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Cressey Sports Performance

My Mock Meet Experience

In early April, I started my journey to compete in a powerlifting competition with the help of Miguel Aragoncillo from Cressey Sports Performance. The training has been very different from what I am accustomed to, but I have and still am enjoying it!

Miguel and I (late February)

This blog post is intended to educate those of you who have never competed in a powerlifting competition, but aspire to do so.

Before I go any further, here are some tips that I believe are important for those of you who want to compete in your first powerlifting competition:

  • Do not cut weight

Within the first month of training, I had the notion that I was at some point going to cut weight. I’m currently hovering at 210# and was considering losing 12# prior to competition just to compete in a lower weight class. Well as some of you know, cutting weight has a dramatic impact on your overall strength and power output. I wasn’t quite sure what I should do, so I consulted with Miguel about this matter, and he said not to worry about cutting weight, especially because it’s my first meet. Furthermore, he mentioned that I should just enjoy the overall process. This made me happy! 🙂 For my competition in October, I will be competing in the 100kg weight class.

  • Stay close to home

One day I was reading a blog post written by Tony Bonvechio, formerly from Cressey Sports Performance, and one of the bullet points he had for first time powerlifters was to choose meets that are local. The reason for this is it takes some unpredictability out of the equation, such as worrying about air fare or finding your way around a new city. I wish I had stumbled across this blog post prior to starting my training, but I figured Grand Rapids (where my meet is located) is not too far from Detroit. I am not sure how competing in a new city will play out, but I will definitely provide you readers more information once I complete my meet.

  • Hire a powerlifting coach

This is probably self-explanatory, but I can’t stress the importance of this. Hiring a coach is one of the best things I have ever done for myself. Yes, some of you may ask, “doesn’t it cost money or how much do you pay for that?” Quite honestly, you get so much more than what you pay for when working with a coach. I receive an online program from Miguel at the start of every month. Based off what we mutually decided, I train four days out of the week and follow the program that Miguel has written for me. I just have to be ready on the days I’m training to give it everything I have (safely of course). After training I send Miguel some of my training footage so he can provide guidance to anything that needs correcting (i.e. form). Just make sure you choose the right coach for you.

More on that in my next blog post…

Now the moment that you all have been waiting for!

Prior to my visit to Boston, Miguel and I discussed that a mock meet would be a great plan midway through my training. The reason for this is not only to assess my new baseline numbers, but to also discuss training cycles, opening lifts, and cues to remember going forward. Below are all three attempts in the squat, bench, and deadlift.

Squat-3 Attempts

Bench-3 Attempts

Deadlift-3 Attempts

I’m happy to report that I PR’d on all three lifts:

Squat- Old PR-365#; New PR375#

Bench- Old PR-245#; New PR250#

Deadlift-Old PR-445#; New PR470#

Miguel and I (mid-July)

 

That’s all for now. As always, LIFT-NOURISH-GROW!

Best,

Jin