Since others have offered pictures of themselves, i’ll include some too. my workout partners, including my wife, and i have a new website dedicated to powerlifters and in particular to michigan powerlifters. its a work in progress but its operational. we have a forum and will be posting additional information relating to powerlifting as it is provided to us. some of us will be posting our workouts in case anyone is interested. i basically follow a west side routine with some changes to fit my needs and likes. anyway, check it out.
Wow - you’ve got yourself a genuine T-Vixen to play with =) Nice website also.
Whoa, I will make no comments about a man’s wife when that man can deadlift over 600lbs and has friends who squat almost a half ton. 
Good site and impressive lifts.
Pete: Cool stuff, Bro! You know…I’ve always thought Powerlifters where an INTENSE group of hardcore mofos; chalk and steel…gravity and muscle…only me and this damn bar…take no survivors… Most I’ve known train hard and play hard. I don’t know about the playing part, but your group looks like they “fit the mold”; hardcore TO the core!
Just a question: what do you and your Posse usually think when YOU see the grunting/chalking “two inch squatters” in the gym? And I would be willing to bet that Melissa doesn’t have much patience for the “bunny weight liftin’/soy eatin’/“I just wanna tone”” crowd. Hey… I think Chris and the gang should make her an OFFICIAL “Vixen!” (If she isn’t already!)That’s a sweet amount of iron she’s pushin’, baby! Keep up the great work!
CRAP!!! you a big mofo… and I think your wife is stronger than I am… damnit! now I feel like a pansy… time to hit the gym!
thanks. melissa already owns a testosterone t shirt she wears in the gym. she’s competing in december and should post some even better numbers. looking to set some records in the 105 weight class.
its pretty funny watching the expressions on some guys face when a 105 lb t vixen can out squat and out deadlift them. luckily the squats racks in our gym are in a back room and most people won’t wonder back there. they prefer to do their squats on a smith machine. though there are some wild ass routines in there. not sure where they get them from. once, there were these two rather skinny guys benching. the bencher was struggling and then screams out “BODY FOR LIFE” as he’s lifting. almost dropped a weight on my head. we have this other thrainer there who is always touching the weight when his clients are lifting. don’t know if they have ever done a rep on their own. even on leg extensions. yet every set, the trainer puts more weight on the bar.
keep an eye on the site. i just got some commitments from other powerlifters who will give us various articles to post and more pictures/videos. other powerlifters have already said that they will post on our forum and respond to questions on the forum.
nice site! (lemme know if you ever need a hand with coding!) so let’s hear your wife’s stats… laugh i just gotta know if i measure up! i’m KIDDING! did you say she’s in the 105 weight class? holy cow! she’s moving alot of weight in that dead lift pic! very cool!
But wait - I thought lifting weights made women big and bulky…but Pete’s wife is pretty smokin and trim! Does not compute…does not compute… personaltrainer.exe overloading…
Pete: Michelle brings up something that I’d like to hear your perspective on (related to the amount of iron Melissa is pushing related to her size). For a long time, I (and probably others), looked at Powerlifting as pure brute force. Time has shown me that there is a LOT of technique though. (Both mental and physical). Your thoughts?
Mufasa, not meaning to speak for Pete… But you’re right, PL lifts do involve a lot of skill, especially the bench. Using good technique can add a lot to your lifts. I’m sure Pete will agree. My bench went up about 25lbs in only 2-3 training sessions just by fixing my technique.
right now, melissa is lifting using her strength and determination. her form is good, but we are working on improving it. her hips come up too quickly when she deadlifts, her elbows flare out and she presses towards her head when she bench presses, and she sits down instead of back when she squats. if we can correct these issues, she’ll add another 50-100 lbs to her total without having to increase her strength. however, we always work on increasing strength (and speed) and improving form.
i know my form isn’t perfect, especially at maximal weights. i am constantly trying to improve my form also.
to be a nationalally ranked lifter, you need to be brutally strong (and fast) and have good technique. having only one will only get you so far. i’ve trained people who only had either strength or technique and once they got the other, their totals went up quickly.
don’t forget that you also need explosive force and speed in powerlifting.
impressive lifting! keep it up!
Pete, I just realized that we train at the same gym. I’m the one of the only 160lb skinny bastards that uses the power racks in the back room. When you mentioned that trainer, I damn near spit coffee all over my desk. I always get a kick out of him and his clients.
Great site. See you at gym.
stop by and say hi next time. yeah, the guy is good for a laugh. too bad for his clients.
cool site. looking forward to seeing you and your group at the december state aapf meet.