Longevity

“Powerlifting is a marathon, not a sprint.” One of the biggest clichés in the sport, but it still holds true, now more than ever before. In this day and age of social media, lifters tend to focus on short-term goals and successes rather than the bigger picture. Whilst it’s important to set goals, they shouldn’t get in the way of long-term success. Too often, lifters want to show off on social media, pushing their bodies way too hard in pursuit of that short-term goal and as result don't perform on the day of the meet, or worse, get injured.

Playing the long game

Focusing on and falling in love with the process is one of the key factors for long-term success. Realising that taking a small step back sometimes will allow you to be more successful in the long term is one of the major factors in this.

Another key factor in having the biggest chance of succeeding is to make sure that you control the variables you can control to the best of your ability and that you also try to let go of variables that you cannot control. Manage your training, nutrition, stress and recovery to the best of your abilities and try not to focus variables out of your control. Sometimes life gets in the way, and the only thing you can do is manage everything you have control over as best you can.

Also be aware of mental burnouts. Try to manage your dopamine levels to keep a physiological dopamine baseline to stay focused and motivated.

Ultimately, we all want to continue to enjoy this sport for as long as we can, making as many gains as possible and become the strongest we can be. To achieve this, it's very important to think about longevity and not fall into the traps that come along the way. Let's stay healthy, motivated and committed to the best of our ability so that we can all enjoy the beauty of this sport for as long as possible!