- Joined
- Jun 19, 2023
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- 370
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Hi.
I am thirty-two years old. Collectively, throughout my years of life, I have accumulated more than three years of total training. Recently, I have been training for the goal of becoming a great powerlifter. I've been at it for one year and two months. This had been the longest time I've spent lifting without quitting. Some bullshit happened in my life these past two months that kept me away from the gym, but I've been back at it for several weeks now. I'm almost back to my original levels of strength.
The way I see it, the key to success in anything, including powerlifting, is stamina and perseverance. I didn't come up with those. Marcus Aurelius listed those two things as great qualities that made his stepdad great. I trained for a full year, working hard all the time... Thus, stamina. Bullshit happened in my life, yet after that craziness, I chose to pull myself together and resume training. Thus, perseverance.
My training philosophy is simple. I memorized Doug Hepburn's training system. I know it like the back of my hand. I follow most of his recommendations, with lots of changes that are uniquely my own ideas. I've made so many tweaks to it that I can practically call the system my own and probably not get sued for plagiarism if I do end up writing a book about it.
With newfound dignity and confidence after a shitty life, I ended up training a lot, getting a job that treats me well, and allowing myself to be ambitious once again. Age forty, I am coming for you. I will give the world a new definition of the word "redemption"...
My best lifts so far are...
395-pound squat for 6 sets of 1 rep. The squat was high bar, narrow stance, and with a pause at the bottom.
205-pound clean and jerk at 190 pounds bodyweight, the lightest I've ever been as someone who lifts.
225-pounds for 5 reps in "pulls". It's an Olympic lift variation that looks like a deadlift but with an explosive shrug, or "pull" at the top. The initial position imitates Olympic weightlifters doing their sport more than powerlifters who do their deadlifts. I really pull it very high. Up to my chest. It's more appropriate to call it a "clean high pull" instead of a clean pull.
275-pound bent-over row for 2 sets of 3 reps.
225-pound bench press for an 8-rep max... It's probably my 10-rep max now. I've been doing the "pin press" variation of it and I can do five reps at that weight...
305-pound squat for a 6-rep max. Low bar, to parallel, each rep paused at the bottom. It's currently my weakest lift despite the squat being my favorite lift. Just weird...
All of the lifts above are my all-time best performances as of February of 2024.
I also train in Judo, but that's a side activity. Powerlifting is my main sport.
My bodyweight right now is 250 pounds. I am 5 feet, 6 inches tall.
Lifetime natural and I intend to stay that way, just like my heroes Doug Hepburn and Paul Anderson.
I am thirty-two years old. Collectively, throughout my years of life, I have accumulated more than three years of total training. Recently, I have been training for the goal of becoming a great powerlifter. I've been at it for one year and two months. This had been the longest time I've spent lifting without quitting. Some bullshit happened in my life these past two months that kept me away from the gym, but I've been back at it for several weeks now. I'm almost back to my original levels of strength.
The way I see it, the key to success in anything, including powerlifting, is stamina and perseverance. I didn't come up with those. Marcus Aurelius listed those two things as great qualities that made his stepdad great. I trained for a full year, working hard all the time... Thus, stamina. Bullshit happened in my life, yet after that craziness, I chose to pull myself together and resume training. Thus, perseverance.
My training philosophy is simple. I memorized Doug Hepburn's training system. I know it like the back of my hand. I follow most of his recommendations, with lots of changes that are uniquely my own ideas. I've made so many tweaks to it that I can practically call the system my own and probably not get sued for plagiarism if I do end up writing a book about it.
With newfound dignity and confidence after a shitty life, I ended up training a lot, getting a job that treats me well, and allowing myself to be ambitious once again. Age forty, I am coming for you. I will give the world a new definition of the word "redemption"...
My best lifts so far are...
395-pound squat for 6 sets of 1 rep. The squat was high bar, narrow stance, and with a pause at the bottom.
205-pound clean and jerk at 190 pounds bodyweight, the lightest I've ever been as someone who lifts.
225-pounds for 5 reps in "pulls". It's an Olympic lift variation that looks like a deadlift but with an explosive shrug, or "pull" at the top. The initial position imitates Olympic weightlifters doing their sport more than powerlifters who do their deadlifts. I really pull it very high. Up to my chest. It's more appropriate to call it a "clean high pull" instead of a clean pull.
275-pound bent-over row for 2 sets of 3 reps.
225-pound bench press for an 8-rep max... It's probably my 10-rep max now. I've been doing the "pin press" variation of it and I can do five reps at that weight...
305-pound squat for a 6-rep max. Low bar, to parallel, each rep paused at the bottom. It's currently my weakest lift despite the squat being my favorite lift. Just weird...
All of the lifts above are my all-time best performances as of February of 2024.
I also train in Judo, but that's a side activity. Powerlifting is my main sport.
My bodyweight right now is 250 pounds. I am 5 feet, 6 inches tall.
Lifetime natural and I intend to stay that way, just like my heroes Doug Hepburn and Paul Anderson.
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