The MONSTER GARAGE GYM/MAROSCHER COACHING LOG is a weekly Coaching Log by MGG owner, 2-Time WPC World Powerlifting Champion, Eric Maroscher, and is one of the Featured Coaching Logs at EliteFTS.
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Monster Garage Gym/Maroscher Coaching Log: (Log number CVIX). THE EMERGING WOMENS' DIVISION OF POWERLIFTING

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With the perspective of over a quarter century in the world of competitive powerlifting, I have never seen three, packed to the gills, flights of women-only in a non-international meet until this past December. The womens' division in powerlifting is emerging and that is great for the sport of powerlifting.

Becca Swanson, Laura Phelps, Dawn Reshel-Sharon, Jill Mills, Stephanie VanDeWeghe, Yevgeniya Mazaylova, Sioux-z Hartwig, Maris Sternberg, etc….. Some of these women are/were pioneers of women’s powerlifting in sport dominated by male athletes. In all cases, these are women of power who put up big numbers and sustained those big numbers for many, many years. Big numbers are one thing, big numbers for the duration, something entirely different. What makes it difficult being a pioneer at the top of a sport is that there is more often than not, nobody to chase and hunt down, but rather, as the athlete at the top, you are the hunted and for you to beat the best, you need to best yourself over and again. This reason along with the big numbers and the big number sustained for years and years is why the pioneers of women’s powerlifting deserve their credit.

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQGaGv-Vr0g&feature=youtu.be]

Over the years there are ebbs and flows to our great sport of powerlifting. I recall many years of APF meets in the early and mid-1990’s, where the meets were two day events and had two platforms going like gang-busters and each and every one of the lifters wore gear. The state meet I attended last year was another two day, two platform event, but all flights but one were RAW. Ebbs and flows indeed and the pendulum of powerlifting is also ever swinging from one trend to another.

What has remained more of a constant is that the womens' division has been, in comparison to the mens', sparse in numbers. But what I have seen over the past few years an increase in the numbers in the womens' division. This past December at a two day RAW meet hosted by IL APF Chair, Eric Stone (*side note: Eric Stone was a member of the Maroscher Powerlifting Team in the late 1990’s, along with his better half, Jackie Stone. Great guy, really good lifter and runs a meet like a meet should be run…smoothly, fairly, safely, for the lifter and no drama) and on day two of the meet, the entire afternoon of day two were women powerlifters only. Three big flights (no less than 15 lifters per flight). More often than not, at a non-international meet the total amount of female competitors is under 15. Quite a stark contrast to this meet.

RAW meet womens division

Is this an Illinois phenomenon? Here is why I say that. Illinois has always been a mecca for powerlifting in very large part because of the seeds sewn by Ernie Frantz. Ernie Frantz (if you don’t know the name, as a powerlifter, you should) was the founder of the American Powerlifting Federation and holds the distinction of competing in the Mr. USA and the World Powerlifting Championships BOTH on the same day as they were both held in Illinois in 1974. Incidentally, Ernie was runner up in the Mr. USA and won gold in the Worlds on that date.

Known as the Godfather of Powerlifting, Ernie, a many time record holder and world champion, now in his 80’s, owned, operated and trained at the legendary Frantz Health Club. This beacon of power in Aurora, Illinois helped serve as the training ground for champions like Bill Nichols, Stephanie VanDeWeghe, Dawn Reshel-Sharon, Maris Sternberg, Paul Urchick, Jose Garcia and the GOAT, Ed Coan. With a family tree fully grown out of these deep and strong roots, you have an inordinately strong power-scene in Illinois and thus the number of serious powerlifting gyms in this state as well. So, is it that the meets I have seen in Illinois are showing exponential growth in the number of women lifters because of this legendary power base? In my personal opinion you have pockets of that with some extraordinary lady lifters like Janel Vegter and others who have had the opportunity to have been coached by either Ernie, or one of Ernie’s pupils. But overall, the womens' division until recent has remained a tiny fraction of the mens' division so although Ernie and Ed are the reason the scene is so vital and has grown so large and strong in Illinois, it is most likely not the reason for the growth of women competing in Illinois. More likely than not, it is the growth industry that is xfit that has spilled over into the women’s RAW division of powerlifting.

This movement clearly has elements of power in it and from what I have seen, the women lifters from xfit are spilling into our great sport. The question as to whether or not they will continue in the world of powerlifting is unknown, just like it is for anyone entering the sport. The reality is, there are a few categories of powerlifters….those who stumble into the sport and stumble out of it….those who lift in the sport for a handful of years, then like a pair of bell bottoms from the 1970’s, fade away….or those who can’t imagine their lives without the sport because it occupies a huge role in their essence. These are your Dave Tate types. The kind of person who has powerlifting in their blood and they are in it for life, they are powerlifting lifers.

Now, powerlifting does not create “lifers” in the sport, as the lifers are just born, for the sport, and once they discover it, there is no turning back. Will this influx of women powerlifters have its share of “lifers?” Absolutely. It will be a small percentage, very small just like in the mens' division, and just like the lifers you know and the lifers that I have known and trained with since the late 1980’s, they will just never stop.

Ultimately, powerlifting does not care where its lifer lifters come from, powerlifting just cares about where they are headed and it just welcomes them with open arms. As today’s newbie first time lifter in the women’s division could, in the next 10 or 15 years, be the next Becca Swanson, or Laura Phelps, or Stephanie VanDeWeghe.

The point of this coaching log is that be you a coach or a gym owner in this male dominated, testosterone laden world of powerlifting, and that newbie female lifter comes wide-eyed in the gym with no idea which end is up, or comes from the world of xfit, and is taking the time to inquire about powerlifting, treat them like you would that 1,000LB male squatter because they too deserve to be welcomed into this journey we all so deeply love and that is the world of competitive powerlifting.

Wishing you all the best in your training and meet prep. Ever onward. Eric Maroscher: Monster Garage Gym.

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Equipment used in this coaching log training video:
• EliteFTS Texas Power Bar
• EliteFTS Mastodon Bar
• EliteFTS Deluxe Monolift
• EliteFTS Spud Straps *we bolt our monolifts to the ground
• EliftsFTS Deluxe Bench Press
• EliteFTS Bamboo bar
• EliteFTS Red Shoulder Saver Pad
• EliteFTS 3 x 3 Power Rack
• EliteFTS Light Bands
• EliteFTS Magnesium Carbonate

You can find ALL of the prior EliteFTS/Maroscher Coaching Logs/articles at this link: MAROSCHER

MONSTER GARAGE GYM uses Universal Nutrition/Animal supplements and EliteFTS powerlifting equipment.

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