The day of the powerlifting competition at my little work gym finally arrived! I spent the morning nervous and antsy, and around 9am I headed down to warm up before my 9:30 lifting slot. I weighed in (222lb, now you all know) and then it was time to get to work!
J and my other work friend (the one with the bodybuilding ideas) were my spotters and they helped make it fun, we just cracked jokes the whole time. The BB friend wouldn’t shut up though, I was setting up my hands for DL and he was still talking and I had to SHH him…
I decided to do bench-squat-DL after all. The setup for bench was a little different than I was used to; the bench is higher and my feet didn’t really touch the floor well. I had a tough time with my first try at 155lb, and then they brought me blocks for my feet which helped a lot. 160lb went up with some effort, and then I failed 165lb. That’s what I expected. I still added 25lb since last year so I’m pretty happy with bench!
Then, the dreaded squat. I decided to put my opener at 185lb, and that went up quick. Everyone talked me into going all the way up to 205lb next– and I failed it, falling forward. I’ve never failed a squat before so that was new and not very much fun. 3rd attempt was at 195lb and my form was awful– way too far forward, using too much back– but it went up.
Finally, deadlift. I started with a conservative 245lb and that went up fine. Then, 265lb, my previous max– that went up, but my QL started complaining (not full on pain, just letting me know it was there and it wasn’t happy with what was happening). I decided not to push too hard on my last try, gave 275lb a pull and the judge gave it to me even though I didn’t feel like I got my shoulders all the way back. My hands weren’t secure either– time for more grip work.
So, total of 630lb and I improved all my lifts– I’m happy with how that turned out! And I’m also pleased to have the competition done so I can retire the portion of my brain that’s been worrying about it. I was in the first group of lifters– can’t wait to see how everyone else does!
Bench – 155lb, 160lb, 165lb(X) (+25lb from last year)
Squat – 185lb, 205lb(X), 195lb (+10lb)
Deadlift – 245lb, 265lb, 275lb (+10lb)
TOTAL: 630lb
Running While Fat 