THEY may think they are just an average family but this trio are as close to a real life version of The Incredibles as you're likely to find.Ann and Neil Thomas really are a 'power couple' with both of them being world champions in the sport of powerlifting and now their four year old daughter Morgan seems to be heading the same way.

THEY may think they are just an average family but this trio are as close to a real life version of The Incredibles as you're likely to find.

Ann and Neil Thomas really are a 'power couple' with both of them being world champions in the sport of powerlifting and now their four year old daughter Morgan seems to be heading the same way.

Twenty-seven-year-old Mrs Thomas, who weighs just 54kilos, recently clinched the world record when she lifted a staggering 130kilos at the World Single Lift Championship.

And her 34-year-old husband was also crowned world champion at the event in Australia.

The couple from Little Lumpkid Hadleigh have been married for six years after meeting on military detachment.

Little Morgan already gives advice on their training and longs for the day she can follow in her parents' footsteps.

Mr Thomas, a member of the army based at Wattisham's Seven Air Assault Battalion REME, said: “She has her own inflatable barbell and will say to me 'straighten your back, daddy'.

“We've potentially got a four-year-old champion on our hands.

“It is a great thing to be able to do this as a family, many couples just spend time together eating and watching television but we train together and share our passion which is brilliant.

“There are plenty of people who watch what they eat and do activities but we've taken it to a level that we compete in.

“We are Mr and Mrs Joe Average but we have found that we are good at what we like doing.”

But Mrs Thomas, who is also based at Wattisham and is a member of the RAF, admitted that her dedication to the sport had resulted in some dramatic changes to her lifestyle.

She said: “Before I started 18 months ago I thought 'yeah right - I could never do that' especially as I didn't seem to be built for it.

“But now I get such a rush out of lifting.

“I have changed what I eat, I now have lots of protein with fish, chicken and vegetables, and I've had to cut out the takeaways, I'm two-and-a-half stone lighter now!”

n. Does your family have an unusual interest? Write to The Evening Star news desk at 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN or email eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk

Powerlifting

Powerlifting is a relatively new sport with the first World Championships taking place in the early 1970s.

It is different to Weightlifting and relies more on the lifter's static strength and control.

There are three different lifts performed and with all three the idea is to lift as much weight as possible.

Neil competes in the bench press category where the bar is presented to the lifter by two side spotters.

Ann competes in the dead-lift category where the bar is pulled from the floor until you are standing upright with the knees locked.

The final type of lift is the squat where the bar is held across the shoulders.

Source: British Powerlifting