Meet Recap: USAPL Empire Classic, January 2018

Francesca and Amanda traveled last weekend to Spokane, WA for the USAPL Empire Classic. It was the second powerlifting meet this year for both women, and they came away with successful results and a positive experience. 

Travel plans interfered with Amanda’s training leading up to the meet, but she went in with a great attitude and enthusiastic outlook. She made her opening attempts at 90 kg in the squat, 47.5 kg in the bench, and 130 kg in the deadlift. After getting on the board, Amanda pushed her capacity and reached for big numbers, coming up just short of setting a new state record in her age and weight class for the deadlift. Overall, a wonderful learning opportunity with lots of positive take aways for Amanda. 

Francesca pushed her total from the last meet by a significant amount, and set big personal records in all three lifts. After a strong opener at 150 kg, and a technical foul at 157.5 kg, she set a six kilo PR in the squat with her 160 kg third attempt. She was very successful in the bench as well, coming away with a 65 kg competition PR. Her biggest improvement was in the deadlift, where she eclipsed her numbers from last meet with a 160 kg pull. 

Next up for both - the Washington state regional meet will be held later this summer. Francesca is aiming for a total that will qualify her for October’s national meet, while Amanda will continue to use competition as a way to push herself and test her limits. We are excited to be supporting both in their individual journeys!

Why We Train: Independence

The "Why We Train" series will showcase and highlight individuals at Fulcrum Training Hall.

Meryl trains to maintain her independence. Many women look to others to support them physically through the last third of their lives. While Meryl has a wonderfully supportive husband and family, she is still exploring her own path of being strong and capable. Her pursuit of physical independence has lead her to a variety of resources for training, tissue therapy, and nutrition. She credits this holistic support system as integral to her current state of well-being.

Today she has more energy, stability, and control over her physical self than she did ten years ago. She squats over 30 kilos for multiple repetitions. Initially entering into training  to improve her bone degeneration, her bone scans show no decline in bone density since she began training, despite the fact that she is on no medications to ward off osteoporosis.

She describes weight training as cathartic, empowering, and fun. It not only supports her activities of daily living, but the extracurricular activities she participates in. An avid cyclist, swimmer, and dancer, she feels more positively about her ability to engage in those activities as a result of her time spent training with barbells.

Meryl continually pushes the limits of her demographic, challenging the labels associated with her age, gender, and history. She pushes into societal categories often reserved for younger individuals such as athlete, dancer, and free spirit. At the unlikely place where all of these demographics meet is Meryl, joyfully cherishing the independence she has earned. Strength matters if you want to be in charge of your own life, and have fun along the way.