Powerlifting – the end for me

Powerlifting – is the end for me. Some of you understand I have walked away from powerlifting in 2020 and am no longer competing. I no longer want to push the limits nor wrestle with the minutia. In my case, the writing was on the wall, and with my last squat of 1306 being the first squat over 1300 pounds, regardless of body weight, or class, there wasn’t a better time to walk away. So for me, it was just time.

Powerlifting – the start

When I first started lifting serious and pushing past the gym-rat/bodybuilder approach in 1999, I had goals to become as large and powerful as possible but never set out for a particular number. Instead, I was big into strength training and felt the shift in my senior year playing baseball. Baseball had ended for me, and it was time to fill the void. So, I set many short-term goals, accomplished them, then it was on to the next thing—without even thinking of walking away. I thought I would compete forever; this was my new baseball-like focus.

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This article gives three reasons why it was time for me to walk away. First, nobody had to tell me this; nobody forced me out. It was clear to me that it was time for the next thing.

Read the entire article here at Elitefts.com.

For those in the middle of your lifting career, or maybe just starting, here are two books that will help you immensely with a long-term perspective. In addition, they will help you avoid many of the mistakes I made. 10/20/Life and Gift of Injury.

If you want help designing your program or have a back injury that has you sidelined, please reach out and schedule a virtual or in-person consult with someone who has been there, recovered from it, and returned to the highest level of performance pain-free.