By Staff
Power lifter wins in Dothan
Nick Johnston, Hartselle Enquirer
He lifted close to 1,000 pounds.
Not too shabby for a 205- pound sophomore from Hartselle High School.
Jay D. Glenn competed at the 2003 Alabama State Power Lifting Championship at Dothan High School and won in his 205 -pound division.
Glenn is the first Hartselle High Student to win a power lifting state championship.
"It was a good experience," Glenn said. "I got to see how I would fare against the best in the state."
Glenn proved he was "best in the state," at least in his classification.
Glenn was able to squat 405 pounds, bench press 295 pounds and power clean 255 pounds. He ran away from the competition, beating the second place finisher by 20 pounds.
"My dad was there to coach me and he cheered me all the way through it," he said. "It was great."
Glenn had been in training for the event since December after football coach Mike Smith received an information sheet.
"As soon as I got it I started training," Glenn said. "Every week I would go up about 10
pounds from my last max, and the last week before it, I maxed out to see where I stood."
Glenn was actually able to squat 430 pounds during training, but was not able to accomplish that at the competition.
"I just did a lot of repetitions to keep my muscles going," Glenn said about the week leading up to the competition. "The last day, I didn't do anything and got a good night's sleep."
Hernia nearly stops Glenn before he started…
As a baby, Glenn suffered a hernia.
Doctors claimed the reason for the hernia was severe crying, causing a strain in the stomach.
Last year, it took Glenn out of the weight room and into a hospital room.
"Last year, I was planning on going (to the power lifting championship)," Glenn said. "I saw the information posted on a bulletin board and I was ready to go."
But Glenn was not ready to go.
The hernia he had suffered as a baby was extremely painful when he lifted, so it was time for surgery.
"I had to stay out of school for a while and missed it (the power lifting championship)," Glenn said. "There wasn't much rehab to do, it was just recovering and resting.
"This year I was bound and determined to go down there, whether I was sick or not."
Glenn did make it down there, and brought home the ultimate prize.