APF 2013 MI State Championships Meet Report

TL;DR – Weighed in around 199 lb., Went 9/9 for attempts, 452 squat, 292 bench, 502 deadlift. Took 2nd in the 220 Raw Open class.

Background

7th overall powerlifting meet, 1st APF meet
Started training a little less than 2 years ago. I started out with Starting Strength and moved on to the 70sBig version of Texas Method, which worked nicely for meet prep.

Pre-Meet Training & Diet

I had about 4 months in between the last meet and this meet, so I moved into using the Texas Method from 70sBig. I didn’t keep a consistent program through the time, and moved anywhere from having 3 days of training a week (Volume, Recovery, Intensity) to 5 days of training a week (Volume, Assistance, Recovery, Intensity, Conditioning/Assistance).

I did have to take one week off during my training just to needing some extra rest. Whether that could be attributed to the training or just to external factors, I’m not sure. Either way, the program suited my needs really well.

For reps for Intensity Day, I would interchange the use of 3RM vs 5RM often, sometimes sticking with a weight until getting to a 5RM, and sometimes moving forward with the weight. All depended on what lift I was focusing for.

The major goal for this meet was the 500lb.+ deadlift, so everything else was secondary to that.

In terms of diet, I didn’t focus on any kind of bulking vs. cutting as standard for all of my meets. That’d end up coming back to haunt me for this meet, as I just barely missed the weigh-in for 198.

Supplements wise, I take fish oil, vitamin D, ZMA, and melatonin. I also take 5g of creatine a day.

Weigh-ins

Weighed in at 199.2 lb., which was surprisingly lower than I had expected. This is the first meet I’d been to that allowed for 24 hour weigh-ins, which I did not take advantage of. Another thing I will be doing down the road.

Lifts

For my attempts, I choose a more conservative pick using the 85/92.5/100 approach that Jim Wendler and Paul Carter talk about, as opposed to trying to set 2 PRs for each lift.

Squat

185 kg / 402 lb
200 kg / 440 lb
205 kg / 452 lb (PR)

I was curious on what squatting without knee sleeves would feel like, as I do most of my squat training using them. I really didn’t notice a difference at all during the lifts. I have never practiced using a monolift before this meet, so I decided to walk out my squats to make sure I don’t change anything out.

I decided to go for 440 for my second attempt as it was close enough to the 435 PR I currently had, so I went right against my rule of thinking on my first lift. All the lifts felt fine, and the third attempt felt surprisingly easy. When I got back into the stands, I had a fellow lifter mention that it looked like a warm up.

Bench

115 kg / 259 lb
125 kg / 286 lb
132.5 / 292 lb (PR)

Had thought quite a while about going for a 300+ bench, but decided to save it and go for the big deadlift instead. I always have next meet to go for it.

With the APF rules for the bench, I was a bit thrown off (quicker press calls, on start command). My first attempt is literally a touch-and-go, and the other two attempts don’t have much of a pause.

Dropping the third attempt was a good call, as it was pretty tough.

Deadlift

195 kg / 428 lb
212.5 kg / 468 lb
227.5 kg / 502 lb (PR)

By the time I was at deadlift, it was almost 5pm and everyone was pretty mentally and physically tired. All my pulls felt solid and crisp.

For my second attempt, I brought up my planned attempt to give myself the slight overall total PR in case I were to miss the 500+ deadlift. It didn’t matter, because I had the 502 deadlift in the bag.

Outcome

Ended with a total of 565 kg (1245.6 lb) at 199.2 lb., and a Wilks score of 359.9. I took 2nd place in the 220 Raw Open class.

Thoughts & Future Thinking

The meet went really well overall, and I was able to get everything I aimed for. I never worry about my placing or how I do compared to others, so by getting everything I was looking for, it made for a great meet.
This is the first meet I traveled with a group as opposed to lifting on my own. I have to say, having a supportive group is key for a good meet, as they can help you get into the zone.
This was my first APF meet after 6 USAPL meets. The meets are run quite differently. Examples:
- APF Meet had music playing the whole time, USAPL meets are silent
- The competition seemed MUCH stronger in this meet then in USAPL meets. I know part of that has to do with drug testing and APF/AAPF mix-up, but I felt fairly weak at this meet and don’t feel that way at USAPL meets.
- Judging was more lenient, especially in the bench. I wouldn’t say that high squats were being called, though.
Now that I am back to another cycle, I am looking into adding Olympic lifting into the mix. I had planned on trying some strongman, but that did not pan out. I’ll be going into a Oly. lifting class with a coach for the next few months to see how I feel about it, and move forward from there. If I like it, I plan on competing in weight lifting meets in the next year.

My training plan for the future is as follows: