Don’t be the lifter with headphones on all day in the warm-up room, super-hyped to the gills. Save your energy for the platform.

After 10+ years and a lot of success in just knee wraps, one might ask, “Why even bother switching?” I have a few reasons and recommendations for transitioning from raw to gear and back to raw. It takes time, and it’s hard, but it’s worth it.

I admit it, I messed up. I restricted calories for too long, had too many changes all at once, and ate too many small meals throughout the day. In hindsight, these were the best mistakes that could’ve happened to my diet. Here’s why.

These ideas are all things that have helped me as my lifting age has advanced and nagging injuries have come creeping in. Don’t settle for tweaks and breaks. Instead, make these changes today to avoid being banged up.

I’m betting that in the 6-8 weeks after the quarantine ends, a lot of contests are going to happen. My advice: Resist the urge!

This isn’t an article outlining how to drop the bodyweight. What I do want to talk about is the mindset and dealing with all of the change that is to come when dropping a lot of weight.

Check out how some of your favorite lifters did this past weekend at Great Lakes Raw, IPA Buckeye Brawl, and APF Raw Power Challenge.

2018 was not a good year for my powerlifting career. 2019 has been better. My training’s gotten better, I’ve gotten better at caring for myself, and I competed better. I want to do better next time around, though….

Two years ago, I injured myself at a meet. The pain was so bad I nearly pulled out of the meet. After talking with some experts, I decided to hop into the APF Nationals without a weight cut and with a quick prep. Let’s just say it’s good to be back.

You’ve spent months preparing and training, and you’ve made a significant financial investment in entry fees, lodging, food, and so on. All this of stress for just 9 lifts sucks up a lot of your energy. You can’t afford to waste your energy, so manage it instead.

Dan Dalenberg found his way through life with the help of fellow powerlifters. As a Team elitefts athlete, he intends to give back to the community by passing on information he’s learned from those who got him through his lowest points.