Lift like a (fat) girl

nz_deevaa
nz_deevaa Posts: 12,209 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Over the weekend I competed in a Novice Powerlifting competition. This was my third comp. I went in injured (I'm having knee surgery in 5wks or so).

A couple of MFP friends bullied me into my first comp. Before it I came up with a bunch of excuses.

"I've got so much weight left to lose"

"I don't want to wear a onesie!"

"I'm not strong enough yet!"

And then one day I realised that at any other pursuit, I wouldn't expect to be the best at the first competition I went to. I should just go for the experience.

So went, and I learnt a lot.

Before this competition, I suggested that my PT compete too. He wasn't keen at first, he had excuses too, but he finally agreed and he convinced other people from our gym to go along to the comp. All of a sudden, I was part of a team!

Because of my knee injury, I went really light with my squat (40kg), this meant that my squat was the first lift of the whole competition. I was really nervous, because I was sure I wasn't going to make depth. I've only done squats in training twice since I hurt my knee in March.

But I made depth, and I got three white lights. I went for a second squat of 60kg and once again, I got three white lights.
I decided not to push my luck, and decided not to go for a third squat.

I was pretty confident with bench, I went 55/60/65kg, and didn't get a single red light.

At the top of my 65kg bench.

14705314065_a9372f5517.jpg

(I'm sure there aren't many powerlifting comps that someone benches more than they squat!)

My knee slightly impacts my deadlifts, so I opened fairly light 80kg, but it went up so easily that I pushed it up to 100kg for my second and 110kg for my third.

110kg deadlift:

14702911184_1e55330f04.jpg

I was by far the largest lady lifting that day.

I wasn't the strongest person lifting (by a long way) on the day.

I did NOT ONCE feel judged for my weight. Not the weight on my body, or the weight on the bar.

I did however feel like I was part of a team.
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Replies

  • weightliftingdiva
    weightliftingdiva Posts: 522 Member
    :) This was a great read. Great teamwork.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    So much awesome!

    Thank you so much for putting this out there.
  • nz_deevaa
    nz_deevaa Posts: 12,209 Member
    For those of you who don't work in metric, my best lifts were:

    squat: 60kg / 132lbs
    bench: 65kg / 143lbs
    deadlift: 110kg / 242lbs
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    Fantastic! :drinker:
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    This content has been removed.
  • andeey
    andeey Posts: 709 Member
    Well done!!
  • sistrsprkl
    sistrsprkl Posts: 1,010 Member
    You go, girl!
  • Oi_Sunshine
    Oi_Sunshine Posts: 819 Member
    Love it!
  • MireyGal76
    MireyGal76 Posts: 7,334 Member
    You are such an amazing and inspirational lady!
    I am in awe!

    Great job!
  • Froody2
    Froody2 Posts: 338 Member
    I remember you posting your squat video (which I lurked) and how impressed I was. Even more so now!

    You're truly inspirational, well done!
  • shmerek
    shmerek Posts: 963 Member
    Awesome!
  • danasings
    danasings Posts: 8,218 Member
    :drinker:
  • Cranquistador
    Cranquistador Posts: 39,744 Member
    BAMMMMMMM!!!
  • starrylioness
    starrylioness Posts: 543 Member
    So awesome! Love it! Go you! :happy:
  • curlygirl513
    curlygirl513 Posts: 199 Member
    Your post and pictures put some joy in my heart. Thank you for the excellent post. So good on you!
  • KarenJanine
    KarenJanine Posts: 3,497 Member
    Go you! Awesomeness :drinker:
  • Achrya
    Achrya Posts: 16,913 Member
    Lifting like a baws!

    So awesome.
  • KristalDawnO
    KristalDawnO Posts: 154 Member
    Very awesome. Powerlifting is a wonderful sport and was a big part of my life in my younger years. Way to go @ your meet :-)
  • _runnerbean_
    _runnerbean_ Posts: 640 Member
    Congratulations- thanks for sharing your inspirational story and pictures. You "felt the fear and did it anyway "!!!! Great job.
  • RECowgill
    RECowgill Posts: 881 Member
    Really liked reading this, thanks. Good lifting numbers too!
  • VBnotbitter
    VBnotbitter Posts: 820 Member
    Lifting like a (strong) girl
    Lifting like a (inspiring) girl
    Lifting like a (hero) girl
    Lifting like an (amazing) girl

    New title suggestions for you :flowerforyou:
  • nz_deevaa
    nz_deevaa Posts: 12,209 Member
    Really liked reading this, thanks. Good lifting numbers too!

    Apart from the bench number, these are well down on my non-injured numbers.
  • transientcanuck
    transientcanuck Posts: 82 Member
    Awesome job and such an inspiration for me to focus more on gaining strength rather than dwindling numbers. When I lift I feel so much fitter and stronger. The feeling I get when I move up in weights is far more fulfilling than the feeling I get when I step on the scale and see a lower number.
  • TIUClare
    TIUClare Posts: 62 Member
    That is totally awesome! What a great story, great experience and an amazing way to inspire your wider MFP team!! So inspired right now, thank you!!
  • kelly_e_montana
    kelly_e_montana Posts: 1,999 Member
    I love this post! Thank you so much for sharing. Congrats and keep up the good work!
  • gypsy_spirit
    gypsy_spirit Posts: 2,107 Member
    So impressive! Congrats!
  • paj315
    paj315 Posts: 335 Member
    Awesome! I had my first powerlifting comp back in April. I had a similair experience as you. I was the heaviest girl by about 30 lbs and they didn't have weight divisions for girls. They just divided your total weight lifted by your body weight and it hurt me bad....because all the other ladies were quite a bit tinier than me. I lifted the most weight for a female but placed dead last BUT I pr's in every lift! Definitely a possitive experience!

    Good for you for giving it a go!
  • nz_deevaa
    nz_deevaa Posts: 12,209 Member
    Here's my squat if anyone is interested.

    https://player.vimeo.com/video/101259057
  • GiveMeCoffee
    GiveMeCoffee Posts: 3,556 Member
    Thanks for sharing! Very impressive!! Congrats
  • JGonzo82
    JGonzo82 Posts: 167 Member
    congrats!

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