Powerlifting Bench Press

NATURAL BY CHOICE

WHAT IS NATURAL?
WHY BE NATURAL?
WHY NOT?

Let me start by saying that I'm not a confrontational person. I feel that life it too short to spend all of your time worrying and arguing over trivial matters. This being said, I feel that I should admit that this article is in response to many lifters who have expressed their dislike for “natural” and “drug-free” powerlifting and those of us who promote it. I’m making every effort to make this a non-confrontational article even though it seems that I may receive feedback from some who find my site to be threatening to their own accomplishments.

Over the past few months, I’ve seen some incredible articles, posts and even t-shirts attacking “natural” powerlifting. Some attack the definition of the word “natural”, while others attack the validity of what we are doing. I’ve heard everything from “Only plants grow naturally” to “What could possibly be powerful about a natural Powerlifting league?” Some have gone as far as to suggest that they gave us our own league in the same way that parents give children their own table on thanksgiving. They claim that we as natural powerlifters cry about what we would be able to do if we were using the same drugs.The truth of the matter is that natural powerlifters are catching up with the non-tested organizations everyday. The only reason I can see for attacks on natural lifters would be if other lifters are feeling threatened in some way.

Myself and others on this site have expressed our respect for any and all lifters who train hard and succeed. We have never made any attempt on this site to disrespect those who chose to use drugs in their attempts to be successful in the sport. Natural is just a word that we as drug-free lifters use to describe the way we choose to train, live and compete. I have trained with lifters that were not drug-free. They urged me to try doing it their way and I would urge them to try to train my way, but we both had mutual respect. This is why I find this disrespectful attitude regarding natural as being synonymous with the word weak, very shocking. In this article, I hope to define just what we mean by “natural”, dispel some misconceptions and clarify just why we are “natural”.

What is natural? Well there seem to be different definitions of natural. The one thing that all natural powerlifters seem to agree on is that the use of illegal steroids and over-the-counter steroid precursors such as andro, nor-andro, etc. are not a part of a natural powerlifter’s regimen. Natural lifters recognize both the physical and legal ramifications of such performance enhancers. Years ago, this definition would have been complete.

Over the last few years, the definition of natural in most organizations has changed. Over-the-counter stimulants such as ephedrine, diuretics and other performance enhancers have been found to have negative effects on the body. For this reason, more organizations are banning these substances in an attempt to keep the sport safe and on a level playing field. Even extremely high amounts of caffeine can cause serious health related problems and are tested for in some meets.

The natural debate gets interesting when the subject of engineered foods and other supplements enter the conversation. The most common are protein, creatine supplements and multi-vitamins. Lifters use these supplements to make up for deficiencies in their diet. The main arguments for these supplements is that they occur naturally in our food and that these supplements have been used and tested for many years without significant health risks to generally healthy people. Whether you agree or disagree that these supplements are part of a natural regimen, the overwhelming majority of lifters will still consider you part of the natural Powerlifting community if you chose to use creatine, whey protein and or multi-vitamins. Although many great lifters take such supplements, it is also important to note lifters such as George Lilleafanos who benches a massive 700 pounds and has a squat that would make most lifters cringe. If you ask George, he will tell you that he has never used such supplements and views them as a waste of money. I personally don’t know if they are a waste of money or not. What I do know is that they are legal, they do appear in the foods that we eat and until they are found to have negative side effects, they will be considered as acceptable natural supplements by most organizations and by the majority of the natural Powerlifting community and E-normous Powerlifting.

So what about new supplements? If you are considering taking a new supplement on the market there are some things to consider. First of all, do you want to be the guinea pig? Some reputable companies such as EAS Labs have been very lifter friendly by conducting extensive research before they release supplements, pulling supplements with ingredients such as ephedrine and making efforts to comply with the requirements of natural organizations. Other companies though, have released new supplements on a whim without taking natural lifters into consideration. If you take these new supplements and are served a suspension or ban from competition, it is on your shoulders. The manufacturer in most cases will not be able to help you.

The second thing you should consider is, how does the supplement’s manufacturer claim it affects your body? If the supplement claims to have an effect on hormone levels such as testosterone, it may not only cause side effects, but it will more than likely result in a false positive at your next meet. Remember that you are responsible for any substance that you put into your body.

Finally, is this something that occurs in your diet? If not, does your body need it? If it doesn’t then it probably isn’t natural. You don’t know how your body will react immediately or long-term. Just recently I read a review on a new supplement that claimed to force blood into the muscle. Needless to say, the ingredients didn’t read like a box of cheerios. A friend of mine made a great point after reading about the supplement. The heart itself is a muscle. What would be the long-term effects of forcing blood into the heart and causing artificial growth? I don’t know the answers to this question, and therefore would not recommend this supplement.

Rich Daniel’s who has contributed to this site greatly, brought up a good point. He stated to me that he wouldn’t take anything that he wouldn’t want his son to take. I hope this makes sense to everyone because whatever you do to make your mark on the sport will be recognized by the young lifters of tomorrow. Take this into consideration when you are trying to decide if what you are putting into your body is natural.

Remember that lifters such as Eugene Sandow achieved incredible strength back in the days when these supplements were not available. You can achieve great strength without the newest magic pill also. So if you are in doubt, the safest thing to do is to leave it on the shelf. Some of today’s strongest natural athletes are between the ages of 30-60. So be patient. This is not a young person’s sport, that’s why we have age groups. If you are patient, you can be a powerlifting monster without magic pills or foreign substances.

Let’s discuss some misconceptions about natural powerlifting. I’ll give you a quote from an IFBB pro.

What could be powerful about being natural? It's called the A.D.F.P.A. Know what that stands for? "Excuse to be small."

Let’s think about this statement. Basically, what he is saying is that compared to enhanced lifters, we are weak and not competitive. I think the best example of the contrary was this years non-tested Bench America. A lot of natural lifters didn’t take the invitation to compete, but they should have. I think many natural powerlifters are just now realizing how strong we really are. Let’s look at how some of the lifters that competed and some of the lifters that declined stack up.

Joe Mukite (USAPL Natural Lifter) Placed 3rd at 148 pounds.
Rich Salvagni (IPF Natural Lifter) Declined an invite. The winner in his weight class pressed 500 pounds. Rich Salvagni locked out 530 pounds at nationals.
Larry Miller (USAPL Natural Lifter) Did not compete. The winner in his weight class (165) pressed 525. Larry Miller competes in the Masters II age group and locked out an amazing 529 pounds at 165 pounds.
Horace Lane (USAPL natural lifter) Did not compete. The winner of his weight class (275) pressed 660 pounds. Horace pressed 650 pounds at this years nationals.
George Lilleafanos (IPF natural lifter) Not invited. George is also a 275 pound competitor, and has pressed an unofficial world record of 700 pounds.

This is the short list. There are many others that did compete or could have competed in this event against many enhanced lifters. I urge any natural lifter that is invited next year to go into the arena without any hesitation. I’d like to see natural lifters sweep such events in the future. Let’s move onto the second misconception.

Many people think that natural lifters have to be fat. One look at Rich Daniels should change the minds of most. Jennifer Thompson, Horace Lane, Larry Miller and many more have found ways to generate extreme power and have the look of a lean, muscular athlete.

Finally, there is a belief out there that drug use in the past is the reason for many natural lifters current success. When you think about it, this statement doesn’t even make sense. How could making your body dependent on a foreign stimulant or hormone, cause it to function more productively later in life? The N.A.S.A. takes a unique approach to testing. Using a polygraph test, they allow competitors to compete as Natural or Pure. Natural lifters are required to be free of banned substances for 3 years, while Pure athletes are required to have been free of banned substances for life. A quick comparison of the Pure and Natural lifting records will show that there is no real advantage later in life. People should also consider that performance enhancers can also have effects later in life that could shorten a lifters career.

So why do we encourage natural lifting? There are a million reasons to train and lift naturally. Natural lifters may have made their decision based on longevity or health, others because they don’t see an advantage to performance enhancing drugs. Some stay natural for the future of the sport in hopes that we may be part of an Olympic sport someday. Meanwhile others do it because it is an issue of integrity.

Drugs are expensive financially and physically. I am doubtful that anyone has ever won a cash prize in Powerlifting that would cover the cost of years worth of steroids and the problems that may arise later in life. When I hear the stories of young lifters that experience heart problems, impotence or even death due to so-called performance enhancing drugs it upsets me. I don’t hold anything against these athletes. They did what they thought they had to do because someone before them set a record using the same methods. They never meant to hurt themselves or the sport, but they have. We are all victims of illegal steroids whether we decide to use them or not. Users are hurt financially, and physically. Non-users are hurt because their sport loses integrity in the eyes of non-competitive lifters. If we do succeed, people are suspicious of us. If we don’t succeed people think it is because we weren’t willing to make the sacrifice. Worst of all, we have to endure the loss of young competitors who bought into the steroid hype and paid the ultimate price.

To sum things up, I’d just like to say that I still have respect for what any lifter has achieved. Whether you are a user or not, it takes a lot of hard work and sacrifice to compete at a high level. If you are a user though and you think that the natural organizations were created just to make us feel like we belong, you are sadly mistaken. Natural lifters are not minor league. Natural powerlifters have the ability to be just as strong or stronger than “juicers”. Don’t be surprised if at the next Bench America or WPO event, you see even more names of lifters from natural organizations. It doesn’t mean that we aren’t natural anymore. It means that we aren’t intimidated anymore. We are strong. We work just as hard. We feel that we deserve just as much respect as we’ve given the record holders of the past. This sport was created by natural athletes and we will always be a part of it. You’ll see our names in the record books right next to guys like Coan, and just because we decided to do it naturally doesn’t mean that you should feel threatened by us. We are natural by choice. We can’t take your drugs away. We’re just chasing records and championships just like everyone else.

-Anson E. Wood