Seven was not a lucky number for me last week as I competed at the RPS Power Challenge, the seventh meet of my powerlifting career. Although I took first place in the 198 raw classic division, I fell well below my goals and hit zero personal records. I went 5 for 9, squatted 505, benched 350 and deadlifted 545 for a 1400 total.
On the other hand, my sister Alex kicked ass and hit PRs in everything. She squatted 230, benched 135 and deadlifted 285 to total 650 at 148. That’s a 55 pound total PR from last March and she’s only getting stronger. I’m incredibly proud of how she trained and performed.
First and foremost, a huge thanks is owed to Greg Robins and Miguel Aragoncillo for being awesome coaches and training partners over the past month. They resurrected my lackluster training and helped me circumvent two painful elbows. Without them, I may not have competed at all this time around.
I don’t want to bore anyone with the play-by-play of a lousy meet, so here’s the breakdown.
Squat
1st: 485 – good, easy
2nd: 505 – miss, dumped forward
3rd: 505 – good, easy
Squats had been miserable for months because both my elbows hurt like hell every time I get under the bar. Greg helped me find a setup that minimized pain, but I still didn’t feel 100 percent locked in. Second attempt my hands were too wide and I pitched forward. I narrowed my grip on the third attempt and got it. I feel like I could have gotten my goal of 520 had I not missed 505 initially, but I’ve never missed an attempt and then come back to get it, so that’s a small victory.
Bench
1st: 350 – good
2nd: 375 – miss
3rd: 375 -miss
Hugely disappointing. I would have bet big bucks on leaving with 385, but no dice. Got crushed by 375 twice right off the chest.
Deadlift
1st: 515 – good, easy
2nd: 545 – good, enough to save a 1400 total
3rd: 560 – miss
Gave 560 a better ride than I anticipated, which would have been a 5 pound PR. Managed to at least total 1400 by getting 545.
Now the plan is to fix both my elbows and step away from heavy barbell work for a few weeks. When I ease back in, I’ll figure out when I’ll compete again. I’d put together back-to-back good meets, so I was due for a stinker. Learned a lot and I’ll be back.
