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What started out as a part of footy training has turned into an obsession, a state title, and national records for a Mackay school student.
Ryan Chatteris, a year 11 student at Whitsunday Anglican School, has taken out the Queensland State Titles in powerlifting and set four new national records in the process.
Ryan started going to the gym and lifting weights to get bigger for footy.
Powerlifting then came when he realised he was good at lifting heavy things.
He enjoys the body building style of training and has since foregone football.
“I kind of just followed this,” he said.
Ryan met Kahn Stephenson at Zero Weakness Mackay who guided him on his journey and continues to coach him today.
Ryan started entering federation-sanctioned competitions with stricter guidelines, which led him to States and now Nationals on the Gold Coast in June.
Powerlifting consists of three maximal effort lifts: a squat, a bench press, and a deadlift which all combine to a total score.
At the recent Queensland State Titles, Ryan broke records in all three, smashing the total record in the process.
While scores are based on the weight you lift, technique is vital as well.
Ryan says training is key to his success, starting off with building foundational strength and eventually dialling it back to one rep at a time, replicating the specific lifts he is going to attempt in competition.
“Power lifting’s a sport where you pretty much know what you’re going to do on the day,” he said.
“If you’ve hit this number in training you know you’re probably going to hit it on competition day.”
Pump-up tunes are also a part of the process.
“I love listening to music.
“I listen to all kinds of different stuff.”
Ryan says that while his family have no background in powerlifting, they are endlessly supportive.
“I don’t think my mum still knows what I’m doing,” he laughs.
“She supports me, she knows that I like it.”
Ryan’s passion for sport and fitness is something he hopes to turn into a career, looking to work in the field of exercise science.
He wants to compete for as long as possible as well.
“I definitely want to see it as far as I can go,” he said.
“As long as I’m training, I’m probably going to be competing.”
Ryan is a student at Whitsunday Anglican School and hopes to turn his passion for fitness into a career in exercise science. Photo: Sam Gillespie
Ryan will compete at the APL Nationals on the Gold Coast in June. Photo: supplied
