to much competitive spirit?

Earlier this year I found out NASA (natural athletes strength association) powerlifting has a power clean division. Not many powerlifters in New Mexico have competed in the clean division. Consequently there's almost no New Mexico state records in the power clean divisions. When i found this out I became very excited. I told all the athletes I know at The Miller Gym, High Dessert Athletics Club, Praxis, and Santa Fe CrossFit that they could compete in the upcoming New Mexico state NASA powerlifting championships held on April 2016 in Gallup New Mexico. I told them just showing up and lifting the bar would make them both state champions and a state record holders in the power clean division! I let them know i could fit 9 athletes in my vehicle if people wanted to carpool. I assumed everyone would be as excited as I am about going to a new venue, setting new records, and becoming state champions just by essentially showing up. Not a single person seemed interested. I asked my wife, "How could this opportunity not get everyone fired up? If I heard I could set a state records in something even if it was something I sucked at I'd still show up. For the experience and memories if nothing else." My wife told me most people just aren't as competitive as I am. On a basic level that makes sense. But on the other hand I REALLY don't understand. Everything about competing is awesome. I never feel as alive as when I compete. I'll compete in anything. Even if it's something I don't really enjoy or know anything about. You name it I'll try it. Not only are they fun, but I find it's a great way to gain back dwindling motivation for weight loss, training, or life in general. In the last 11 years I've competed in 86 multi-sport races, 8 running races, 2 Jiu Jitsue tournaments, 7 weightlifting meets, 1 powerlifting meet, and 1 CrossFit games. That averaging almost 1 competition a month. To me that's what makes life worth living! With all the options and opportunities out there nowadays why the heck would people not want to try something new and exciting all the time? Perhaps my wife is right. Maybe I'm much to competitive. And perhaps, as unbelievable as it sounds, maybe a new adventure and finding new adversaries just isn't as appealing to others as it is to me. Could there be such a thing as to competitive?

New Mexico New year's classic powerlifting meet report

Squat 175k

Bench 132.5k

Deadlift 195k

Coefficient 1.4438

On December 5th 2015 I competed in The New Mexico New Years classic powerlifting meet in Roswell NM. The meet was put on by NASA (Natural Athlete Strength Association). This was the first powerlifting meet I'd ever done. I've been training olympic style weightlifting for two years, but nothing even close to powerlifting. 

I was wanting to compete in the SHW divisions which is 309lbs or more. I woke up that morning weighting 305 lbs. Before I left the house for the 3 1/2 hour drive to the meet in Roswell NM a drank a glass of water with a couple teaspoons of salt stirred in. I figured the extra sodium would help my body retain water. 10 minutes before weighing in I chugged as much water as I could. I weighed in at 312 lbs easily making the SHW minimum weight. 

I entered 9 divisions. It cost me a fortune, but it was one of the most fun and memorable experiences of my life! Totally worth every penny! These were the divisions I entered. 

1- clean only masters pure SHW

2- clean only masters one SHW

3- clean only law enforcement SHW 

4- power press masters pure

5- power press masters one 

6- power press law enforcement SHW

7- push pull masters law enforcement SHW

8- unequiped powerlifting law enforcement SHW 

9- power sports law enforcement SHW 

The first lift was the power clean. I was really glad the clean was first. I know how to clean well and I'm comfortable doing cleans since the clean and jerk is one of the two lifts I've been training at for the last two years. I lifted a 120k clean. It was the heaviest clean of the day and a state record.

The next lift was the strict curl. I hadn't done curls at all since 2003. So I had no clue what weights to attempt. i lifted 35k, 50k, and my third lift was a 65k.

The third lift was the squat. I built up to a 170k squat. Since that was a national records they let me attempt a fourth lift. 175k, good lift.

After the squat it was obvious to everyone I was a rookie at powerlifting. I was having to ask athletes and officials a thousand questions. A powerlifting coach, Vernon Smith, who owns Grow Strong strength and conditioning in Albuquerque New Mexico came up to me and offered to coach me the rest of the day. I gratefully accepted his generous offer. The rest of the meet was so much easier and less stressful with a powerlifting coach helping me.

The bench press was the fourth lift. I ended up struggling with this. Out of habit I didn't wait for the head referees commands. Even though I lifted the weight easily I was given three red lights at both of my first two lifts for lifting the weight off my chest and racking without the officials commands. On the third lift I had to remember to wait for the head judges commands or I'd end up bombing out. On my third attempt of 132.5k I got three white lights. 132.5 was super easy. I could have lifted a lot more,  but after  two "no lifts" I was only concerned about not bombing out. I only started training again in the bench press this summer. Until this summer my lifetime bench PR was 275lbs I set back in 1999 when I was 24 years old. This summer when I first picked up benching again I could only lift 245 pounds. So all things considered 132.5k (291.5 pounds) is pretty awesome. I was allowed a fourth attempt and I successfully lifted 135k.

The deadlift was the fifth lift. I had no idea what to try to lift in this lift either. I used to deadlift when I first started olympic style weightlifting, but the deadlifts were hurting my hips so my weightlifting coach stopped putting them into my programing. It had been 20 months since I'd done any deadlifts. I started out with a 110k deadlift- ridiculously easy. My 2nd attempt I jumped up to a 150k lift. Also ridiculously easy. I decided to try 180 for my third. Also amazingly easy. I was allowed a fourth lift and i lifted 195k.... easily. I learned a very valuable lesson. I should know approximately how much my max lifts are if I'm going to lift in a powerlifting meet- duh!

I set 9 state records and 4 national records.  I entered these divisions and next to each is my total and placing. 

 clean only masters pure SHW (Super Heavy Weight), 120k, state record

clean only masters one SHW, 120k state record

clean only masters law enforcement SHW 120, state record

power press masters pure 152.5k state record

power press masters one 152.5k state record

power press law masters enforcement SHW 152.5, state and national record

 push pull masters law enforcement SHW, 327.5k, state record and national record 

 unequiped powerlifting masters law enforcement SHW, 502.5k, state and national record 

power sports masters law enforcement SHW, 392.5k, state and national record

The NASA powerlifting trophies and medals are top notch!

pre-workout meal comparison and weightlifting belts

After trying every food imaginable I've found the food that gives me the most energy to sustain my energy through an entire weightlifting workout is white rice mixed 1/2 cup skim milk, sugar, and  one or two cups of coffee. After Thanksgiving I had a pumpkin pie and thought,  "this has lots of calories and is high in the glycemic index. I bet pumpkin pie will work great as a pre-workout meal!" Just in case your wondering,  pumpkin pie does not fuel an athlete well. Not only did I end up running out of energy half way through my workout, i felt like crap the rest of the day. And the pumpkin pie used so much of my daily allotment of carbs and fat that I was hungry the rest of the day. No bueno.

Every 4-6 weeks I tweak my back doing back squats. It's never an injury severe enough to make me miss training,  but it's serious enough to bug for a week of two while it heals up. I've tried everything to stop this from happening: changing my form, tightening my belt REALLY tight, squating slower.... nothing seemed to stop it. A few weeks ago I had to order a different weightlifting belt. The one i had been using the last couple years wasn't legal in powerlifting meets. Bada Bing bada bang, problem fixed! Turns out I was needing a different weightlifting belt. The one I'm using now gives my back perfect support!  I haven't had any problems at all since lifting with the new belt. It's an Ader 4 inch weightlifting belt. Its a miracle worker and a back saver!

There's a funny 105k+ story to go along with this belt. I ordered the belt based on their sizing chart. When I got it in the mail I thought they had to have sent me the wrong sized belt because this sucker was huge! I'm sure it would fit around two normal sized men twice with plenty of room to spare.  I started packing it in the box to return it and my wife said, "why don't you try it on so you know how much smaller of a belt you'll need to replace it with." Great idea! I tried it on, not only did it fit,  but if I was a half inch bigger around the belt would be to small. Ah, the life of a super heavy weight. Every day in the shoes of a 105k+ is an adventure!

wrist problem fixed

The last couple weeks my right wrist had been hurting when I do snatches. On Saturday i told Erik, one of the coaches at The Miller Gym. After watching me lift only one time he figured out my problem. I allow my wrists to bend backwards when the weight reaches the top of the snatch. Normally that wouldn't be much of a problem, but my wrists are super flexible. They end up bending to far. See picture below:

The picture below is how I'm trying to have the weight land. This feels so much better. The only down side is changing my form on the snatch is harder than I thought it would be. It's caused a lot of missed lifts and frustration. Since the very first day i started doing the snatch I've ALWAYS done it that way. Changing it has thrown off my balance,  and to some extent even my confidence. With hard work, focus, and determination I'll get it. Like my Mom used to tell me, "this to shall pass."

afraid of big weights

At my last meet in October, The Lift Outside The Box weightlifting meet,  I missed my last snatch of 91k. If I'd have made that lift I'd have qualified for the master's weightlifting national championships. When I missed that lift I was crushed. Failing at my goal of the national championships made me more determined. I'm training harder, focusing on sleeping more, and I hired a sports nutrition coach.

Now that I'm to the part of my training that I'm starting to lift heavier weights again I've realized another side effect of my failure in October. I seem to get scared of lifting big weights. That had never been a problem for me before.  Now anytime I lift higher than%80 of my max I get intimidated and i have to walk around the gym trying to motivate myself and talk myself into attempting the lift. So far I haven't missed any big lifts, but the fear remains. Today I even succeeded at a snatch of only 5k below the weight I attempted in October, but the fear remains. I'm constantly amazed how much of a mental game weightlifting is.

eating before and during training

Since hiring a sports nutrition coach I've been eating smaller healthier meals. I almost never eat until I'm full. The good news is my stomach has shrunk so I get full sooner. The bad news is my stomach can't handle my normal pre-workout meal anymore. I used to eat two cups white rice,  one cup milk,  and coffee. If i eat that now i feel overly full and uncomfortable while training. Now that I'm eating less for my pre-workout meal I'm running out of energy during my workouts. I've started sipping on a 16 ounce Gatorade with a half scoop of whey protein during my workouts. That seems to have fixed everything. I'm no longer overly full and I have energy to finish training.

dinning out on a budget

My wife and I are on a strict budget. We put aside $50 every pay day for dining out.  $50 every two weeks isn't much for a family of 5. We'll usually eat out once a week at someplace cheap like McDonald's or Taco Bell. On Sunday the wife, kids, and I helped an old friend of ours move. We helped move from early morning until 6 pm that night. Afterwards everyone was exhausted and no one felt like cooking so our buddies took us to eat at Applebees. Its amazing how much we enjoyed eating out at an actual restaurant. Back before we had kids and students loans we ate out all the time without thinking about it. It never really felt like that big of a deal. But now going to eat made us fell like royalty. Its amazing how going without something can make us feel so much more grateful and appreciative when we do get it.

a full weekend!

This Saturday I'll be competing in my first powerlifting meet put on by NASA. I'm right on the line between two weight classes, the 275-307lb division and the 307lb+ division. I've decided I'm going to lift in the 308lb division. My walking around weight is around 305 so I'll need to eat a decent meal and drink a few glasses of water before weigh ins. I needed to know what numbers to go for at the meet so I maxed out on bench press. I hit 305.5 lbs! Earlier this year my max was  240 lbs. I'm pretty excited about my strength gains and I'm even more excited about competing in my 1st powerlifting meet.

The prison was short the week of Thanksgiving so I had to work 10 out of 11 days. 7 of those were twelve hour shifts, 3 were 16 hours shifts. During that grueling time I didn't miss a single workout and I didn't overeat once,  not even on Thanksgiving. By the time that long stretch of work ended i missed my kids so much! To do something special I took them to the dollar movies to see The Minions. On the way there the battery light came on in my vehicle. After the movies and on our way home the alternator in my old 90's model Chevy Suburban went out. Of course my phone's battery was dead so I couldn't call friends for help. I took out my battery and alternator and hitch hiked to the nearest auto parts store. Got them tested, purchased a new alternator, then had to hitch hiked back to my truck to install it. Bad news is i wasn't prepared for such a long outing so i missed my nutrition goals of the day,  but the good news is I broke down in front of Chucky Cheese in Albuquerque so the kids had a blast while I was fixing the Suburban.

week 3 with a sports nutrition coach

I started working with a sports nutrition coach almost 4 weeks ago. So far I've lost 4 pounds, which is amazing because my main goal is weightlifting performance. Of course I want to lose some fat, but only if it's done in a way that doesn't jeopardize performance. Also,  I started taking creatine monohydrate a little over a week ago. I usually gain at least 5 pounds when i start taking creatine. No weight gain this time. More importantly my clothes are fitting differently. They are tighter in the legs, chest, and shoulders, and looser in the waist. I feel like I'm healing quicker now from training than I was before. I'm sleeping better too. When I hired my nutrition coach he surprised me by keeping my calories the same. But he raised the amount of protein I'm eating- by a lot! Before I probably ate around 180 grams of protein a day. Now I'm eating close to 300. I'm averaging 125g of fat and 290g of carbohydrates on a non-training day. On training days my carbs go up to 400g and he has very specific directions on what I eat should before, during, and after training. I'm really happy i hired a nutrition coach. My only regret is not having done it a couple years ago. I'd have made more strength gains and I wouldn't have become as fat as I did.

I hurt my wrist weightlifting a week ago. Every time i lift it hurts a little worse. Of course I'm doing what any manly man does. I'm ignoring it, not telling anyone, hoping it'll get better on its own, and assuming that as long as I don't get it diagnosed that means nothings wrong with it. So far ignoring my wrist isn't working. So of course that means I haven't ignored it long enough or put enough effort in pretending nothings wrong.

suicide and correctional officers

I've been pretty transparent on my blog about my recent struggles with depression. I looked up some statistics and was shocked. I wish a knew these things before starting my career as a Correctional Officer in 1995.

-Correctional Officers (CO’s) have the second highest mortality rate of any occupation.

-33.5% of all assaults in prisons and jails are committed by inmates against staff.

-A CO’s 58th birthday, on average, is their last.

-CO’s have a 39% higher suicide rate than any other occupation and have a higher divorce and substance abuse rates then the general population.

-CO's die, on average, less than two years after retiring.

Throughout my 21-year career in corrections, I've lost a large number of my fellow correctional officers to suicide. Yet very little (if any) attention was paid to the issue of correctional officer suicides. Discussion of suicide within my profession is a taboo topic because corrections employees are not supposed to appear emotionally vulnerable or fragile. After all, emotional vulnerability often equates to emotional instability, which is perceived to be a weakness by fellow officers. It is also a sign that you can be manipulated or are easily prey by inmates.

There has been much written concerning suicide among law enforcement officers, but very little about suicide among correctional officers. College classes go into great depth about the risks of stress, burnout, depression, and suicide rates among police officers, but in corrections courses the topic is rarely, if ever, discussed.

Existing Research on Suicide in Corrections
Research studies have found high suicide rates in the corrections field. For example, a 2009 New Jersey State Police Task Force Study (PDF) found that corrections officers have a suicide rate that is twice as high as the rate of police officers.

A 2013 U.S. Department of Justice’s Programs Diagnostic Center Study (PDF) found corrections officers:
-Have a much higher rate of suicide than those in other occupations
-experience severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) during their careers
-and on average, will not live to see their 59th birthday. Yup, you read that correctly. The average correctional officers won't live to 59.

In one of the few studies specifically addressing correctional officer suicide, the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries indicated that 38 percent of the intentional fatalities were suicides by self-inflicted gunshot wounds, but the actual percentage is largely unknown because the BLS only reports suicides that occur in the workplace. Suicides that occur at home or elsewhere are classified as non-occupational and are not part of the BLS data.

So, in the last 8-9 years i have suffered severe depression and thoughts of suicide. I also have pretty severe PTSD. I cant keep my back to a room or a door. If there's someone standing behind me or someone keeps getting to close to me i get anxious. While in public i'm constantly looking in people's eyes and faces looking for signs of impending attack. I watch everyone's hands for weapons- I knew I'd been institutionalized when I looked for weapons in my grandmother's hands and looked for bulges in her clothes before I'd hug her. My kids won't get near the bed when I'm sleeping because sometimes I wake up yelling, punching, and kicking. I often times wake up running through the house. I don't know what I'm running to or away from, but i know its a life and death situation. My family knows never to walk up to me from behind......
Why did I choose a career in corrections? Why have I stayed 21 years? And why the hell haven't I retired yet? I know one thing for sure, when it comes to depression I'll never try to gut check it again. I'll get help.

more sleep for olympic style weightlifting

I've found I need 1 to 1.5 hours more sleep a day now than I did when I was a hard core triathlete. I'm only training an average of about 6 hours a week weightlifting. When I was a triathlete I was training an average of 22 hours a week. It's amazing to me I trained almost 4 times as much as an endurance athlete as I do as a weightlifter, but I need significantly more sleep now. 

The last 3 or 4 weeks I've had the best sleep of my life! For the last few years I had been struggling with sleep apnea. I wasn't sleeping well and I was constantly tired beyond belief. I assumed the sleep apnea was from obesity. In the last month I've lost 13 pounds. That's a drop in the bucket of what I need to  lose, but I've lost almost all of my problems with sleep that I had developed. There's no way losing 13 of the 140 pounds I'd gained made my sleep apnea go away. Now I'm beginning to wonder if my sleep apnea had to do with my weight gain or if it had more to do with the severe depression I had been in. Can depression caused sleep apnea? I'm not certain, but i know one thing for sure, I'm unbelievably grateful to no longer feel chronically exhausted and overworked. And I'm even more appreciative to no longer feel constant despair and hopelessness. 9 years of working 80-90 hours a week had beat me down physically and emotionally. Since I had never suffered from depression before I didn't realize how it gradually worsens. Like a frog in a pot of water that is gradually brought to a boil. The frog doesn't realize it's in a life threatening situation until it's almost to late because it had worsened so gradually. I now understand why they call depression the silent killer. Especially with men. We don't ask for help. No matter how bad things get we always say everything's fine, until it's to late. Even more so with Correctional Officer's. Machismo is huge among corrections employees. That's one of many reasons why the suicide rate among correctional officers is so high. Studies have shown the rate of PTSD of correctional officers is higher than combat vets. I've lost a lot of my fellow correctional officers by suicide the last two decades. 

The 2016 NASA World Cup

It turns out if I compete in the New Mexico New year's (powerlifting) classic, which I already registered for, I'll be eligible to compete in the 2016 NASA world cup, NASA's powerlifting world championships. There's nothing as thrilling as competing at a world championship sporting event! In 2006 i qualified and competed in the 70.3 world (triathlon) championships in Clearwater Florida. Even though I finished with one of my slowest 70.3 distance races of my entire triathlon career it was one of the most exhilarating and memorable experiences of my life. Everything about a sporting world championships is memorable and surreal. The athletes, the energy, the enthusiasm! I cant believe i get an opportunity to compete in another one! I'm so excited!  There's no way I'm missing the 2016 NASA (powerlifting) World Cup. It's going to be held in August 2016 in Denver Colorado, & you can bet I'll be there!

more energy during training

Today's workout was awesome! 81 reps total, all double and triples. Today was one of those rare days that everything felt light and no matter how hard I worked I never felt tired. I think that has a lot to do with hiring a sports nutrition coach. I'm recovering quicker, feeling stronger, and have more energy during training now. The workout took me almost two hours. After weightlifting I did the bench press program Shane built for me. I built up to two reps at 129.5 kilos (285lbs). I've always struggled at bench. That Shane's program has built me up to 2x285 lbs is virtually a miracle. I'm hoping to hit a 300lb bench at the NASA powerlifting competition on December 5th in Roswell New Mexico.

My daughter hugged me today and said, "Daddy, your getting skinnier. I can tell when i hug you. You feel different." I haven't seen much weight loss on the scale the last couple weeks,  but she sure made me feel good.

my son and weightlifting

Some wives give socks or ties for presents. Not my wife. She knows exactly what will make me happy. Weightlifting suplaments baby! I got this in the mail today for my 40th birthday. I'm a happy man. 

Today at my son's weightlifting practice coach Miller gave my son a Miller gym t-shirt for an early Christmas present. My son was was so happy about the shirt he refused to take it off last night. He slept in it. He really loves weightlifting, and he's pretty darn good at it. I'd really like it if I could watch him practice just one time without my eyes filling with tears. It's funny how love and and being proud of seeing my children exell  makes me cry.

Here's a video of my son doing power cleans. If he continues progressing as well as he is coach Miller will let him lift in the 2nd annual John Henry Davis meet in January. My dad even said he'd come to watch my sons first weightlifting meet. Even though my Dad only lives a few hours away he only visits once every couple years. So that would make it a particularly special day for my son. He and I would be lifting in the same meet together. Now that's what I call father/son bonding! 

weightlifting, retirement, and Santa Fe New Mexico

I find great joy from training olympic style weightlifting. The dedication and focus it takes to train in this sport fits my personality perfectly. I have a perfect weightlifting specific gym and like minded athletes to train with. I have two top notch coaches, one weightlifting coach and one nutrition coach. I'm completely content where I'm at. And now that I'm able to slow down on overtime my family life is the best it's ever been. 

I spent my entire career counting down the days to be able to retire and move, and now that I'm eligible to retire from the prison I've found complete satisfaction where I'm at. My wife and I have been house shopping here in Santa Fe, the houses are unbelievably expensive, there's no way we could afford to buy a house here. So after years of wanting to retire, I've found  that now I don't want to, and I sure as heck don't want to move away from my weightlifting gym here in Santa Fe.

I started taking creatine again. I'm always amazed how quickly my body gets strength gains and how much more quickly my body recovers when I take creatine. The only down side to creatine is the weight gain. I've gained three pounds in less than a week. All the weight gain is water weight, and since i don't have to worry about making weight at a lower weight class i don't mind. My next weightlifting meet is in January. The meet in January will be my last chance to qualify for the Masters Weightlifting National Championships.

help to recover

This week will be the hardest week of training I've ever done.  I'm only half way through and already my legs are trashed! Today is my only day of rest this week so I thought what better way to recover than with a massage! Plus it's my 40th birthday today. What a great gift for myself! My legs were so sore it hurt when the massage therapist was working on them! Hopefully the massage will help me recover more so I can trash them all all over again.

boundaries and coaches

After hiring a sports nutrition coach,  one who is an olympic style weightlifter himself,  I've lost 13 pounds. This last weekend my 5 oldest friends were getting together to watch the Holly Holm vs Ronda Rousey fight and we were celebrating my 40th birthday. I had a lot of anxiety about sending my nutrition coach an email stating I was going to be off the diet wagon Saturday night and drinking.  He responded "Understood. Happy birthday.  Get back on the wagon on Sunday ". I wasn't expecting such a supportive and understanding response. Back in my hard core triathlon days I had a triathlon coach who pushed me really hard. I made great gains under his tutelage, but he wasn't understanding about balancing life and athletics. The week my youngest son was born and hospitalized for three days he sent multiple nasty messages about missing workouts. My old triathlon coach caused me a lot of stress and anxiety in my life. I didn't enjoy that kind of pressure.  I was expecting that kind of a response from my nutrition coach,  but nope,  he was awesome. It's nice being a serious athlete with coaches who are great at getting results,  but also know how to allow balance in their athletes lives.

glycogen and olympic style weightlifting

Great news! I'm relatively certain I've figured out what caused the fatigue during my workouts the last week. I thought it was caused by one or a combination of the following: dieting, to many hours at work, lack of sleep, or because my new intensive training program was to difficult for me. Turns out it has to do with my glycogen levels. I'd  been doing a bench program after weightlifting. Doing both was causing REALLY long training days and was burning me out.  A couple weeks ago I started weightlifting on Mondays, Wednesday's, and Fridays and doing the bench program with pull ups and abs on Tuesdays and Thursdays. My muscles glycogen levels were able to fully replenish because the muscles used on each day were different, but an athletes liver glycogen levels takes 48 hours to fully replenish from strength training days. Since I was strength training 5 days consecutively my livers glycogen levels were getting lower everyday and never recovering. I'll be going back to doing bench press after my olympic weightlifting. Olympic style weightlifting is such a mental game. I'm always learning something new.

upcoming biggest volume week ever

Last week was a recovery week. Even though the weights were low and I didn't do many sets or reps I struggled to finish my workouts. I worked 12 hour shifts on all my days off but one, on Friday I got a mandatory 16 hour shift, and I'm attempting to lose weight (down 13 pounds so far). I'm not sure which one of those was the culprit of the struggles in the gym or if it was a combination. Starting tomorrow I'll be in a really big training week. It'll be the most volume and intensity I've ever attempted in a week. Hopefully the last week of lower volume was all I was needing because I'll need to be at %100 this week.

I usually cycle creatine monohydrate. After a meet I'll take 4 weeks off, then I'll take a it again until my next meet. It usually ends up being a month off 2 months on. I started taking it again tonight. I'll need the extra help starting on Moday.

soon to lift in my first powerlifting competition

On December 5th I'll be competing in my first powerlifting competition. It's going to be the NASA (natural athlete strength association) New Mexico New year classic. I'm currently weighing 305.4lbs, down from 318. Looks like I'll be lifting in the 275-307lb division. I found out i can lift in multiple divisions. I could lift in the police division, masters 1, and masters pure divisions.  I looked up the New Mexico state records in those divisions and there are 14 vacant state records. I'll end up setting 14 state records in my first powerlifting competition! Here are the divisions and records I'll be lifting in. They are all in the 275-307lb division. The only bad news is it'll cost me $515 to enter all those divisions.

Power sports police division 

Power press police division 

Power press masters 1 division 

Power press masters pure

Retro powerlifting police division 

Retro powerlifting masters 1 division

Retro powerlifting masters pure division

unequiped bench police division
Unequiped bench masters pure

Unequiped push/pull police division
unequiped push/pull masters 1 division

power clean police division
Power clean masters 1 division
Power clean masters pure division

definitions of divisions :
Power sports= curl, bench, deadlift
Power press= bench, clean
Push/pull= bench, deadlift

a great Olympic weightlifting coach

My middle child has significantly less confidence than my other children. His lack of self-esteem has caused him to learn more slowly in school, causes him to give up at things very quickly, have emotional outbursts, he's incredibly hard on himself,  etc. A few months ago I started having him trained in olympic style weightlifting by coach Shane Miller. My son has a real talent for weightlifting. He stays intensely focused at every training session, which he usually isn't willing to do with anything else. This new found talent of his has totally changed him in the last few months. He always leaves in a better mood than when he started, which has has taught him to stay focused and positive when attempting other things. Since he's becoming so good at weightlifting so quickly its made him feel significantly better about himself. He's more patient, focused, confident, and much happier. Only a few months weightlifting has had a profound and positive effect on my sons life.

Awhile back there were 5 men at The Miller gym who were competing to successfully lift a 91k  (200lb) snatch. i was the first one. One of the guys at the gym, I'll call him Jack Ass, was a sore loser and told me the only reason i was the  one who lifted a 91k first was because of how overweight i was. Earlier this week a 2nd athlete successfully lifted a 91k snatch. As soon as Jack Ass heard he immediately said loudly,  "yeah, but your a 105k+ and-" before Jack Ass could finish his statement coach Shane Miller shut him up and pulled him aside. Apparently Coach Miller had a come to Jesus moment with Jack Ass because Jack Ass came back to me and apologized. I love my gym.  I love the other members of my gym- most of the time. And i love my coach. He's a great teacher,  a great person, a great motivator, he does an amazing job at stopping or minimizing gym gossip or politics, and I'm mostly grateful because he's making a huge difference in my son's  life.

eating to train and recover

My sports nutrition coach is having me eat 400 grams of carbs on a heavy weightlifting day. 1/3 to 1/2 of my carbs should be eaten in a block of 2 hours before, during, and two hours after my training. When I first started I found that I perform best if I eat 2 cups white rice with a cup of milk and a little sugar before my workout. It wasn't until a recently I found I workout best if I drink orange Gatorade with chocolate whey protein during my workout- tastes like an orange-cicle!

I'd always struggled with energy after my workouts. I'd feel wiped out for hours. This week I tried a new post workout shake. It's made with 1 1/2 cups milk, 1 1/2 scoops whey protein, BCA's, Glutamine, a banana, and two tablespoons peanut butter. Within minutes of pounding my post workout shake I feel unbelievable. The most ignored aspect of training is recovery. Hopefully this'll jump start my lifting. 9 1/2 weeks left until the last shot at qualifying for the Masters National Weightlifting Championships.

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.

on an upward swing

The entire week I've ate exactly what my nutrition coach wanted me to! After two years of training hard and eating like crap I'm excited to finally be getting the nutrition aspect of training down. Hopefully that will enable me to get the gains I need to qualify for the Master's National Weightlifting Championships. Last month I missed qualifying by 5 kilos.

The last few days I've had the best sleep I've ever had! I'm sure it's a combination of training harder than I've ever trained and eating well. This is a welcome relief. I've had obesity related sleep apnea the last few years. It feels great to finally feel rested.

For 9 straight years I worked 80-90 hours a week. It caused some pretty severe depression. To be honest I almost didn't make it through it. The last couple months I've worked a normal amount of hours. Thankfully the depression has dissipated along with the excessive amount of work hours. So.... what is that weird feeling I have floating around inside me? Oh ya, that's happiness and contentedness. Welcome back. It's been a long time. I've missed you.

Everything is finally coming together. The only thing left unaccomplished is for me to save for a down payment for a home and qualify for the Masters National Championships. 

nutrition coaching day 2

I hired a nutrition coach.  Today marks my 2nd full day of being coached by him. Lot's of new things.

-This weekend i attended my father-in-laws 75th birthday party. There's no way i could have ate healthy and in moderation if i wasn't being held accountable by my nutrition coach.

-Planning out what I'm going to eat before i eat it and logging it makes a huge difference in the quality of food i end up eating. 

-higher quality foods are much much more filing

--I'm having a hard time eating as much as I'm supposed to, especially the 300g protein. 

- left on my own i eat WAY to much fatty foods

- once i log and eat my first meal eating healthy the rest of the day is easy but the first meal is the hardest for me. I love to eat crappy food in the morning, corned beef hash, burritos, grilled cheese sandwiches with green chile, etc. And after i eat one unhealthy meal i have a tendency to want to eat poorly the next meal,  then the next meal. It's the fat man's snow ball effect. 

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!

when to retire?

I'm currently eligible to retire from the state of New Mexico. I've been struggling to figure out when I should retire. I could retire anytime between now and July 2019. After years of deliberation my wife and I have decided for me to wait until 2019 to retire from the prison. The reason is simple. I've fallen in love with weightlifting. I've never enjoyed another sport or hobby as much as i enjoy weightlifting, and Santa Fe has one of the best weightlifting coaches in the nation, Shane Miller from who Coaches out of the Miller Gym. There's no way I'm ready to leave the quality of coaching here, there's way to much I still want to accomplish in this sport.

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!

challenging weightlifting program

I started a new weightlifting program.  Coach Miller told me this will be the most difficult program I've done. If yesterday was an indication of how the next 9 weeks will go then he's absolutely right. Yesterdays workout was a ball buster. It was a tremendous amount of fun, but it was one of the hardest workouts I've ever done. It took me 2 1/4 hours to finish the workout. The rest of the day my legs were wobbly and i woke up with my legs ridiculously sore. I love to work hard, and i love how a hard workout leaves me feelling.

If training goes well then I should hit an 95k snatch and a 120k clean and jerk by the John Davis memorial weightlifting meet in January. If i can hit this numbers then I'll qualify for the 2016 master's weightlifting national championships that'll be held in Savannah Georgia in April.

2016 triathlon and weightlifting schedule

I've started contemplating doing a half dozen multisport races or more in 2016. I'd like to hit 100 races completed in the next few years. I'm currently at 86. Of course my main focus would be weightlifting, so I'd need to schedule races no closer than 6 weeks from weightlifting meets. The more i wondered what a weightlifting/ multisport schedule would look like the less i could resist building one. I doubt I'll stick to this schedule, but this one looks pretty good to me. What an adventure 2016 would be if i did something similar to this!

P.S. another great thing about this schedule is i wouldn't have to purchase a USA Triathlon membership until May because you don't need a USAT membership to race in multisport races on military bases and the first two races of 2016 are on military installations.

December 5th, 2015
NASA powerlifting meet
Roswell NM

Jan
The 2nd annual John Davis memorial weightlifting meet
Santa Fe NM

Feb
Missile Man duathlon (1)
WSMR, NM

April
Tax day triathlon (2)
WSMR, NM

Joker Duathlon (3)
Holloman Air Force Base NM

May
Dog house sprint triathlon  (4)
Lubbock Tx

June
Milkman triathlon  (5)
Dexter NM

May/ June / or July
The New Mexico state games weightlifting meet
Albuquerque NM

July
Bottomless lakes triathlon (6)
Roswell NM

August
Socorro chile harvest triathlon  (7)

September
SPC cotton country sprint triathlon (8)
Levelland Tx

September
monster triathlon (9)
Holloman Air Force Base NM

Ocober
Weightlifting meet
Santa Fe NM

November
Veterans day duathlon (10)
WSMR, NM

December
The Polar Bear triathlon (11)
WSMR NM

rest between sets for olympic weightlifting

During my last weightlifting meet I felt fatigued by the time I got to the Clean and jerks. I decided I'd try and take less time between lifts during training to see if that would help increase my endurance during weightlifting meets. I've set the timer on my phone for 4 minutes. Every time the timer goes off I do another set regardless if I feel recovered or not. So far this has rocked my legs! They are tired and pumped up once I leave the gym. The next day my legs are always much more sore and fatigued than I'm used to. This approach probably burns more calories which will help me get to my goal of lifting in the 105k division.

On another note, my depression has subsided a lot the last couple weeks. I'm sure it has to do with working less and sleeping more the last couple months. I had been suffering from severe depression, most likely caused from working 80-90 hours a week for 9 straight years. I've only been working an average of 50 hours recently. Life feels so much better being well rested and having the fog of melancholy lifted.

first treadmill tabata of 2015

Yesterday morning I was mandatoried to a 16 hour shift at the prison. I refused to let that upset my new  workout regimen. I got off of a 16 hour shift at 10 am, slept until 1:15, went to the New Mexico Corrections Academy and completed my training routine before my kids got home at 3 pm from school.

For cardio I did my first treadmill tabata in over a year. I chose the treadmill tabata because I didn't have much timr. A tabata is a very quick and rediculously intense cardio workout. It'll makes your lungs scream and heart feel like it's going to pump right out of your chestt. I did a 5 minute warm up followed by a twenty second sprint at a %12 grade and a 13:37 pace followed by a 10 second rest. I completed  10 sprints of 20 seconds followed by a ten second break. It was really hard! Felt great.

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?

program for more fitness

I've put a lot of thought into developing a great program that will increase my fitness level, raise my metabolic rate, and help me lose weight without fatiguing my legs for Olympic style weightlifting. I've decided I'll do Olympic style weightlifting and abs on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. And on Tuesdays and Thursdays I'll do the bench press program Shane builds for me, pullups, abs, and hit the heavy bag for cardio.

The abs program I'll be doing is from the book The Complete Book Of ABS by Kurt Brungardt.

Back in my glory years I had included his abs workout program into my triathlon training with great results (see picture below)

I know,  i post this pick a lot, but who doesn't still dream of their glory years? I'd like to improve my physique again so that my glory years are now rather than in the past. I'm hoping this program I'm starting will get me there.

boxing and weightlifting

I've been wanting to lose some weight and do some cardio. Any of the times I've tried doing cycling or running in conjunction with weightlifting I ended up over training and getting sick. I already push my legs to the limit with olympic style weightlifting so I wanted to find a cardio that mostly worked the upper body. So today I started hitting the heavy bag. Afterwards I realized a few things:

-I'm in better cardiovascular shape than I thought a 313 pound person would be.... Yup, 313. Not something I'm proud of, but I'm working on it.

-My boxing form has turned to crap since the last time I practiced.... 9 years ago? Crap, I'm getting old!

-My right cross used to be unbelievable.... It's not anymore. Not even a little bit.

-My left (non dominant) hook is better now than it has ever been. Where the heck did that come from? Perhaps weightlifting has caught the strength of my weak hand up to my dominant? Awesome. I'll take it.

All in all I thoroughly enjoyed hitting the heavy bag again. I think heavy bag work and olympic style weightlifting is going to be a great combination.

family at weightlifting meets and emotional roller coasters

My wife is a very attractive lady and I'm still very in love. I still work hard at impressing her anytime I can. By doing the housework before she gets home from work or by doing great at sporting events to impress her, etc. Most of the time that works out great for me. But I've realized its causes problems with my weightlifting meets. Anytime she and my kids are in the audience I end up doing poorly at weightlifting. I end up putting to much of my concentration on doing well to look good for them them rather than on my form. Apparently still being madly in love after 13 years of marriage has an occasional down side.

On Saturday I failed at qualifying for the Masters National Weightlifting Championships at the "Lift Outside The Box" weightlifting meet held here in Santa Fe NM at The Miller Gym. After a poor sporting performance my emotions are all over the place. I've learned to never make any decisions soon after I do something I consider disappointing athletically. After the meet I was going to go on a low carb diet. Now that I've recovered from my emotional roller coaster I realized I'm a decent weightlifter. I'm fine at my current weight class. Yes I need to drop 30-40 pounds. But I need to do it in a healthy and moderate way. I also need work on my snatch form. My snatches in the last couple meets were down right ugly, but I don't need to do anything drastic with my weight that'll cause me to lose strength and speed that I've worked so hard to build. On the upside my clean and jerk exploded during my last training plan. I increased 7k in only 3 months. The next meet I'll be competing in will be The 2nd Annual John Davis weightlifting meet. Hopefully I'll qualify for the Masters National Weightlifting Championships then.

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!

the 2015 Lift Outside The Box weightlifting meet report

Today i competed in the 2015 Lift Outside The Box weightlifting meet at The Miller gym in Santa Fe New Mexico. The day started off horrible,  i weighed in at 143k. I knew i was gaining weight,  but dang. I've put on 15k in the last three months.

Today I had one goal and one goal only, to qualify for the Masters weightlifting national championships. To do that i needed to successfully lift a 91k snatch, 116k clean and jerk, for a 207 total.

The first two lifts of an 82k and an 87k snatch were successful, but i knew i was in trouble. On every attempt i was doing power snatches. I didn't drop below the bar once. When i went for the 91k snatch same thing, i didn't squat. 91k was just too much weight for me to lift successfully without decent form. I did a push out, no lift.

On the clean and jerks i lifted a 106, 110, 115. The 115k broke the New Mexico state record by 7k. I also set a clean and jerk and total PR, but i missed qualifying for the Masters weightlifting national championships again. I got closer this time,  but i was still 5k from qualifying. i have one more shot in January to qualify for the national championships.

weightlifting taper and my grandmother passing away

Just before i started my taper I was ready for a break!  I was going to ask my coach if i could have a week off after the meet. By the end of my taper i'm missing lifting heavy. This is exactly what happens everytime.  I'm tired when I'm supposed to be, and feeling hungry for some heavy weightlifting when I'm about to compete. It's wonderful having a coach that has me hit every phase of training exactly like I'm supposed.

My grandmother died this weekend of bone cancer. It was her 5th bout with cancer. She was amazing.

My mother was at the funeral. My mother and i haven't spoken in over 4 years. I was afraid she was going to try and cause drama like she usually does. She didn't. Although it was awkward being around her, the weekend with the entire family was wonderful and the funeral was beautiful. I'll miss my Meme, that's what i called her. Meme. She was so strong and wonderful. She was the rock of our family. All of us on earth who knew her are heart broken, but she's with her husband, her daughter, and Jesus now so I know she's happier.

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retire from the prison now or max out my retirement?

On May 30th i was eligible to retire from the state penitentiary. After a long hard look at my life and my families  future i had decided to stay at the prison until July 2019 which is when I'll max out my retirement. And then yesterday I found out if i die before i retire, even though I'm already eligible my wife will only get %30 of my retirement. If i retired now and then died she'd get %80 for the rest of her life. That changes things a bit. I've always prided  myself as a selfless spouse and a hard working provider. If i do what i want and stay at the prison another 4 years I'm gambling with my wife's future. If i leave too soon i won't have a down payment for a home or enough in savings to guarantee that we could pay our bills while i work my way out of an entry level position as a dock worker at ABF freight or UPS . Being a father and husband is much more complicated than i thought it'd be.

race to the 200 pound snatch club

There were 4 men in my weightlifting club who were having a competition on who would be the first one to lift a 200lb snatch. Last week i was the first one to make that lift.  To celebrate i bought this shirt to workout in. 

One of the guys in the competition told me that I only made that lift first because i weigh so much. Notice that they wanted to focus purely on the fact that i outweigh them but not on the fact that I'm twice their age? Those two little pipsqueaks pissed me off. From now on I'm lifting with a purpose. And every time I hit another big weightlifting milestone  I'm gonna rub it in his flippin condescending faces. Next stop is a 120k clean and jerk. I'm only 4k away.

One of my weightlifting partners, Katie Plant, approached me later and told me, "screw him Cody, at least you never bombed out of a weightlifting meet like he did". That meant a lot to me. It feels good knowing there's people who have my back and that i wasn't the only who thought their comments were uncalled for.

weightlifting, boxing, and depression

I've been wanting to start doing cardio, but I'm pushing my body to the max with weightlifting. Anytime I've added some sort of cycling or running into my training regiment i end up overtraining and getting sick. Then it occurred to me that most of weightlifting is legs and the types of cardio I'm doing is also legs. So what if i started adding cardio that primarily  worked the upper body?  But what could i do to raise my heart rate using my upper body? BOXING! Hitting a heavy bag! So i found a heavy bag and gloves on Craig's list for only $50. I'll be picking it up tomorrow. It'll be a fun workout that wont fatigue my legs as much, and it'll be great training for my career as a correctional officer at the prison.

For the last 9 years I was forced to work 80-90 hours a week. Working that much and sleeping so little caused me to be severely depressed. For the last month I've been able to slow down on overtime. I assumed once i was able to work less and sleep more my depression would go away. It hasn't. Perhaps i need to wait longer? Expecting the consequences of 9 years of hell to go away after only a month might be asking to much, but it sucks finally being home and having the time to do things but not have any interest in anything at all. I got so used to going through the motions of life even though i felt horrible that now it feels like i forgot how to feel happy. I don't mean to sound like a pussy, but in the last 4 years I've gained 130 pounds. I'm so over weight I've developed sleep apnea and i just don't care. Now that I'm working less I don't have an excuse to feel like this, but i still do. What gives?

trying to qualify for the masters national weightlifting championships

On Monday i set PR's of a 90k snatch and a 113k clean and jerk. My weightlifting coach, Shane Miller told me I could attempt a 92k snatch and a 115k clean and jerk today. If i made both lifts that would give me a total of 207k, which is the amount needed to qualify for the Masters national weightlifting championships. So today i tried, and I successfully lifted a 91k snatch, but missed the 92k. I lifted a 114k clean and jerk easily which put me at a 205k total. I desperately wanted the 207k, so i jumped from 114k to 116k and nailed it! I made the 207k total I'd been training the last 21 months for!  As long as I'm able to lift that amount on October 17th in the sanctioned weightlifting meet i'm scheduled  to compete at I'll have qualified for the 2016 masters national Championships in Savannah Georgia!

Earlier this year i sold all my triathlon gear to be able to afford for my wife and i to travel to Savannah Georgia if i was actually able to meet the minimum total. Looks like that might happen.

my home, my gym

The gym i train at is an Olympic style weightlifting gym. It's the most supportive environment I've ever been in. We're all there with the same goal, Olympic style weightlifting. Next to the prison (i work there, I'm not an inmate) I've never felt such comradery.

Last week our gym had two people compete in the masters weightlifting world championships in Finland. One took first, the other 2nd place. This week we have 5 athletes going to compete in the university national championships in Utah. The joy we have for each others accomplishments and struggles is 2nd to none. I'm getting close to the qualifying totals for the 2016 masters weightlifting national championships. Almost everyday someone asks me how my weightlifting is going. They all know  I'm close to my goal and everyone seems as excited about it as i am.

 I've fallen head over heels in love with Olympic style weightlifting. This is such a beautiful sport! It takes speed, strength, balance, form, and incredible mental focus. The Snatch and the Clean and Jerk are the most complicated and rewarding exercises I've ever done.

starting to commute by bicycle again

My wife and i have had only one vehicle all week and my wife's been taking it to work. I've been riding my old, beat up, 90's model Raleigh mountain bike everyday to The Miller Gym and work. At first i was afraid the cycling would hurt my weightlifting. But i think the cycling is actually helping it. I used to struggle getting my legs warmed up and ready to lift heavy. This week, by the time i bike the 11 miles to the gym, my legs feel great and are ready to lift right away. So it looks like I'm picking up commuting to work and gym on my bicycle again.

new PR's close to qualifying

Today i was scheduled to lift heavy. It's not often my programming has me go heavy, so it wasn't a day i was willing to miss. My wife's van broke down and she needed my vehicle for both her work and school. So i rode my old commuter mountain bike to the gym.

 It was only about 11 miles from my house to The Miller gym, not that far really,  but i was  still worried riding that far on an old dilapidated bike would fatigue my legs. It turns out it didn't. I lifted a lifetime PR of a 90k snatch and a clean and jerk of 113k for a total of 203k. That's only 4 kilos from qualifying for the masters weightlifting national championships.

 

Qualifying for the master's national championships would mean a ton to me. I used to be a pretty finominal triathlete, i had qualified for 6 national championships and one world championship. I assumed the cycling accident that ended my triathlon career marked the end of me competing in athletics at a national level. But here i am getting close to being able to compete at another national championship sporting event. I'm so excited and I'm incredibly grateful to everyone who's helped me get to where I'm at, particularly my weightlifting coaches Shane Miller,  Kim Alderwick, and Jodi Stumbo.

losing weight for an attractive woman

My wife started working out at Praxis (formerly Zia crossfit) a month ago.  She's lost so much weight so quickly that the transformation has been shocking. She's not just losing weight, she's getting that athletic and fit look, muscular arms, a slender waist line, long lean legs, and defined shoulders. On one hand I'm lucky because my wife was already a very attractive lady, but now she's looking unbelievable. And now i need to lose some dang weight or we're going to endup looking like the picture below.

forgiven and blessed

On Friday i received two medical bills totaling  $6700. Then a few days later my vehicle broke down, another  $706. Yesterday on the way to pick up my vehicle from the mechanic my wife's vehicles check engine light came on. The only way for my family to get out of that kind of financial mess would have been for me to go back to working massive amounts of overtime. I spent 9 years working 80-90 hour work weeks to pay off my wife's student loans. Working that much caused massive depression, marital problems, and i missed much to much of my children growing up. To have to work that many hours again was more than i could bear. I'll be honest, i started to pray for God to take me to heaven rather than me to have to work like that again. I wanted to die.

This morning i called the hospital to negotiate the bill. By the end if the of the phone call they agreed to forgive the bill. As soon as I hung up the phone i fell to my knees in relief and started crying, praying, and thanking God. Its amazing how loving and forgiving He is. i usually have the worst luck,  but i put it in Gods hands and He gave me so much more than i deserve. I'm so very blessed.

sleep, overtime, and PR's

In the last month my lifts have increased substantially. I'm %100 certain its because I've been sleeping more. In the last month I've slept 8 hours a night. That's the first time I've been able to feel rested in 9 years. It shows in my lifting. In 4 weeks my front squat alone increased by almost 20 kilos (42 pounds). I've PR'd my snatch and clean and jerk and they felt easy. Friday we received 2 medical bills totaling $6700. And tonight my Suburban broke down. I'm back to working 12-16 hours a day, 6 days a week and not sleeping much. Looks like until i pay these bills off I'll be going back to getting slow weightlifting gains.

medical bills and student loans

I worked 80-90 hours a week for 9 years. It was horrible. I was miserable. Just a few weeks ago ago i was finally able to pay off enough of my wife's student loans that i could afford to start working a bit less & staying home more. And then on Friday i received these. $6,709 in medical bills. I'm so sick and tired of working so much and sleeping so little. Starting tonight i'm going back to working 80-90 hours a week until i pay these off.  I just want to be home to spend time  with my family. I'm so sick of this.

a new bench press PR

8 weeks ago i asked Shane Miller from the Miller Gym to help me get my bench press stronger. Since i was 8 years old one of my biggest goals was to beat my natural fathers lifetime bench press max of 275 pounds. 8 weeks ago my max bench press was 240 pounds. On Friday i maxed out and to my amazement in 8 weeks i put 45 pounds on my bench & accomplished my life long goal of maxing more on bench press than my dad ever had, setting a lifetime PR of 285 pounds.

I asked Shane to build me another bench press program to get my max above 300 pounds before my 40th birthday in late November. My first day ofthe program was today.

injured weightlifters, a new weightlifting program, and a bench press program

There's a woman I train with named Chris Galvin. She's in the Olympic weightlifting hall of fame. After winning numerous national weightlifting championships (I'm talking 11 or 12!!!!) she had to have major shoulder surgery. For must people a surgery of that type would be a career ending surgery. But she's rehabbing her shoulder and slowly increasing the amount she lifts. Yesterday  i watched her doing some heavy snatches.  During every repetition I'd see her her grit her teeth or grunt in pain. I'm amazed at her determination to fight through the pain and do whatever it takes to get back to a high level of competition. I wish i was half as tough as she is. It's people like her that make it so motivating to train at The Miller Gym.

I'm one week into my new weightlifting program. It's hard. Awesome, but very hard.  I promised a couple of my buddies from church I'd compete in a N.A.S.A. powerlifting competition this December in Roswell New Mexico with them. So after each weightlifting training session I've been trying to do a bench program Coach Shane Miller built for me. The bench program is amazing,  I was getting great results from it, but by the end of my Olympic weightlifting session I'm too tired to bench. I'm not sure if i can follow through with the powerlifting meet. i desperately want to, but I just don't know if I'll have the energy to get through both. One of my life long dreams was to beat my natural fathers max bench press PR of 275lbs. Last year i did the program Coach Miller built for me and i got up to a 272lb max. So close! But just like now the Olympic weightlifting got intense and exhausted me so i just couldn't keep doing both. I'm hoping i can push through it, but it's not looking very promising.

bonking at the weight room

Yesterday i ran it of energy half way through my workout. I crashed hard. In triathlon we call that bonking. I took a double latte Power Gel which  usually helps me finish my workouts no matter how tired i get. I had ate well before the workout, slept well, etc. i can't think of any reason for it to  happened. The rest of the day i felt sluggish and worn out. Interesting. I'm not sure what happened.

 I'm hoping that I'll qualify for national championships by end if this year. To ensure this happens I'll be working less hours, sleeping more,  and taking creatine.

weightlifting goals and programming

Coach Miller started me on a new training program today. He always places the weights he thinks I'll hit at the bottom of the programs he builds. After he handed the new workout plan to me i dashed to a quiet place in the gym and greedily looked at what the numbers he thinks I'll accomplish. Snatch 92k, clean and jerk 116k, a total of 208k! If i am able to do what my weightlifting coach thinks i can do i will qualify for the 2016 USA masters weightlifting national championships!!!!! My biggest goal when i started weightlifting 19 months ago was to qualify for the masters weightlifting national championships. I thought it would take me many years to get to the national championships. Turns out i may reach that goal sooner than i thought.

After working 80-90 hour work weeks since 2006 I've finally got my families finances to the point where i can slow down a bit on overtime. Barring a vehicle breakdown or some other financial calamity i should only have to work 50-60 hour work weeks from here on out.  Perfect timing with me being so close to qualifying for the national championships. I'll be training extra hard and will need the extra time for rest and recovery. 

The 2015 New Mexico games weightlifting report

On Sunday July 19th 2015 i competed in the New Mexico games weightlifting meet. On Monday night of the 13th i got sick and was sick the rest of week. It wasn't  until the night before the meet that i felt well enough to get off the couch. The good news about being sick all week was i lost a few pounds, the bad news was i lost a bunch of strength. i weighed in at 131k, the third lowest I've ever weighed at a weightlifting meet.

The loss of strength was apparent during my warm up. My form was off too. Coach Shane was concerned enough to lower my openering lifts.

My first lift was a 79k snatch. I over pulled and i almost dropped it, i was able to recover. Barely. Good lift.

My 2nd snatch was 84k,  no problems at all,  good lift.

The third snatch was going to be a state record lift of 87k. i didn't finish the pull so the weight almost fell forward. As i was standing up i had to chase it forward. I was about 2 feet from the end of the platform before i was able to get under the bar and secure the lift. The middle judge raised his hands in fear, afraid the weight and i was going to fall on him. Despite scaring the judge i got three white lights, good lift.

I made the first clean and jerk of 99k, but it felt awkward. My form was crap. I dropped my 2nd clean and jerk of 104k. I don't think it was that i lacked the strength,  i think because of the illness it was taking me longer to recover from the lift before. Coach Miller could tell i was tired and needed some extra recovery time so he changed my next lift to 105 so i could have an extra couple of lifters between me and my next lift. I told coach i'd already totalled and secured 1st place in  my division, i still felt strong, with the extra recovery time i was certain i could successfully lift another state record of 108k. Coach Shane's eyes almost popped out of his head when i asked for 108k, "you missed 104k & want to go up to 108k? That goes against every rule I have.... if you miss this....." he changed my next lift to 108k but he wasn't happy about it. The extra rest helped a ton. I nailed the lift! I was so happy i stood there on the platform and yelled "YEAH!".

I took 1st place in my division  and became state champion for the 2nd year in a row,  i also set three state records.

Last year i lifted a 65/89/154. This year i lifted a 87/108/195. That's an increase of 41k (90lbs)!

The next goal is to qualify for the national championships. I'll need to get a 207k total. Right now I'm 12k short of 207k.

weightlifting, massage and illness

My wife's family bought my wife a couples message for her birthday. She and i had a the massage on Monday. I thought that was perfect timing because I have a weightlifting meet this Sunday. I figured the massage would help me recover and taper. Instead of helping me,  3-4 hours after the massage i became sick. It was the exact same thing that happened last time i got a massage. Same symptoms and time frame. I'm trying to figure out if it's the massage that's making me sick or if I'm over training. The next time I get a massage I'm not going to get it during my taper. I don't know, can a massage cause a person to get sick?

The  week before last my wife and i did our budget,  but we neglected to factor in that our kids are home for summer break so we'd be going through a lot more food. By Thursday the following week we were out of food. That day was my last heavy day to determine what weights I'd be attempting at the New Mexico games weightlifting meet. Even though i hadn't eaten i still lifted a 85/105. After every lift I'd see spots and get light headed. Apparently eating  before lifting is important. Who knew? Haha.

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.

powerlifting weekend excursion for the boys

Last year my buddy and i were planning on going to an out of town NASA powerlifting competition  but i wasn't able to get time off from work. I requested the time off from work this year for a meet on December 5th 2015 in Roswell New Mexico and was approved. I looked up the New Mexico NASA records for my age and weight and it was crazy how many different categories there were! The weight classes are in pounds, the records are in kilos.i know,  very confusing. But here they are in all its baffling glory:

On December I'll be 40, so i can compete in the
1)Masters 1 division
2)masters pure division
3):and if they let correctional officers compete in the police/firefighter division i could also compete in that.

Plus I'm teetering between the
1) 242 pound division (242-274lb)
2) and the 275 pound division  (275-308lbs).

In each of those divisions i could compete in the following divisions:
1) power sports & power press/clean
-unequppied records
2) unequiped division and retro
3) eq'd & uneq'd push/pull

Since it was so complicated and time consuming looking up all the divisions i decided to record the records for all the divisions i can compete in here so that i dont have to go through the headache of figuring it all out again.

Masters 1
Power sports
242lb
Curl 77.5
Bench 182.5
Deadlift 240
Total 500

Police/firefighter
Power sports
242lb
Curl none
Bench- none
Deadlift- none

Masters pure
Power sports
242lb
Curl 70
Bench 147.5
Deadlift 140
Total 347.5

Masters 1
Power sports
275lb
Curl 87.5
Bench 205
Deadlift 260
Total 497.5

Police/firefighter division
Power sports
275
Curl 70
Bench- none
Deadlift- none
Total- none

Masters pure
Power sports
275lb
Curl 82.5
Bench 172.5
Deadlift 272.5
Total 505

Masters 1
power press
242lb
Ttl 227.5

Police/firefighter
power press
242
total None

Masters pure
Power pres
242
total none

Masters 1
power press
275
Total none

Police/firefighters
Power press
275
Total none

Masters pure
power press
275
Total none

Masters 1
Power clean
242
None

Police /firefighters
power clean
242
None

Masters pure
power clean
242
None

masters 1
Power clean
275
None

Police /firefighters
Power clean
275
None

Masters pure
power clean
275
None

Masters1
Unequiped bench
242
Bench 150

Police/firefighter division
unequiped bench
242
Bench- none

Masters pure
unequiped bench
242
Bench 150

Masters 1
Unequiped bench
275
Bench 185

Police/firefighter
unequiped bench
275
Bench-none

Masters pure
unequiped bench
275lb
Bench- none

Masters 1
Unequiped records
242lb
Squat- 192
Bench 147.5
Deadlift 220
Total 547.5

Police/firefighter
Unequiped records
242
Squat- none
Bench- none
Deadlift- none
Total- none

Masters pure
unequiped records
242
Squat 210
Bench 122.5
Deadlift 127.5
Total 580

Masters 1
Unequiped records
275
Squat 205
Bench 170
Deadlift 232.5
Total 602.5

Police/firefighters
Unequiped records
275
Squat 227.5
Bench 125
Deadlift 227.5
Total 580

Masters pure
Unequiped records
275
Squat 275
Bench 172.5
Deadlift 260
Total 707.5

Masters 1
Push/pull
242
none

Police/firefighter
Push/pull
242
327.5

Masters pure
Push/pull
242
327.5

Masters 1
Push/pull
275
None

Police/firefighters
Push/pull
275
None

Masters pure
Push/pull
275
320

Masters 1
retro
242
none

Police/firefighter
retro
242
None

Masters pure
Retro
242
None

Masters 1
Retro
275
None

Police/firefighter
Retro
275
None

Masters pure
Retro
275
None

balancing weightlifting, work, and eating

Today i had a break through on my snatch form. My strength is still low from the 7 weeks off from training. But thanks to the breakthrough on my form i hit an 84k snatch. That's less than i was lifting in April, but I'll get back to my old numbers eventually.

I've been working 12-16 hours every day since June 6th. My first day off will be July 6th. That's over a month of 92 hour work weeks. Obviously exhaustion has a lot to do with my strength returning so slowly. My wife is pushing for me to work a lot of overtime so we can get enough of a down payment for a new home so that we can move. At first i was willing, but now I'm having 2nd thoughts. I've been working 80-90 hour work weeks non-stop since 2006. I'm tired. I'd like to have a normal life, more time with the kids, and more sleep. I know my wife wants to move off prison grounds and move back to Albuquerque so she can be closer to her parents, but I'm happy where we're at. I really enjoy my career, i like living on prison grounds, i enjoy living in Santa Fe more than I've ever enjoyed living anywhere else, i love the church we go to, and I love weightlifting at the Miller Gym. If we moved to Albuquerque all that would change. I'm not sure i want to change things. With the exception of the amount of hours I've been asked to work I've never been this happy. Where I'm at now is where I'm happiest, why kill myself to leave?

I have two workout buddies, Kevin Y. and Heather,  who were incuraging me to start logging my food on My Fitness pal. Logging my food is helping my diet a lot. I've gone 27 days without binge eating. That's getting pretty close to the longest I've gone without destructive eating since i fell off the wagon back in 2012.  I've lost a little weight, 10 pounds or so. But this time my goal isn't to lose weight.  It's just to eat relatively healthy and avoid binge eating. Losing some weight this month is probably another reason my strength is rebounding so slowly. Haha, that's a tough one: lose weight and look better and be healthier or be strong?