Noble falls short in Guinness World Record bid; raises money for 9/11 foundation

RYE — Natalie Noble was almost eight hours into her quest to set a Guiness World Record for most pull-ups in a 24-hour span last Saturday when her body started to shut down. She eventually bowed out of her attempt at Flight House Gym.

"Nothing was getting better, nothing was getting easier," said Noble, a Spaulding High School graduate. "I pushed as far and as long as I could. I definitely did the best that I could, but I know for a future attempt what to avoid, and what to do differently. I definitely have plans on attempting this again."

Noble pushed for a couple more hours and ended her chase at 1,669 reps, well short of the record of 4,081 set in 2021 . She knows she gave it all she could, and didn't walk away disappointed.

"Honestly, at the end of the day, I know I gave it my best effort, and that's OK," Noble said. "I went for as long as I could. I went for over 10 hours and then my body just kind of shut down. I definitely pushed passed a mental barrier. People pulled me out of my head time and time again throughout the time. I definitely don't think I would've been able to get as far if I didn't have all the support that I did. I am definitely thankful for that."

Raising money for a good cause

Noble and fellow members of Flight House Gym pledged to donate money for each pull-up she did to the Tunnels to Towers Foundation. The foundation was started in honor of Stephen Gerard Siller, a New York City firefighter, who lost his life during the 9/11 attacks.

"At the end of the day, I did (this world record attempt) for a bigger cause," Noble said. "It's for something better and more fulfilling than just me going for a world record.

"My back hurts, my elbows hurt, my core hurts, it felt like I got hit by a train, and then shot in the back 100 times," Noble said. "But, at the end of the day, it was all worth it and I will 100 percent do this again."

Soreness, body fatigue still lingering days after

Noble said she's still feeling soreness and body fatigue. Last Saturday, coincidently her birthday, Noble said she felt strong and was able to bank up some reps early on - reaching 1,000 pull-ups in about 4 1/2 hours.

Her goal going into the event was to do five pull-ups a minute.

"That wasn't sustainable long-term," she said. "I dropped down to reps of four and reps of three, and then eventually towards the end of my 10 hours, it was single reps over and over. It was hard every single time."

Noble could feel how tired her body was right around the eight-hour mark.

"Mentally, I just felt really drained, but I knew I wanted to keep going," Noble said. "Physically, I was draining energy all together ... all the pain was worth it"

Noble is thankful the labrum injury she suffered in her right shoulder in January did not cause any issues in Saturday's attempt.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Noble falls short in Guinness World Record bid; raises money for 9/11 foundation