13 Feb Byrd: Locked and Loaded

Tomorrow makes 3 weeks out from the XPC Finals. I can honestly say I have never felt this strong in my life. I have trained much smarter over the last year, and it is showing.

I have to admit I have big goals for Saturday, I will be working up to about what a third attempt will be. I know that if I want to have a shot at winning the 275 class at the Arnold I will have to squat big.

When I sat down and wrote out this training cycle, I was not sure where my squat would be. I knew that losing weight would effect me, I also figured that my gear would no longer fit. Lucky for me as I lost weight I only got stronger, and Ken Anderson adjusted my gear with no problem.

See to me, meets like the XPC are what powerlifting is all about. Some of the best lifters in the world getting together to prove who is the best. I could care less what you do in a small local or charity type meet. If you can beat the person lifting against you head to head, you are simply a better lifter. As I look at the roster there are about 12 lifters in the 275 class, and at least half of those could put up a pro total.

Going into the meet you can count on two things.
1. I will lift smart until its time to gamble
2. I will leave it all on the platform, injuries do not scare me.

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Jonathan Byrd

Jonathan Byrd is a competitive powerlifter, with over 16 years of training experience. Byrd has been ranked nationally for the past 6 years under multiple categories. His total has ranked as high as second nationally in the 275 class. He currently has a best total of 2500lbs. Best individual lifts include a 1040lb squat, a 750lb bench press, and 735lb deadlift. His 1040lb squat ranks him 26th all-time squats at the 308 class. Jonathan currently trains out of Team Samson Gym in Jacksonville, FL. Before powerlifting Jonathan was a college athlete at Methodist University as both an all-conference football player and track athlete. Following graduation he played four years of arena football in various leagues.

Latest posts by Jonathan Byrd (see all)

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