At first Ashleigh Hoeta was sceptical of pole dancing, but was blown away with the amount of strength the sport requires. Photo / Supplied
"I found out at a competition I was actually quite good at it."
In March Hoeta said she felt numbness in her leg and noticed her face drooping.
She was rushed to hospital which is when she learnt she had suffered a stroke, and spent a week in hospital.
The mother of two told the Herald how she had to learn how to complete simple tasks such as how to use her fingers and move her legs.
"I'm always doing something so to then take two steps back and then have to just sit and work out how my fingers work again and move my leg it was very hard on the mental health.
"Obviously we couldn't go anywhere so I just used it to my advantage to regain all that strength; it was really hard mentally."
Despite the multiple health setbacks, she was determined to complete at the powerlifting nationals, although she was hesitant at first.
Ashleigh Hoeta spent a week in hospital after suffering a stroke in March. Photo / Supplied
"My coach was the only one after I had my stroke that was like 'no I think you can do this', that's one person ... that's the only thing I need to hear."
Her coach told her to stick with powerlifting, "we're going to get you back to being 100 per cent."
Physios told Hoeta not to compete but to slowly work her way back to her competing weight.
