Just here to share my experience participating in the inaugural USA powerlifting (a.k.a. USAPL) meet in Hong Kong! I will be sharing my preparation, the essentials and rundown of my very first powerlifting meet. So, if you are a new lifter or you are looking to join one of USAPL’s meets in Hong Kong, you can learn from my mistakes!
USAPL HK Application:
Being a complete noob, I did not know that USAPL would be so popular in Hong Kong. The spots were all filled within the first 24 or 48 hours after they opened the application (80 spots)! I was able to secure a spot because I followed both @classics.csa and @usaplhongkong on Instagram.
It was quite remarkable considering that people did not know when they would be competing apart from knowing the meet was going to be in December. But, as the meet was in December, applicants were able to wait until the end of November to submit their USAPL membership number which makes their membership valid until 2023. I was able to submit my application without a USAPL member code, which is not applicable to people competing in the March or June meets.
The competition fee was $750HKD and I had three days to make the payment or my spot would be given to another lifter. After securing my spot, I had to apply for the USAPL membership and submit my membership card through email. The membership fee was around $510HKD but valid for a year and you get to compete in other countries that are affiliated with USAPL (not just Hong Kong).
Getting my competition gear:
For the competition, I used the following gear:
- SBD singlet (910 HKD)
- SBD knee sleeves (7mm) (~700HKD)
- Notorious Lift deadlift slippers (~ 200HKD)
- Inzer forever lever 10mm (~1.2k HKD from Inzer’s official website)
- Deadlift socks (I got knee high socks from Calzedonia and called it a day)
My rationale behind these gears? No rationale. I simply asked my coach Dennis and he recommended sourcing these equipment. It took 11 weeks for my Inzer belt to arrive from America to Hong Kong because I ordered a custom one (rust). It should take less time if you order the black one as they tend to keep a stock of black belts.
I can recommend a few ways for you to source your gears! Click here to read more!
Competition Preparation
As I did not know how to write my own lifting program, I asked Dennis from CSA to be my coach. We did a 12 week preparation with the use of percentages, not RPE because I was unreliable. Dennis checked my SBD form once a week during our 1:1 coaching session and I would send him videos of my main lifts for his feedback. I worked out 4 times a week with 1 SBD day. I was not lifting big numbers during preparation to keep me fresh and motivated. Dennis made sure I never overshoot and adjusted my weights according to fatigue level.
I made several changes to my lifestyle to accommodate my competiton preparations.
- I cut out caffeine to have maximum sensitivity towards the substance and lower my reliance on it for training.
- I tested my reaction to foods. Sounds weird, but I tested what food gave me the most energy as a replacement to caffeine. It helped me understand what macros are best for my meet day because we have decided caffeine was off the table for my squat and bench.
- No alcohol two weeks before competition.
- No cardio unless stated in the program. (Rest is king.)
- I bulked from 68 kg to 72.8 kg to feel extra strong! (Should’ve bought my singlet and belt later in hindsight, oh well)
Lifters were given the roster approximately two weeks after applying and you were able to see who applied for which weight class. Around a week before the meet, CSA sent an email informing lifters about the full roster and lifters can update their weight class if they have to. You were given another opportunity to change your weight class before weigh-in starts. Apart from that, you get the schedule of the meet a week before.
My weight sat patiently around 72-74 kg 2 weeks before competition and after weighing in, I was 72.8 kg, ready to compete in the u75 women’s open category.
(p.s. You can always compete in both open and junior divisions, but you would have to pay double. So, 750 x 2 = $1500. If you do win both, you get two medals I guess.)
Meet day:
Venue: Classics Strength Academy
https://www.classicsstrengthacademy.com/
Weigh-in was fairly simple, you queue up, get in a cubicle and choose whether you would strip down to undies or keep your clothes on the scale. They asked for my rack height information, first attempts for SBD and checked my equipment as well. I had my coach as a handler so I was able to avoid all administrative hassles and concentrate on getting ready. Keeping snacks, coffee and water in my bag was a good idea. I brought a switch just in case I got bored but I never got around to finishing catching my Pokémon.
There were a few racks in the congested warm-up area. People had to share and take turns using the same rack. Lifters with the same height and size tend to flock together at one rack while handlers load plates for each other’s athletes. I honestly zoned out because my nerves were through the roof. Thank god I had Dennis who allowed me to sit around and just walk to the rack when it was my turn to warm up.
Run down:
After each attempt, my handler/coach came over to ask me how I felt about the lift. We had brief discussions on the numbers and we submitted the number to the volunteers right away. I am grateful to have 8/9 lifts on my first meet and now I have new PRs for squat and deadlift!
I think I started my first squat attempt around 4 pm and finished my third deadlift attempt around 8pm. Time basically flew by quickly and I barely had time to talk to my friends that came to support me. Given that I chugged my coffee and pre throughout my deadlift warm-up and attempts, I felt rather unstable mentally anyway. CSA was kind enough to put up a twitch stream for people that couldn’t make it live and if you want to watch future meets, you can always subscribe to their Twitch channel. (p.s. You can’t comment on CSA’s twitch stream until you’ve been subscribed for 3 months.)
Drug-tested
I did a drug test after my lifts. As mentioned, I was not “here” because of all the coffee. I went to pee twice after my lifts and my tank was frankly empty. So, I had to chug two bottles of water to fill up a cup of my own urine.
Procedure
- When you are ready, a volunteer of the same sex would accompany you to the cubicle.
- You get passed a bag and you verify the information on the bag.
- Take the cup and fill it up (as much as you can). The kind volunteer has to watch you do it to make sure there is no cheating involved.
- Pour the contents of the cup into two test tubes.
- Stick the label onto the test tubes.
- Dump the contents of the cup.
- Put everything back in the bag.
- Pass it to the poor volunteer.
After my whole drug-testing ordeal, I had to rush to the stage to get my medal. The drug test would be processed and I did not hear back from them at all. That probably means I have nothing illegal in me.
After that, I rushed to the nearest McDonalds and bought nuggets for dinner. I later got contacted by SBD Hong Kong about claiming my knee sleeves and I kind of got my competition fee back if you think about it.
Overall thoughts:
Overall, it was an amazing experience as an athlete! I think as CSA organized meets prior to joining USAPL Hong Kong, they did great in ensuring everything went smoothly. A few friends were made as I shared the stage with so many strong lifters in Hong Kong! I noticed that the lifting community is getting younger and younger. I honestly wish I could’ve started powerlifting younger as well! Cie la vie!
