isn't just the irons she lifts that benefit her, but also the people around her. She has "soul sisters" at the gym, and many people who have become her extended family. She thinks nothing of spending two hours a day in the gym.

"I believe in doing what you love and loving what you do," she said.

She now knows that competitive lifting has found a place in her heart. She just wishes she had become interested in the sport at a younger age. Lynch has been a server at Santa Fe's La Choza restaurant for 27 years and has been a trainer at Santa Fe Spa for eight years. She would love to represent a company or a magazine as she continues her journey in bodybuilding, but for now, she just strives every day to better herself.

"This is the biggest satisfaction you can have," Lynch said, "when you look in the mirror and know that those hours in the gym count."