The Seven P’s
By Mike Miller
For EliteFTS.com

Previous Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance; How true. This is the creed of United States SEAL Team six, I’m sure we are all familiar with these fellows. The guys who do things that would make the rest of undergo immediate testicular atrophy. They are prepared for anything at any given moment, When they go into battle or into some third world country to rearrange the part in some dictators hair they have everything they need to accomplish the job. You should be the same way come meet day; unfortunately I learned this the hard way this year. I know comparing powerlifting to a SEAL operation is a bit much but can you think of a better example of preparedness? So here you are at the world finals or let’s say the Arnold, you have spent 6 months or more training, thousands of dollars on food, supplements, new equipment, hotel fees, travel expenses, etc. You order you new bench shirt, squat suit or other equipment and you tell the manufacturer you need it according to your federation standards.

So 6 weeks out you get your new gear, your banging out big reps like you never have before and you’re stronger than you have ever been in your life. YOU ARE READY! Meet day rolls around, you drive or fly to your destination (another large expense) you go to weigh ins and get your equipment checked. Unfortunately you find out your piece of new gear has been rejected because it does not meet this federations standards. You start to lose your mind and everyone in the room is looking for something to use as a shield. You have two choices. You can sit back and lay blame on the person that made the equipment or you can realize it was your responsibility to check that shirt and make sure it met the requirements. The judge tells you if you get you equipment fixed to the specs you can lift.

You drive over an hour to meet the manufacturer and get the problem solved. It’s now starting to turn into a really long day. You get you gear fixed but because it’s last minute some things are different and it’s not fitting the way it once was. You have to make the best of it. It’s the morning of the meet and you’ve had a bad night sleep. Your 10 year old child has gotten sick and has been up the whole night coughing and wheezing. You convince yourself that you’ll be fine. You eat a good breakfast, drink plenty of liquids and are beginning to get your mind ready. Unfortunately, the meet is delayed by over three hours and your stomach starts asking for food. Time passes and eventually you’re getting warmed up. Everything is going well until you put your shirt on and things feel a little “off”. You attribute this to nerves and think once you hit the stage you’ll be fine, WRONG. You go out on the stage, the crowd is screaming and you know that it’s time to turn it on. Even with everything seeming to go wrong, this is what you are here for.

You get your handoff and take most of it yourself because you never told your spotter to check and make sure the uprights were raised and he is doing a 765lb front raise. The weight feels heavy but you tell yourself you can do it. The bar suddenly stops about 4 inches from lockout because your newly repaired shirt won’t allow you to swing your arms back. Later you find out that the bar has been overloaded by 29 lbs. The next lift, the same result.

This may sound like a bunch of excuses and sour grapes for missing a lift, but it’s not. All of these things happened to me at the Arnold this year and they were my fault entirely. I could have prevented each and every one of them. The equipment was my responsibility, I should have checked it thoroughly and made sure it met WPO standards and I should have had 2 shirts not one. Kids are great, don’t get me wrong, I love taking mine to meets, but with something as important as the Arnold, leave them home with grandma so you don’t have an additional worry. Take food with you, lots of food so you don’t burn out as you never can tell when something is going to happen and a meet is not going to start on time. Now we have the uprights and the bar overload issue. It’s your responsibility to educate you handler and make sure he knows what to look for, have him check the weight to make sure it’s not overloaded and make sure the uprights are in the correct position. All you should have to do on meet day is lift, nothing else….

I have done many meets and let me tell you what, your coach/handler can help you make it or break it. Bill Crawford, one of the best benchers in the world, as well as a fantastic coach and handler would go to a meets with me and when I would start asking questions about equipment etc, he would grab my face and look at me and say, “Mike, all you have to do today is lift. Shut up and relax.” That’s how it should be. You need someone to place your faith in, someone who will handle the little shit that is so important. So next time you have a big meet take your time and make sure you have it all planned out. Every one of these things I mentioned is a contributing factor into how good or bad you will do, take nothing for granted and plan your day as though everything that can go wrong will go wrong. Here is to next year and learning from your mistakes.

Mike Miller
Nazareth Barbell