Northeast Coast Open

On Sunday, Lee and his teammates from The Refuge competed at the Northeast Coast Open.  While powerlifting may not seem like a team sport or an exciting sport, it was definitely both of those things on Sunday.  First of all, this competition was huge - people were practically hanging out of the rafters to get a glimpse of the competitors, there were so many spectators.  Second of all, the guys from The Refuge were spectacular - every one of them did such a phenomenal job.  Third of all, Lee killed it!  He looked as strong as I have ever seen him look - he was totally focused and got the job done like he's never done before.  Lee competes in the 198 weight class.  On Saturday afternoon, after five straight days of hitting the sauna, he weighed in at 195 pounds.  Keep that number in mind.  On Sunday afternoon, he benchpressed 410 pounds, setting a new state record and a new APA world record for his age and weightclass.  He benchpressed more than DOUBLE his body weight!  Then, about an hour later, he came back and deadlifted 575 pounds, another state record!  It was an unbelievable day for Lee and the girls and I are so ridiculously proud of him and all that he has accomplished in such a short period of time.  Last year at this time, he just starting to think about competing, which is completely different from just hitting the gym and lifting.  There are specific rules in competition, from what you wear, to how you position yourself on the bench, to how long you have to hold the bar against your chest before completing a lift. It is really amazing to see how far he has come and how strong he has become in such a short period of time!

Bench Press.

Visualizing the next lift. 

Lee and Nick 

Deadlift 

575 lb. deadlift - new state record.

575 lb Deadlift

410 lb Bench