The 2016 New Mexico games weightlifting meet report

On Sunday May 22nd I competed in the 2016 New Mexico games weightlifting meet. This was my 6th week training at my new weightlifting gym, High Dessert Athletic Club, and under my new coach, Joaquin Chavez. I'd made incredible gains so far under his tutlage.

I wasn't nearly as nervous as I usually was before a meet. And I got to warm up with my nutrition coach Barry Shroeder. He's really knowledgeable and a motivating person. So that was pretty wonderful for my meet.

Robel Tayloy, he goes by Chacho, showed up to compete today. He's beaten me by at least 20k at every meet I've ever competed with him at. I'd say if I had to pick one person who's my weightlifting nemisis he'd be it. Super nice guy. But a man can only get his butt beat by a person so many times before that man becomes his nemesis. And he'll be aging up to the 40-44 age group on Jan 1st 2017, so he and I will be in the same age group and weight class next year.Also, My nutrition coach and friend barry was there. Seeing him compete a few years ago was the reason I got into weightlifting. There's no chance of me beating that stud eather. Although, when I first saw Barry lift i decided one of my bucket list goals was to some day beat him. To be the best you have to beat the best right?

Coach Chavez had me attempt an 85k for my first snatch. It felt easy and landed perfectly. On my 2nd attempt I asked to go for a 95. Coach's eyes just about fell out of his head!
"That's to big of a jump. How about 91k." It wasn't a question.

91k was a good lift.  On my third attempt I asked for a 100k. Again, coach almost fainted. "what's your PR?"  he asked.
"96k coach"
"go for 97"
Third lift was good.

Since I went 3 for 3 on the snatches I was probably going to be able to take 3rd place in my heat, 2nd place in the 105+. Behind Chacho in the 105+ and behind both Barry and Chacho in my heat. Beating Chacho and Barry isn't even a question. Those two doen't just beat me when we lift against eachother. They slaughter me!

I was really excited about the clean and jerks. My weightlifting coach has helped me make huge improvements in my jerks, which was my biggest weakness in weightlifting. I attempted a 110k on my first lift and nailed it, easy. On my second attempt I asked to go for a 120k. Same thing, coach almost died of shock, once he recovered he said, "A 10k increase is to much. what's your PR?"
 "120".
"Lets go for 118k this time. I'll let you go higher next time."
Nailed the 118K! I'm 5 for 5 so far. I've only had two 6 for 6 meets in 2 1/2 years, so things were already pretty exciting.
"Let's go for broke in the third lift coach! 125k!!"
I see coach thinking.....
"Go for 122k. That'll be a PR and you'll be in first by 2k."
This time it was my turn to be confused. 1st? 1st of what? I couldn't take the time to figure it out. The clock was counting down and it was my turn up. I nailed the 122k!

Turns out I took 1st place in both the 105+ and the heat. I also set 3 40-44 AG 105k+ New Mexico weightlifting records. I beat Chacho by 2k total. Chacho will be aging up next year to the 40-44 age group 105+ weight class, so that was huge! Next year will be exciting and heck of a big challenge. I've never done well enough at a weightlifting meet to look at others and think to myself "I want to lift better than this person or that person." Chacho's a beast. Next year will be a lot of fun! And, I can't believe I'm saying this, but I out lifted Barry Schroeder too. Out lifting Barry was on my bucket list for a long time now. I honestly didn't think I could ever do it. But today i did. It was a good day.

mental focus

I struggle staying focused. I'll set an athletic goal that's motivational. I'll be unbelievably dedicated until I get close to my event, then i loose focus and start dreaming of my next athletic endeavor. I'm doing that now. I've been trying to qualify for the Master's Weightlifting National Championships for 25 months now. I am really close to accomplishing that goal this Saturday. Instead of focusing on THIS weightlifting meet I keep dreaming of starting my next training cycle. Wondering how much better I'll do now that I'm getting a proper amount of sleep. Contemplating if hiring a nutrition coach and eating healthy will help me continue to get the big gains like it has the last couple months. I'm preoccupied with this years state games. I'm obsessed if I can get to a 500 lbs squat and a 400 pounds bench press. I'm wondering if I can surpass Dominic or Barry in the snatch, clean and jerk, or total this year. I'm not sure why I end up losing focus when I'm close to accomplishing big goals. But I do.

first full week with a sports nutrition coach for weightlifting

I decided I wanted to lose 74 pounds to be able to lift in the 105k weight class, but i didn't want my weightlifting to suffer, so i hired a sports nutrition coach. After my first full week with a sports nutrition coach I've lost 1.8 pounds. When i had tried losing weight on my own my workouts would suffer, I'd fatigue quickly during workouts, I'd lose strength, and get overly hungry. So far i haven't felt any of those problems. I guess that's why it's better to hire a professional. 1.8 pounds down,  72.2 more to go. So far so good. I'll continue to keep you updated.

sport nutrition coach update

I've hired a nutrition coach to help me lose enough weight to get down to the 105k weight class while still making performance gains in olympic style weightlifting. We were supposed to start next week. Yesterday i received an email from him saying he was so excited he was willing to start coaching me early for no additional cost. Seriously? How often does that happen? Awesome! He analyzed the last week of my diet and sent me almost 2 pages of observations and suggestions. He sent me info regarding what to eat before,  during,  and after my workouts to get the best benefits from training. How many carbs and what percentage of my daily carbohydrate intake should be consumed within a two hour block of training. He sent me suggestions on what to eat, when to eat, and why it'll benefit my performance. Since getting his email I've probably emailed or Facebook messaged him a dozen times. He always responds within moments and spends the time answering whatever question i had in great detail. I can't believe all the work this guys doing for me for only $75 a month. I doubt he's making minimum wage coaching me at this point. I'm thinking hiring this guy to be my sports nutrition coach was the best decision I've made in long time. My only regret is not hiring him earlier. If i had I'd already be a 105k and would have qualified for the 2016 Master's National Championships weightlifting meet. With Coach Shane Miller as my weightlifting coach and and Barry Schroeder as my sports nutrition coach I'm certain I'll be making unbelievable gains. Current weight, 309lbs. Next stop, lighter, stronger, and faster baby!

a nutrition coach for weightlifting!

In 2004 I weighed 292 pounds. And then I found triathlon and I gradually got thinner as I became more involved in the sport. I got down to and maintained my dream racing weight of 175 pounds. I fell off the diet wagon May of 2012 shortly after I got ran over by a vehicle while I was cycling and suffered a traumatic brain injury. I retired from triathlon and since then I've gained a ridiculous amount of weight. My top weight, which I hit this month, was 318 pounds. I've tried dieting a thousand times. It never works. On the rare occasion I do lose weight for a few weeks in a row I always gain it all back and then some. I got tired of struggling to lose weight and failing. I got sick of being embarrassed about how I look. I got sick of not being able to buy clothes anywhere but Big and Tall stores. I got sick of being to fat to be able to play basketball or ride bikes with my kids. And I've developed sleep apnea from being grossly obese. I decided to do something about it. I hired a nutrition coach, weightlifter Barry Schroeder. He owned(still owns) three New Mexico state record in the 35-39 age group 105k weight class. Then he lost a lot of weight, dropped down to the 94k weight class and broke the 3 state records in that weight class too. To lose that much weight and still be strong enough to crush numerous state records means he knows the science of nutrition and how to eat to perform well for weightlifting while losing weight. I contacted him and asked if he'd be willing to help me. He was very enthusiastic about it. His prices are phenomenal too! Only $75 a month! First step is he'll track my food, calories, and weight for a week, then I'll start his diet magic! Next stop is the 105k weight class and qualifying for the masters national weightlifting championships! I'll keep you informed on my progress! I'm pumped!

triathlon and weightlifting?

One of my bucket list goals was to complete 100 multisport races. In the 7 years I had competed in multisport I completed 86 triathlons and duathlons. You'd never know by my current physique, but I used to be a skinny and blazing fast triathlete.

I received a Facebook message by a state record weightlifter, Barry Schroeder. He asked if I wanted to compete in a team triathlon with him next year. That got me to thinking.... There's no reason I shouldn't compete in a few triathlons or duathlons occasionally. Barry's been a huge motivator on my life the last couple years. Seems like anytime I'm needing a moral boost or pep talk he shows up.

My favorite races were in the South West Challenge Series. I finished top 3 in the SW Challenge series for 6 consecutive years, 2006-2012. I'd need to finish 6 races in 2016 to be eligible for the series championship. I won't lie, finishing an endurance race at my current weight of 312 pounds would be hard, but I'm always up for a challenge. Plus that would probably motivate me to lose some weight. losing weight would help my health, racing multisport again, and most importantly my weightlifting. At my current weight class i missed qualifying by 5k. If I was in the 105k weight class for weightlifting my current weightlifting totals would have qualified me for The Masters Weightlifting National Chamionships.

I dunno. Should I try doing to Polar Bear triathlon in Las Cruces NM on Dec 6th of this year? That's the first race of The South West Challenge Series 2016 season. I'd only have to do 5 more to qualify to be a 2016 South West Challenge Series champion. If I did 6 races for the 2016 season I'd only have to complete 8 more in my lifetime to have completed my goal of 100. I'm competing in a NASA powerlifting meet on Dec 5th in Roswell NM. I could drive from the meet straight to Las Cruces and compete in the triathlon the next morning. That would be insane to compete in a powerlifting meet and a triathlon on back to back days, but it would be a weekend I'd always remember. Hhhmmm. What do you think?

weightlifting and tapering for a peak

I've been experimenting with my taper before weightlifting meets. I've tried not working out the entire week before the meet, taking a few days before the meet off, and most recently just a light training day the day before. Out of all of these not training at all three days from the weightlifting meet seems to work the best. Not lifting a week before the meet makes me feel sluggish. Weightlifting light the day before makes my legs feel fatigued and doesn't let me feel explosive power that taking three days off before the meet does.

Back in my triathlon days i had a golden carrot,  a goal of beating a stud triathlete named Brian Pilgrim. I chose him because he was a bad ass and i felt that i needed to beat the best to be the best. i eventually did end up being faster than him.

Now that I'm a weightlifter i have another gold carrot. Barry Schroeder. He's a stud. He's only a 94K but he consistently lifts a 101/121/222. For as long as I've been a weightlifter i thought a 100k snatch and a 120k clean and jerk was unattainable. But yesterday i lifted a 115k clean and jerk. I now know those numbers are attainable, sooner rather than later. Possibly by January,  definitely by next summer. Yesterday after my piss poor performance at the Lift Outside The Box weightlifting meet i was feeling sorry for myself, but this morning i realized beating Barry Schroeder is possible. And now I'm super motivated. Time to lace up the weightlifting shoes and go back to training!

motivation and weightlifting numbers

Out of 5 training cycles I'd become sick at the end of all 5. That was a sure sign of overtraining. This training cycle i've decreased the number of days I'm working out a week. Its worked perfectly. I haven't become sick  once.

On Sunday Barry Schroeder showed up to train at The Miller Gym the same time i did.  That was great motivation! I trained harder and took less recovery between sets that I'm used to. The next day i was so sore! For those of you who haven't read my blog one of my goals in life is to loose enough weight to be in his weight class and beat Barry in a weightlifting meet. When i set this goal I needed to loose 106 pounds. I still need to loose 83. Even if I'm able to loose that much weight, getting strong enough to beat him is another thing. His PR's are 105/125/230.  He knows my goal is to beat him, yet he still is constantly helping me. Sometimes it's weightlifting advise, diet advise, or just moral support. Needless to say, he's one of the nicest and most supportive people I've ever had the pleasure of training with.

The 2015 State Games is only 12 days away. My strength still hasn't returned to what it was in April of this year, but I'm still much stronger than i was at last years State Games. At the state games last year i only did a 65k snatch, 88k clean and jerk, a 154k total. This year i think I'll get a 84/104, 188.

New Mexico weightlifting state records, diet, aand sleep

I just received an updated list of the New Mexico state weightlifting records. It was wonderful seeing my name on the list as a New Mexico weightlifting state record holder in the 105k+ 40-44 age group. 

I noticed that a couple of 105k state records in the 40-44 age group was broken late last year. The new clean and jerk state record is 135k & the new total is now 228k both set by Jeremy Hale. I had set a goal to lose weight and get down to the 105k 40-44 ag division and break those three records. I'm still hoping to do that, but it's going to take a little longer and a lot more work now. Those numbers are even bigger than what Barry Schroeder puts up!

Speaking of losing weight, I'm still doing well with my diet and weight loss. 25 days back on the diet wagon. Increasing the amount of calories i was eating while attempting to drop weight was the key. I'm not struggling with excessive hunger or extreme cravings anymore. I've lost 11 pound.

I've been eating healthy each and every meal & keeping my protein up. Unfortunately I've been working a lot of hours and not sleeping as much as an athlete should. My wife and i received her first student loan bill of $16,000. The same week my Chevy Suburban broke down costing just shy of $2,000 to fix. Most weeks I'm working 5 twelve hour and 1 sixteen hour shift a week. I'm tired. I've been the only income for our family of five since 2007.  I've been sleep deprived for a long time. It sucks. I'm really tired of being tired all the dang time. 8 years of this is to long.

2015 & 2016 Olympic weightlifting goals

When i first started weightlifting in December of 2013 my ultimate goal was to beat an amazing local weightlifter by the name of Barry Schroeder. After watching him lift at a couple meets and seeing him break every New Mexico weightlifting record in both the 94k & 105k thirty five to thirty nine age group i decided to change my goals to something more realistic. 

On August 1st 2014, only 8 months into the sport of weightlifting i was strong enough to break the 105k+ forty to forty four age group New Mexico weightlifting state records. At that time I also become motivated to lose weight and i decided I'd attempt to break the state records in the 105k & 94k forty to forty four age group New Mexico state weightlifting records as i lost weight. Shortly after setting those new goals i fell off the diet wagon and gave up on losing weight. Since then I've gained more weight, for the first time in my life I'm over 300 pounds and I've developed the beginning stages of sleep apnea. So here i am motivated once again to break state records as i lose weight and get to an ideal body weight.  

Barry Schroeder will age up and start lifting in my age group in 2017. So i have until early 2017 to break the old 105k & 94k records, after which its possible he'll crush any records i set between now and then. Or the other option is I gain enough strength to accomplish my original goal of beating Barry Schroeder so my records will stand regardless of what age group he's in. 


My current best lifts after 12 months of Olympic weightlifting are:
Snatch 79k 
Clean and jerk 103k 
Total 182


The records for the 105k 40-44AG are: 
95k snatch set by Doug Briggs in 1999 (I'm currently 16k away from this state record)
122k clean and jerk set by Doug Briggs in 2000 (19k away)
215k total set by Doug Briggs in 1999 (35k away)


The 94k weight class state records are:
100k Snatch set by Jim Snyder in 2005 (I'm currently 21k away from this state record)
117.5k clean and jerk set by Jim Snyder in 2005 (15.5k away)
217.5k total set in 2005 by a Jim Snyder (36.5k away)

Finally a decent snatch, and I need a different goal!

When I was involved in all the other sports I've tried I would usually struggle for awhile, then get worse for a single practice or a week, then make a huge jump. My progress was almost never gradual or consistent. 2 steps forward, 1 step back. I've been training for Olympic weightlifting for over 2 months now and my snatches suck, my cleans are only a little better. Sunday was my worst training day to date, and then today I felt great! I actually completed a few reps that looked like a real snatch! I live for moments like that. Finally, some progress. Perhaps I'll be ready for the New Mexico state games this summer after all.

On another note, there's a guy I've blogged about a few times named Barry Schroeder. he's in my age group, and I hope to get down to the weight division he's lifting in, the heavy weights. I've said I wanted to continue to lift, progress, and eventually try to compete with him. Yesterday he hit a 400 pound squat. I think I need to find another golden carrot, a different person to try to strive to beat. my max lifts are ridiculous compared to his. My max power snatch was 152, bench was 270, squat was 280, and my max dead lift was 350. My best lifts are no where near his warm ups!

back pain and improper weightlifting form

The last week my lower back has been hurting. I knew it had to be from improper lifting form, but I had no clue what I was doing wrong. I've been frustrated. Yesterday coach Jodi and coach Linda pointed out my starting position of the snatch was wrong. Since it was the starting position it meant I was putting undue stress on my lower back every set of the snatch, clean and jerk, and dead lift. After my workout I spent an hour practicing my starting position. I'm hoping I've fixed my form and that my back will stop hurting.

I love Olympic weightlifting, but I assumed I'd be better at it by now. It shouldn't be as difficult learning the form as I'm having. I don't know. Maybe the brain injury I suffered when I got ran over by a vehicle while cycling a couple years ago affected me a lot worse than I thought it did. Regardless, I'll keep training as hard as I can. I'll keep showing up. Eventually I'll learn. Perhaps not as quickly as I'd like, but I'll get there. If it's harder for me than it is for others, then I'll be more grateful than everyone else once I get there right?

After I was done lifting Barry Schroeder pulled me aside and gave me some great advise about staying positive and enjoying the sport. It was wonderful advise and I was grateful.

Barry Schroeder at Miller weightlifting

I'm going to eat a healthy snack then take a nap so that I'm fully rested and recovered for tomorrow. What happens tomorrow you ask? Barry Schroeder is going to workout with me at Miller weightlifting. This will be my first time seeing him in action. Barry Schroeder owns every state Olympic Olympic weightlifting record in both the 94k and 105k weight classes in my age group of 35-39. I posted an article about him, what he's done, and how it affects me. Click on the link below to read more about it:

https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7284817641207555818#editor/target=post;postID=580449116031509380;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=26;src=postname

The 2013 Nutcracker triathlon race report

After virtually no swimming. cycling, or running training for over 2 years I decided to sign up for the 2013 Nutcracker triathlon. This was my 86th multisport race and was the 4th time I've raced The Nutcracker triathlon. The Nutcracker triathlon used to be called the Jingle Bell triathlon, but due to a copy right problem with another race they changed the name.

The Nutcracker triathlon is RD’d by Mark Mico of Trisportcoaching.com  Every time I race a multisport event put on by Mark Mico I’m amazed. His events are always extremely well organized and stress free events. The race results were posted online by the evening of the race. He always hands out the nicest age group awards of any local sprint. This year each and every athlete who placed top 3 in their AG received a wood plaque that had “The Nutcracker triathlon 1st, 2nd, or 3rd place division” on it. The registration fees of his events are always much cheaper than any other sprint distance races.

It was a Run-Bike-Swim at the Rio Rancho Aquatic Center. The bike course was an out-and-back (moderately hilly) 20K. The run was a hilly loop 5K course. The swim was a serpentine 400 meter swim, up/down one lane at a time.

Because of my lack of endurance training and because of my current weight my run was horrible. I'm slow and to be honest I was humiliated by my physique and performance. I finished the 5k in 38:34.

The bike course was shortened this year to a 20k. I felt a little stronger cycling than I did running. I passed a bunch of people and only got passed once, but I was still sad. I was mourning for the athlete I used to be. For over 2 years I finished almost every triathlon I entered in the top 10 overall. I was mourning for the way I used to look. I used to have a 6 pack, now I weigh 265 pounds. It's been so long since I was in shape and looked good I forgot how great it felt until I saw the top triathletes speed by me on their bikes in their aero position. That used to be me...... But today the bike took me 61 minutes.

I've always been a natural swimmer. I had a great swim passing many more athletes and even swimming over a few.

I finished in 1 hour 50 minutes, took 72nd out of 100 athletes, and 1st place Clydesdale.

Even though I was sore it felt great to show up on Monday at Miller weightlifting. It felt good because I was taking another step to being the top notch athlete I used to be, but in a completely new sport of Olympic weightlifting. Even though my body was fatigued from the Nutcracker triathlon yesterday I threw up some of my biggest weight yet. I'll be a great athlete again. I'll look good again. It'll take awhile, and a lot of effort, but I will. And some day I plan on outlifting my current golden carrot Barry Schroeder of CrossFit Sandstorm in Bernalillo NM

New Mexico Olympic weightlifter Barry Schroeder sets records and inspires

When I first started triathlon I was 292 pounds and couldn't swim, bike, or run worth a crap. Heck, I was so out of shape I could barely walk without breaking into a sweat and hyperventilating! Early on in my triathlon career I raced against a couple Clydesdales who were unbelievably fast. Arnold Ceniceros and Brian Pilgim. I was amazed and motivated by them and thier athletic dominance in the Clydesdale division. I used these 2 triathletes to motivate myself. By using these 2 amazing athletes as motivation to transform myself from the obese and sedentary person I had been to a triathlete who lost 117 pounds, qualified for 6 national triathlon championships, 1 national duathlon championship, and 1 world championship (the 70.3 world championships).


Now that I've given up triathlon and picked up Olympic weightlifting I've found another athlete who is equally unbelievable. Barry Schroeder. He's in my age group of 35-39, but he's probably even more impressive at Olympic weightlifting then Arnold and Brian were at triathlon. He has set 6 New Mexico state records in the 35-39 age group, 3 state records in the 85k (169-187 lbs) weight class and 3 in the 105k (206-231 lbs) weight class. Barry is a trainer at CrossFit Sandstorm in Albuquerque NM, and Barry's a beast! 

I've found that my body is not  particularly gifted for Olympic weightlifting, but I have the work ethic, determination, tenacity, and exellent coaching that very few do. And now I have found something- someone- that will fuel me. It's going to take a tremendous amount of time and hard work, but I'm going to out lift him someday. To compete with him will push every one of my physical limitations. I know I'll have to work twice as hard as him to get to where he's at. But once I get something in my mind I never let go.

                                   This is Barry Schroeder