Why I started Competing in Powerlifting…and maybe you should too!
I first started lifting weights when I was about 13 years old. My older brother, who was three-plus years older than me, played football and wrestled in high school. He was a really big kid and unbelievably strong. We were very close, and as a younger brother I followed him around everywhere. So, when he started playing football and lifting weights, I naturally wanted to do the same.
I got pretty strong as a kid, mostly on the bench press and a few other machine-based exercises we were doing at the time. My brother even took me to one or two bench press competitions when I was around 14. I remember winning one contest, then going to a second one and completely bombing out, I missed all my attempts.
Back then, we didn’t have access to information like we do today. You learned by watching other people in the gym. As a high school athlete, I lifted weights to be a better football player. I wasn’t as naturally gifted in size as my older brother, so I hit the weights hard to get bigger and stronger for football.
After high school and college, I stopped lifting altogether. I did some moderate exercise here and there, but it wasn’t until my late 30s that I started taking the gym seriously again. Around 2012–2013, CrossFit really took off. While I never got deeply into CrossFit myself, it deserves credit for bringing the barbell back into the mainstream. For years before that, about 95% of people in the gym were using machines and dumbbells. CrossFit helped reintroduce barbell training, and today a lot more people recognize that free weights and barbells are some of the best tools you can use in the gym.
As I started training with barbells again, I began researching random things about exercises like squats and deadlifts. And then, as usually happens, the algorithm grabbed hold of me. Suddenly I was flooded with information. There are many reasons why people succeed or fail with their training, but two things really stuck with me:
1. Train, don’t just exercise.
When you train, you’re actively working toward improvement. When you exercise, you’re often just repeating the same static workouts. Eventually that gets boring and then you stop.
2. All programs work.
Some work better than others, but the most important thing is choosing a program you’ll actually stick with.
I didn’t just want to exercise, I wanted to train. That’s when the idea of competing became really appealing. That’s one of the best things about sports: competing with others to bring out your best.
One day I was listening to a strength podcast where the host was talking about this exact idea, exercise versus training. He said that if you’re training with barbells and just getting started, you should sign up for a powerlifting competition. Pick one that’s three to six months out so you have a clear goal to work toward. When he said that, a light bulb went off in my head. You see, that past year my older brother passed away. And during that time, I often found myself thinking about our experiences together as kids. And sports, weightlifting and football had been what we spent a lot of time doing.
At that point, I had been training consistently for about five years. I thought, why not put this to the test? What a great way to honor my brother’s legacy and impact on me. I never imagined I’d compete again, I thought those days were long behind me. But I decided to go for it.
I found a USAPL event, which is one of the largest powerlifting federations in the U.S. and focuses on drug-free competition. I went on the website and found a meet that was about 45 minutes from my house and four months away. I signed up. I was 45 years old at the time.
Powerlifting competitions are based on three lifts: squat, bench press, and deadlift. You get three attempts at each lift, and every attempt is judged to make sure it meets the standard.
Over the last five years, I’ve competed in five events, and overall, it’s been a very positive experience. Even though it’s an individual sport, the encouragement and camaraderie are strong. Everyone shows up with a plan, target numbers for each lift and each attempt based on their training.
Competitions are also organized by gender, age, and weight class. A 125-pound woman isn’t competing against a 200-pound man. A 16-year-old at 175 pounds isn’t competing against a 25-year-old at the same weight.
If you’ve competed in sports before and miss that feeling, or if you’re older and looking for a new challenge, I’d encourage you to give powerlifting a shot. Check out USAPL for more information. Trust me, everyone is treated with respect for stepping onto the platform. Whether you lift 100 pounds or 500 pounds, you get the same support.