Training for My First Powerlifting Meet: 4 Weeks Out

I’m 4 weeks out from my first powerlifting meet and it’s all starting to become very real. I made the decision in March 2018 to sign up with a coach and prep for a meet. It was such a nerve-wracking decision to make because I didn’t know whether I was strong enough to compete. Honestly, I think it was the fear that I didn’t have the confidence to come this far. Here am I. Prepping to step on that platform.

A Scare from the Bench Press

Accidents can happen anywhere to anyone and I’m not exempt from that. I’ve been fortunate enough to have not experienced any serious injuries in my nearly six years of lifting.

Two weeks ago on Wednesday, the bar missed the rack and fell on one side of my face whilst benching. Although I came away with a small scar and some swelling, I also left that session with lessons learned. That lesson was to get a spotter & improve my positioning on the bench in the next 4 weeks.

It’s easy to be scared to attempt a sport or drive a car. It’s easy to be scared to go back to the situation that injured you. If we run away from it, we will never learn how to prevent it from happening again.

4 Weeks Out Sounds scary

After giving myself some pep talks the following day, I encouraged myself to get back on the bench. I even had the courage to ask someone to spot me as I lifted. I have always trained alone and never had someone spot as I always felt that I was disrupting their workout. 4 weeks out sounds scary. As I am coming closer to meet day, the weight is continuously increasing. I’ve learnt to suck it up and make sure that someone spots me.

If you train, do you usually bench with a spotter? What are your experiences with bench pressing?

Until next time,

Folakemi Olamide 💓