Priority Number One.

The Deadlift.

Five and a half years ago I broke a national record in the deadlift for my weight class - 280kgs at 82.5. This isn’t the first record in my name but it has certainly proven the one I am most fond of as it was unknowingly my last. Soon after this competition I fucked my back up during training and was put off heavy lifting indefinitely. I assumed some time off would be sufficient and I would once again be ready to return. As the months dragged on with no signs of improvement I became increasingly desperate for a solution. With the luxury of working in the health and fitness industry I was able to attain the contacts of many highly recommended practitioners but with each visit I left disappointed. In what has unfortunately become cliché for people with back pain to say, i found myself reiterating “I tried the doctors, i tried the physio, i tried the surgeon, no one knows how to fix me”. Almost a year on and about seven specialists later, I found someone. At another date i’ll delve into the what the rehabilitation process looked like but alas I was back to a semi-functioning state. By the time my body was once again ready to push it, my mind was elsewhere. I was still training but my focus was on being social, looking good and playing rugby. After a few seasons of rugby ending in additional injuries, over four years had past since that last deadlift. Far too long. It was time to address some unfinished business. Between the competition and my injury I had gotten a tattoo of a bear lifting the same weight I did in competition. I left the tattoo incomplete as I knew that no matter what, there was one final weight I needed to hit. 300kg. While a fair few people have cracked the 300, it is renowned as the weight where things get serious, particularly for the lighter lifters like myself. Only slightly over this weight is a few records I have my eyes on. So the stakes are set, my first priority is to surpass 300, break another record and put the finishing touches on my tattoo.