Grandma, daughter and granddaughter mistaken as sisters

A 65-year woman, her daughter and 22-year-old are often startling strangers who have a hard time realising they are from three different generations.

Lesley said she loves the connection her family has. Picture: Lesley Maxwell/Caters

A grandmother, her daughter and her granddaughter turn heads as strangers are convinced the trio – who swap clothes – could be sisters.

Lesley Maxwell, a bodybuilder from Melbourne, loves hitting the gym with her daughter Vanessa Christofi, and her granddaughter, Tia Christofi, Caters News reported.

Lesley, 65, says fitness is her secret for staying so youthful.

“They’re shocked to find out that I have grandchildren, because I guess it is a little out of the ordinary to think that a grandmother is doing dead lifts and chin-ups in the gym,” she said, New York Post reported.

“However, I’d recommend weight training to women of all ages, as there are so many health benefits to training this way.”

People have a hard time telling these three generations apart. Picture: Lesley Maxwell/Caters

Lesley, who works as a fitness trainer, also encourages her clients to lift weights.

“It strengthens our bones and helps us tone our body by adding muscle. I’d love to see more women of all ages lifting weights. It’s the anti-ageing way to train,” she explained.

“I usually do four weight-training sessions a week, plus as I’m a trainer and in the gym most days, you could say that I get some incidental exercise as I’m often carrying the weights or ’spotting’ my clients,” she added.

Lesley Maxwell is a fitness trainer. Picture: Lesley Maxwell/Caters

When Lesley trains with her family, people can’t believe she and her daughter and granddaughter have such a big age difference.

“People are always surprised to learn that we are actually three totally different generations of a family. However, we always have a wonderful time together — chatting, having a laugh and training. I’m so blessed to have such a lovely family,” she said.

The family often does photo shoots together, and both Lesley and her daughter Vanessa, who prefers to keep her age private, mostly borrow 22-year-old Tia’s clothes.

She is often mistaken for her granddaughter’s mother. Picture: Tia Christofi/Caters

Lesley said her granddaughter loves to do the styling and colour co-ordination for the photo shoots.

Tia, who runs her own social media marketing agency, said she loves working out like her grandmother and stays active by going to the gym and cheerleading. When she’s with her grandmother, people think Lesley’s actually her mother.

Lesley said she loves the connection her family has. Picture: Lesley Maxwell/Caters

She said people are often taken aback when she corrects them and points out Lesley, who Tia often includes in her social media videos, is in fact her grandmother.

“She’s 43 years my senior, and we both lift weights and follow the same workout routine while dressed in similar apparel. It was a video that went viral,” she added.

Tia’s content has garnered the attention of 500,000 TikTok followers.

95

Tia said that spending time with her mum and grandmother “inspires” her, and they’ll continue to strengthen their bond — by hitting the gym.

This story originally appeared on the New York Post and reproduced with permission