powerlifting event

[cookiedough]

My kid turned 17 just a few days ago and pretty much on his own the past 2 years has been lifting weights non-stop near daily, enjoys it and is doing him good.  So good in fact he entered a 3 event combined weight in bench, squat, and deadlift for 165lb. weight class for high school qualifying state event.  He qualified for state competition today getting 1st place in the first ever for him qualifying event towards state competition at 965lbs. total just missing the WI state record around 985lbs. or so and would have matched it if his 235lb. bench press would have gone up which he has done before on his own.   I thought he had the 235lb. bench since was 3/4 way up and one inch tops to go up but not use to the rules as well having to hold the bar up 1 second and on his chest one second (the biggie) before pushing it up vs. the usual quick bump off the chest and up.  I think also his squat and deadlift can be pumped up to 10-15lbs. more each since his weights he did were not maxed out but close, but no sense in doing his MAX for just a qualifying event only needing around 850lbs. total to qualify which is a feat in itself for anyone weighing 165lbs. let along just turning age 17 not fully developed yet am sure.

It was funny when other coaches from much bigger powerlifting schools who have actual powerlifting programs with 50-60 kids in them asked him who his coach was with him saying he came up with just his mom.   His class am sure and high school was the smallest there at about 20 kids in his junior class and under 100 kids in the entire high school small K-12 one school system with hardly anyone lifting weights but him at the small school weight room.   He may do one more qualifying event for more practice even though not needed to qualify any longer for state but we feel he can maybe come close or  hit the 1000 lb. club which is very rare for a 165lb. weight class after only turning age 17 just a few days ago.     He put me to shame some 30 years ago outdoing the old man when I was 195lbs. vs. his only 165lb. weight class and one year younger as well...  

A few coaches already have texted him and in support of him since they feel he can place 1 or 2 in state in his weight class as well as possibly be in the top 5 in the national event in 2018.  Pretty impressed knew he was good but not that good. 

Seeing some female high school and youth and massive 275lb.+ big bruisers lifting so much was impressed all the way around for sure vs. the olden days with just having one arm curl bar, bench bar, and squat rack at our disposal. 

[Wetrudgeon]

Congrats to your kid.  We dabbled in a bit of power lifting years ago. It's a good sport.

We trudge on.

[John Schmidt]

That boy is making dad proud, good on you Cookie. Re. his mom being there with him, I would love to have seen the reaction from the other coaches.   

I recall as a kid about 16 I had use of an Olympic set of weights while an older friend was in the Army for two years. I was bragging to my dad about what I could lift so one day I was working out and he comes down the the basement to see how things are going. I said "watch this" and proceeded to deadlift 250 lbs., dad said that's great....so I made the mistake of challenging him....big old barrel chested German that he was. So he walked over, grabbed the bar in the center with one hand and stood up with it.....then asked what do I do with it now. I didn't say a word, just walked away....totally humiliated. It never dawned on me the man was only 48, and the two of us would referee church league basketball games together in winter. He was in great shape....and strong.   

[cookiedough]

was shocked at how well run it was since never been to one before either never had such stuff locally way back 30 years ago.  To have 500+ kids show up from ages 13 on up male and female start at 9:30 - 4 p.m. doing 3 lifts each in 3 separate lift events taking around 30 seconds in between kids to change bar height and weights was impressed at how smoothly and quickly it went with only 4 lifting stations.  To change the weights alone back and forth 1000's of times would tire me out for sure and they kept it running very quickly they surely knew what they were doing.   I thought for sure seeing the number of kids and only 4 lift stations that we would be there until midnight.

Only thing which took forever was handing out medals but they had to wait until the big dudes over 275lbs. were done deadlifting their 550+ lbs.   Our kid wanted to stay since was happy as a lark to the very end handing out all the medals but that would be another 30 minutes or more, got home late enough as it was having to eat as well.

[Rams]

My daughter got into power lifting for a couple of years.   She won several events but, backed off when she got hurt by dropping a 300 lbs. weighted bar on her neck breaking something off one of her vertebrae parts.   She also intimidated a lot of men.   Now she instructs Cross Fit.

I'm much happier with the crossfit thing, she could have had a much worse outcome from that bar bell incident.   

[cookiedough]

well it has been 1 year now and kid now age 18 and moved up from 165 to 198lb. class beefing up.  He placed first again in state qualifying meet nearest competitor 60lbs. less in 2nd place for all 3 lifts.  He upped all 3 from previous meet by 20lbs. each, now 265lb. bench,  385 squat (can do more not maxed out for sure but saved some for the deadlift),  and never knew he could do it, but attempted and lifted 525lb. deadlift NON equipped RAW division was best 505lbs. a few weeks ago thought that was enough.  His hands were slightly bleeding ripped opened though from lifting that much weight 525lbs.

When he went to Nationals last year as a junior in that 165lb. range fighting to maintain that low weight as well near starving himself before the meet (not good),  he placed 10th in nation but I think around 5th in state competition.   Regional events are great placing 1 thru 3rd place, but once you get into all of state and all of the nation showing up,  there will always be someone stronger.  Just glad he beefed up some for 165lbs. was too hard to maintain that weight for him, but maybe very do-able he can get into that lower 185lb category since only 191lbs. and going up against beefier 198lbers. same category who in the state and nation can do more.  

There is an EQUIPPED category where they use special compression suits and knees to spring them back up for squat and deadlift around 80-100lbs. increase in weight able to lift (depends on kid), but my kid does not feel comfortable using such methods as a few of his buddies in other school system have done.  One bruiser kid in my kids weight class best buds from other school darn near deadlifted 640lbs. equipped - WOW, and WOW squatted 600lbs. EQUIPPED though, but still, that is a TON of weight for an 18 year old or any age.  If this kid did just RAW non equipped category he would surely place 1st place in nation/state though easily over my kid.  To see over 600lbs. on any bar bending is unimagineable to me even for the 300+ lbers. who were doing say 660lbs. or so at age 17/18.  It also helps in general being shorter with beefier chest as his best bud is with tree trunks for legs and arms in all 3 events not having to go up/down as far with shorter legs/arms and beefier chest.

I remember as a junior/senior in high school our bruiser gym coach bench pressing 350lbs. asking me to spot him.  Like I could barely LIFT that much off the ground just glad he did not drop it on his chest would've been hard all by myself to get it off of him.  I was doing around 235 bench, 365 squat, and around 440 deadlift at 195lbs. near same weight as my kid who then and of course now blows me away.  Then again,  I did not lift weights near daily for 2 hours per day either since events were not around locally back then as they are now.  The school system we went to yesterday has a smaller town population than ours under 1200 people and yet somehow they have a double full gym in newer nicer school, with a huge powerlifting team and lifting facility.  Where the school system in the middle of nowhere 2 hours away gets that kind of funding is beyond reasoning?

[Jess from VA]

I spend my days trying to lift as little as possible.  

I congratulate him for his achievements though.

I was always fast; it was safer than strong. 

[semo97]

Good for your son been down the same road but in football for two of our sons. What type strength training program does your son  have and nutrition program?  They say if the weight training and nutrition is 100% done correctly the body can put an average of 12/15 lbs. of muscle on a yr. you do not need extra water or fat. I am not trying to be rude or critical. Like you said if he could have been in the 180lb bracket with nothing but gained muscle. Your son has the heart, desire  and ability  but the school apparently did not have the right program for weight training and conditioning. I just have some concerns, over training , the 33 lb. wt. gain and lifting wt. should have been increased more. That is just my observation from what you wrote and years of working out with my sons and still working out making it a science, study technic and benefits. The school my kids went to in Texas power lifting, weight training, conditioning  and football was a religion.

[cookiedough]

Good for your son been down the same road but in football for two of our sons. What type strength training program does your son  have and nutrition program?  They say if the weight training and nutrition is 100% done correctly the body can put an average of 12/15 lbs. of muscle on a yr. you do not need extra water or fat. I am not trying to be rude or critical. Like you said if he could have been in the 180lb bracket with nothing but gained muscle. Your son has the heart, desire  and ability  but the school apparently did not have the right program for weight training and conditioning. I just have some concerns, over training , the 33 lb. wt. gain and lifting wt. should have been increased more. That is just my observation from what you wrote and years of working out with my sons and still working out making it a science, study technic and benefits. The school my kids went to in Texas power lifting, weight training, conditioning  and football was a religion.

Its all good, no offense taken.  In 1 year age almost 17 to now age 18 recently,  he went from 164lbs. I think maxing out that class (was struggling to maintain that lightweight could tell was not healthy him not eating much) to now 191lbs. competing in the 198lb. class.  I think the next weight down is around 184lbs. (it varies on each event a few lbs.) which would be nice to see him at could do.  Our tiny school does not have a lifting weight program he is the ONLY one in entire school (all 22 kids per class) who lifts weights not at the high school since no real weights to use, but he pays 25 bucks per month to drive 15 miles to nearby small town who has a gym with weights, etc. about 4 times weekly.  He is his own nutritionist so to speak (no lifting coach does all by himself only one that I know of in all schools lifting been to where all else have groups of kids (team) in their bigger schools) and he watches what he eats more so than any other high schooler I will ever know of.  NO junk food or pop TONS of water, and a lot of chicken, yogurt, 1% cottage cheese,  tuna, etc.    He even weighs his food before cooking so to not have too little or too much. I do not say much for I have no clue on calories, carbs, etc. but maybe I should, or so the wife says!!!   

Last year at 164ish this time bench was 235lbs. now 265lbs.,  squat I think was 345 lbs. now 385lbs. ( little low can do more am sure of it never fully maxed it out yet), and deadlift last year was around 450ish now 525lbs..   Am sure if he had a personal trainer or lifting team, he could do slightly better, but not much, as evident by him already placing in the top 3 in almost all events except nationals where the best of the best in USA show up from every state.  He enjoys it making new, closer friends in other schools doing same lifting and that is what counts since unfortunately in this small town,  not much really good happens in the school system.  He even jokingly wanted to move to that smaller town 2 hours north for his senior year with his lifting buddies but that was not going to happen but pretty sure his lifting buddies would allow him to live with him up there....   If he goes to Nationals in Louisiana in 2019 qualifying in state competition, he is hoping his lifting buddies up north 2 hours who qualify for nationals will allow him to tag along in the school van paying his share of course. He asked the strongest lifting buddy and said that should not be an issue as long as room on their school van.  I guess it is connected to the school sort of, but not WIAA sanctioned more so a team that anyone can join even if not in their school since have heard their moms talk about other kids from outside of their small local school system join their club/team as well.  We went up there twice for fund raisers and even our kid went up there to help setup for a few meets held locally at their school since he likes hanging around with them vs. any of his classmates in our school and of course hanging around mom/dad is not cool either...   

[cookiedough]

Kid did it today placing 2nd at WI state meet at 198lbs. class (most competitive with most lifters as well) weighing in pretty light at 192lbs.,  qualified originally going into the state meet as tied for 5th place,  and did awesome.  No way was he catching the 1st place kid but beat out the 2nd thru 4th place ranked kids doing 1223 lbs. total deadlift, squat, and bench.  He is going to Nationals in Louisiana end of this March to compete with his lifting buddies up north.  Since he had 2nd place locked up before his 3rd deadlift attempt,  he attempted 540lb. deadlift 3rd attempt and darn near had that as well knowing he can do it (in the gym has)  but would have done 529lbs. instead,  changing it up right before to see what he could do MAX.   I guess their motto is GO BIG OR GO HOME and last state meet he will ever do in high school so why not as long as he did not get hurt in the process of doing too much. 

It would be super cool to get top 5 in the Nation with I think only around 11 kids in his weight class registered in Louisiana for Nationals so will see?   Top 5 get medals so that is a slight possibility as well come end of March.  Not too shabby for a kid going it alone with no 'official' coaches, no team lifting program around, and no gym in town having to travel out of town to lift near daily,  and coming from a senior graduating class of just 22 kids total with 1100 town population going up against schools over 1000 kids just in their high school alone with coaches, eqmt, and help paying their way into the meets.  One kid he knows up north good friends with got invited to travel to Tokyo Japan to lift overseas and talked to his mom today will run 4 grand out of pocket - yikes! 

[Jess from VA]

Congratulation to him.   

I tried to Google some info and pictures without much luck.

[f6john]

Happy for you and for your son. Impressive that he is doing this pretty much on his own without an in school program.

[cookiedough]

Happy for you and for your son. Impressive that he is doing this pretty much on his own without an in school program.

It will never happen in this one horse town unfortunately...  

can go onto www.liftingcast.com  to find out results, etc. on WI state meet held this weekend.  They had 5 platforms going on all at once for both male and females and both equipped (special suits, wraps) and RAW (non equipped) divisions.  If you happen to go on that website,  you will see one bigger heavyweight kid ONLY a sophomore in high school blowing away the competition in all events easily winning 1st place and he is not even fully developed yet just started shaving.  I met him the night before in the hot tub at the hotel chatting for an hour or so and nicest kid you will ever meet as most are very respectful and nice, not cocky.  I saw him at first lift at regional meets last year as a freshman age 15 and was blown away by his strength and size, truly impressive doing around 700lb. deadlift and around that for squat as well, - WOW.  Most strong man competitors as adults lifting for years and years in that 350+lb. weight on up have seen around 800lbs. deadlift or tad bit more, just insane amounts of weight for one human body to lift.  Then again,  I have heard the horror stories to go along with lifting such large weights needing surgery on hips, knees, shoulders, etc., etc.... all before age 30 or some even in high school.

[semo97]

Good for him, being a proud Dad is a great feeling

[shortleg]

   It is amazing to watch the young ones really excell at  something.
One of the brothers in the Lodge I belong to has a daughter that is world class in Martial arts.
  He was over joyed when she got a picture and article in Sports Illustrated this month on page 32.
 Look for a young lady who's last name is Wilson.
   Some of these kids are wonderful and dedicated,  so not so much.

[cookiedough]

Not too shabby Austin placing 4th in Nation in Alexandria Louisiana today:

10:08  mark for last bench and 11:21 something for last deadlift    

sorry if the times above keep changing for some odd reason?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVdP9LrqSuA