Why 1000 Pounds?

I love vacation weeks. I remember as a child loving the vacations, now as a teacher I have a whole new appreciation for vacations. I can unwind, destress, regroup and especially important to me right now: I can train.

Not that I trained every second of every day. Pretty sure if I'd tried to pull that one I would have found out if Coach D really meant it when he told me if I showed up when I wasn't scheduled to he would say go and point at the door. Even if I wasn't there every second that Pride was open I was there seven times. It truly might be easier if I moved in there, worked there or both.

Train I did though. April 29 is creeping ever closer and I want to be ready. I worked on my bench press, my squat and my deadlift. My big three. There was a lot of accessory work to make sure I am as strong and balanced as I can be. There was Yoga Corr to be sure I maintain and develop my mobility and flexibility. Being flexible and mobile is as important as being strong. I also got a massage to keep me functioning.

Now on to the title of this post. Why is it that I want to hit 1000 pounds? It's a big number first of all. 1000 of anything just sounds impressive, to me anyway. 1000 pounds is an even number too and I am one of those people who likes even numbers very much. Numbers that end in 5 are okay too, but odd numbers in general make me squirm. My current Bench Press PR (personal record, if you didn't know) is 209.44. ARGHHH!!!! In my defense, I set it at my last meet in November 2016 when I had to give my attempt in kg and in pounds it worked out to 209.44. I hope to rectify that before my next meet, and then screw it up again when I lift on April 29.

1000 pounds wasn't initially a number I thought of. When I was nudged into powerlifting I didn't even think of totals. Truly the only thing on my mind was that my coaches thought I could do it and I wanted to prove them right. Hi, I'm Kim and I'm a people pleaser.

At my first meet I achieved a total of 733.04 pounds. I confess that I didn't push myself as much as I could have for each lift, but I was new and I wanted to succeed more than anything. At the time it was new, I was terrified and all I had been able to choke down before I lifted was a couple of scrambled eggs. I don't recommend that by the way. I know for a fact neither of my coaches recommends that either. The fact that I went 9 for 9 is probably a miracle.

Meet number two my total was 793.66 pounds. I added 60.62 pounds to my previous total and I pushed myself a little more. I stepped a bit outside my comfort zone. I failed my second squat attempt because I didn't get to parallel. When I get nervous I tend to rush and when I rush the only thing on my mind is getting it done. I almost failed my first deadlift attempt too. It was a weight I'd pulled many time in the comfort of Pride, as Coach T reminded me before I went to lift, and I rushed. I didn't set my grip before I started to pull and I almost lost the lift. I didn't through sheer luck and when it was done both coaches reminded me one minute is a long time and I needed to take time to set my grip before I started to pull.

Leading up to meet number three 1000 pounds started to be a number that was really on my radar. Mostly because Coach D suggested that when I hit a 1000 pound total it would probably be time to look for another powerlifting federation. At the time I think I smiled, said sure and hoped like hell that day would never come. I was almost comfortable with Vermont Powerlifting, I didn't want a new federation. But Coach D knows his stuff and if he said I needed a new federation he was right...probably.

When I walked into my third meet I was as nervous as I'd been the first time. I remember thinking I wasn't going to need to worry about anything because I'd be lucky if I could pull 700 pounds this time. I was wrong, as I frequently am about myself and my abilities. I excel at underestimating myself. My three lift total on November 6, 2016 was 925.93 pounds. That was an increase of 192.89 pounds from my first meet in November 2015 and an increase of 132.27 pounds from my meet in April 2016.

I didn't hit 1000 pounds at that meet, but Coach D told me after the new year we would be finding a new federation. I guess he saw something at that meet that made him decide 1000 pounds or not I was ready for something new. Coach T referred to me as "the beast of the northeast" at one point. Seriously? Me? I wanted to ask him if he remembered all the times I tripped on the turf or nearly knocked someone else over trying to do split squats.

Sure I can lift heavy things, but my athletic skills are lacking in most other areas. I considered asking that question for a very short time. Coach T and I have had that conversation before. He has told me several times he doesn't expect me to be good at everything, he expects me to try and do my best. So I bit my tongue and when he compliments me I try hard to smile and thank him. I don't think he's lying to me, or stroking my ego: he promised me he would always be honest with me and he has never given me reason to think he isn't. I do admit there are times I really wish I could see myself the way he does.

Since that meet in November I have joined USAPL with the goal of competing in a national meet in 2017. The part of me that has always tried for invisibility and flying under the radar is quaking at the thought of so many eyes on me should I make it to a national platform. The good thing is I can usually manage to block out everything but the barbell when I'm on the platform. We'll see how well I manage that in April and go from there.

My current total is 959.44 pounds. It was 949.44 pounds until yesterday morning. Normally on Friday I get to choose whether I want to attend Pride Fit group training or Flex Friday later in the day. Sometimes I want to go to both classes, like I used to. Yesterday was one of those days. I did check with Coach D, he didn't seem thrilled that that was what I wanted, but he knew Pride Fit class would be finding our 1 rep max for deadlifts and how much I wanted to see if I could pull 425 pounds in the morning. He gave his permission. He's lucky I didn't hug the stuffing out of him when he said yes.

So yesterday morning I got up, feeling sore, tired and like there was no way I was going to pull 300, much less 425. Coach T asked me after the warm up if I was going to go for my last PR. I told him that was the plan and I got to work.

My first pull was 225, 1x6 and it felt pretty light. My body was waking up, it was warmed up and the beast was stirring, intrigued by the idea of lifting heavy. I decided to go for it and loaded the bar to 315#, and pulled for 5 reps. Usually I don't make jumps that are so big, but I had a limited amount of time and 435# was calling me. I jumped to 405# next: that felt wonderful. Then I went for 425# figuring if nothing else I could prove it wasn't a fluke that I pulled it before. After 425# I was thinking about stopping, but decided I might as well see if I could pull 430#. I can lift heavy early in the morning, but apparently I can't add. I intended to add 5 pounds to the bar, 2.5 pounds to each side. Well...I added 10 pounds to the bar and pulled.

I got to lock out, but it was the roughest deadlift I've done in a long time. When I was done Coach T gave me a fist bump and asked how much I'd pulled. I said 430 and he looked at the bar, then at me and said "that was 435". Sure enough...when you add 5 pounds to each side of a 425 pound bar you get 435. 425+5+5=435. I can add, just not before 7 am. 

I have less than 50 pounds to go to get to 1000 pounds. I've been powerlifting seriously for about a year and a half now and I am closing in on a total that seemed completely out of reach when I first heard it. From my first meet I have increased my three lift total by 226.40 pounds. Equally as exciting for me is that I am closing in on being able to deadlift 2 times my bodyweight. At present my deadlift is about 1.8 times my bodyweight. I'll let you do the math if you wish. 

I have found my niche. I am beyond grateful to every person who has helped me get this far. My coaches who encourage me, support me, answer endless emails, messages and texts and know just when a fist bump or a "lift the shit out of that bar" is going to give me the nudge I need. My friends who take over the planning and logistics of getting to meets so I can focus on my job, travel for hours and cheer themselves hoarse, offer to document each of my attempts so the geek in me can revel in numbers and in general support and love me just the way I am: THANK YOU! 1000 pounds will be as much your accomplishment as mine.

Thanks for reading!