Cuerpo Aztlan

So I entered a powerlifting competition this weekend. I did not post anything ahead of time because you often get detractors when you are trying something new. I wanted to stay as focused as possible.

I joined the Natural Athlete Strength Association and jumped in. I weighed in at 145.6 and went for it. It was stressful, as most new things are, and I didn't know anyone there. I had practiced with commands once and was still nervous about it. You give your weights by kilograms so that was also an added thing to learn. I knew that going in yet didn't really have a plan for that. Lee from The Power Plant gave me my "opener" numbers and I went with that. Openers are your first lift.

I missed my first attempt at the squat because I didn't go low enough. A mistake of nerves. I tried the same weight on second try and felt really good about it. My second attempt went smooth also. My squat opener was 83 kilos and my second attempt was 87.5. However my shoulder was hurting. I think it was more from tensing up than the actual weight.

I opened with 70 kilos on bench and that was fairly easy. I dropped it from the suggested 77.5 just to be safe with my shoulder. I went to 75 and that felt easy as well. I tried 87.5 on the third attempt and could not lock it out. It's a weight I've lifted before and I think it was nerves and possibly just a not a great day.

For deadlift I opened with 100 kgs and that was easy. I wanted to get all three of this lift since I had missed one each on squat and bench. I did 110 on 2nd and someone told me it looked easy. I was tempted to jump a lot and decided to stick to the plan and I did 120 on the third try and it felt heavy yet was a good solid lock out.

So I lifted 282.5 kilos successfully between all 3 lifts combined. Now that I know how commands and competition works I can be better prepared. I think I also need to figure out warming-up a little better.

The category I was in was the 148 category. That's probably a good category for me. The next category is 165 and those guys were just relatively huge. I don't know if I'll compete again. If I do it will be in the "retro powerlifting" category. I was in unequipped powerlifting, this still gives you a belt and wraps. Since I lift completely "raw" (no belt, now wraps, etc.) I figure that's a good category for me.

If I do enter again I will want to hit 102.5 kilos on the squat, 92.5 kilos on the bench, and 130 kilos on the deadlift. That would be 325 kilos total and I think a good goal.

Next week I'm going to lift light and focus on recovery.

What's next overall? 
I'll focus on staying in the 145-150 lb range. I'll check my blood pressure and glucose a little more as well.

For May, June, and July I will probably go back to doing 4 sets of 6-10, after a warm-up set, with minimal rest to build more muscle. August and September will likely be sets of 5-8 transitioning into functional muscle strength. October until the end of the year will probably be sets of 3-5 focusing on strength and weight maintenance. I think doing sets of 2 and sets of 1 may have been counterproductive. It's a lot of wear and tear on joints and neurological system to work out that way.