Christian Ampania's Author Profile

I started as a scrawny little introvert in high school. I was 5’4” and 115lbs. At my peak, I got up to 180lbs. And at 5’5”, I didn’t look so scrawny anymore. I took a [longer than I should have] break from lifting, but now I’m back at it.

I’ve trained with and been coached by a few of the strongest powerlifters in the world, and got pretty strong along the way.

In 2008, I was ranked #3 (after a brief stint at #2) in the United States for the teen 148lb weight class on powerliftingwatch.com. But I’m okay with #3. The journey there was long and full of challenges, but it taught me that you don’t always need to be the best. Only better than before.

The lifts that got me there were a 573 pound squat, a 341 pound bench press, and a 484 pound deadlift. Before you get discouraged, call me a liar or ask me how I did it (depending on your perspective), you ‘ought to know that I was in a squat suit for the squat and a bench shirt for the bench. But the deadlift was raw…which is probably why it was so pathetic.

Here’s a video of the meet, if you’d like to see. Complete with my near-death bench experience. Okay, it may not have killed me…but it would have hurt and left a mark. Thank the powerlifting gods for spotters!

My best raw lifts to date are a 500 pound squat, 315 pound bench and 515 pound deadlift. All gym lifts @ 180lbs.

For more strength training tips or to see what I’m up to, you can visit my strength training blog/workout journal here.