NorCall Powerlifting 2022 Meet Report Part 1

Have some time finally to start a write-up of my powerlifting meet experience this past weekend. For once the diet was a major factor in my preparations this time so I'll delve into that.

Because of the short notice (less than a month and a half) and the fact that I was in the middle of a weight gain phase, starting at a bodyweight of 212 lbs, I did a water weight cut for the first time in my life. It went easier than expected. I lost about half of the weight through conventional means, though slightly more aggressively than I would have done had I not been facing a deadline. In the week leading up, I weighed around 206 and knew by that point the water would be coming out. Still, I didn't go too Spartan about it until the final two days. I chose to do as little as possible as late as possible to preserve strength.

On Friday and Saturday, I drank only small sips of water throughout the day and made an attempt to reduce my sodium intake. Again, if I felt more drastic action was needed I would have dialed that effort down even more, but I felt it was sufficient to just make a general effort to eat low salt foods and not bother to make any precise calculations like everyone on YouTube and Reddit were advocating. I even ate some salty poke that a coworker bought for me. By late afternoon, though, the hunger period started getting enforced. Just 3 eggs for my second lunch.

The mini George Foreman grill I ordered for my hotel stay (thanks for the inspiration, Emevas) came that same day and I was able to grill a plain piece of chicken breast in an effort to cut down on sodium and water. I decided I wouldn't need this thing after all because I planned to eat a ton of carby restaurant food after weigh-ins in an effort to replenish myself, but it was still a welcome kitchen addition.

On weigh-in day I woke up weighing 201.6, so I knew I was making a lot of progress. I had some more of my leftover chicken breast for breakfast and a few sips of water. By noon I had another few bites of the chicken. That was all the food and water I allowed myself. I packed and hungout with a sweatshirt, sweatpants, beanie, and wool socks on, slowly and modestly sweating. When I started to feel too lousy I took the hat off for a break. They stayed on except for the beanie during the 1-hour sunny drive to Concord with the windows rolled up. This made me feel the worse, although it was manageable. Felt light-headed but nothing I haven't felt training outdoors in summertime. In fact, my outdoor training prepared me very well for this experience. I was never in uncharted territories of misery. I remember thinking at my lowest that this is uncomfortable but not that hard. Because I was driving, however, I paid due diligence to my state of consciousness and made sure I was alert, ready to pull over if needed.

I got to the gym where the weigh-ins were happening and came in at 197, a pound under what I needed. I was really happy about that. This was something I'd never done before and pooled everything I knew about dieting, metabolism, and intuition about my own body together to make it work, so I finally had validation of all that. I remember having concern at the start of the week about weighing over 205 lbs and a brief pang of despair flashing in my head. I'm not progressing properly at all, I should just do the 220 class. A second later I shook it away and knew I could do it. Anyway, my victory plan was to go straight to Taco Bell afterwards but I was so hot and hungry I immediately had a Gatorade and Kodiak protein granola bar feast out of my trunk before driving to the hotel and continuing the replenishments with canned sardines, more granola bars, and other calorific snacks I had.

That evening I went out to a planned dinner with some friends I wanted to catch-up with. Ate at a Cajun-themed fast food place and ordered the garlic crab fries. They were greasy and glorious.

This ended up being long so part 2 will come soon.