Powerlifting Questionnaire - 7/06/05

1. What is your name, age and profession?

Dave Marchant, age 43, Vice President of The Edge Gym. Recently retired from the Murray City Police Department.

2. Give us a BRIEF lifting history including your best lifts/total.

I’ve been competing in power lifting since 1978. My best bench is 677.7 lbs., and my best total was about 1,850. I consider myself a bench press specialist, but I recently started squatting and dead lifting again.

3. Give us a brief template of your training week.

Right now I am training 3 days a week, but I change my routines often. Mondays I do squat/dead lift accessory work. I do reverse hyper extensions, straight-legged dead lifts, front squats, zerker squats, kneeling squats, etc. Tuesdays, I do dynamic bench and back and shoulder work. Thursdays I rotate, one Thursday I will do a max effort squat variation exercise and then follow it with a dynamic dead lift. The next Thursday I do a max effort dead lift variation exercise and then follow up with dynamic squats. On Saturday I do Max Effort Bench variation followed by chest and arm work. This is a great program when you need to save time.

4. What kind of workout did you do when you first got into lifting and how old were you?

Power lifting was my first exposure. Our high school football coach was big into it and actually came down and started us going in Junior High School. My first competition was in the spring of 1978 at the Utah State High School Championships that Greg Shepherd used to put on. I took 2nd in the State overall as a Junior.

5. What kind of powerlifting workout did you do when you first started competing?

It was mostly Pyramid type schemes, 5,4, 3, 2, 1. We would do each lift 3 times a week, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

6. What kind of powerlifting equipment (bench shirt, squat suit, etc.) do you use?

I was a raw lifter until about 1999. The first time I used a bench shirt was at a USAPL meet in Price in 1999, it was a single ply Inzer blast shirt.

7. What powerlifting equipment would you like to try?

I would like to do more work on a mono lift. I’m not a big fan of supportive gear to be honest with you. I agree with the concept of reducing injuries with some support, but I think we have taken things too far. With triple ply canvas and Kevlar gear. What are we going to do next, add hydraulics? It seems like we’re relying too much on shirts and squat suits.

8. What is the best advice anyone has ever given you about lifting?

Implementing speed and dynamic work into the routine.

9. What is the worst advice you’ve ever been given?

To just stick to a given program with no variation, like some strength guru’s are prophets, and their writings are as sacred as the bible. Every one is different and responds to exercise differently. I’ve learned you need to experiment try and adapt, find the things that work for you and do them, and throw out those that don’t.

10. What is the worst injury you’ve had and what did you do to overcome it?

I was rear ended by a car back in 1991 and got herniated discs in my back and neck. My doctor had me convinced that I was doomed to walking on the tread mill for the rest of my life. A good Chiropractor got me lifting again. I just had to be smart and start out light and gradually build up. I’ve never felt better now.

11. What is the worst sticking point (on any on the lifts) that you had to overcome and what did you do to correct it?

I was stuck on my bench at around 601 to 600 for about 18 months. I was following West Side very strictly. I talked at length to Bill Gillespie when he was here for our meet and made some changes. I’m doing a lot more raw work now and implemented some secondary exercises to the max effort variation work, that follows more closely a progressive overload type of a work out. In the last year I jumped from 606 to 677.y lbs.

12. What exercises do you believe have increased your bench, squat and deadlift?

Raw work using submaximal weights and using compensatory acceleration.

13. What does your diet consist of?

Right now everything I can eat.

14. What kind of supplements do you use?

I use Usana products, protein, and multi vitamin and minerals. I also use Xpand.

15. Where do you get your training information?

I read all I can. Articles from USA Powerlifting, Power Mag, etc. Also Fred Hatfield, West Side, Vladimir Zatsiorski, Bigger Faster Stronger, everything. I think they all have great ideas and help me to keep variety going in my workouts.

16. What changes would you like to see in powerlifting?

I think that only single ply polyester gear should be allowed. I also think they should remove the rule about uneven lockouts. I think it should be a strength contest not a pretty form contest. I don’t think any one gets an unfair advantage by doing it. I certainly would call you nuts if you would try to implement an uneven lockout into your workouts to lift more weight. Uneven lock outs can be caused by injuries, and sometimes the gear itself. I just think that it is a stupid rule.

17. If you’ve ever had to cut weight for a powerlifting contest, what did you do?

I never have had to before. That’s the beauty of being a SHW.

18. Is there anyone you would like to thank?

First of all my family for the sacrifices they have made and the support they give me. My big brother Randy has been a big influence as well as all of the Utah Lifters.

I’d like to thank you Scott for putting together this website. It’s one of the best things that ever happened to Utah Powerlifting.