Team Max Power’s Mike DeCarlo competed today in the USAPL Star and Stripes powerlifting tournament in Clark’s Summit, PA. He finished first place at 132lbs breaking a state record Bench Press (200lbs) and set a personal record in the Deadlift (330lbs).

Congrats to Mike not only on the win and PR but also making weight!

If you saw Mike as he was training, you know he earned himself a big sushi dinner after the competition. And maybe a few dozen donuts and an ice cream cake or two. The dude was lean.

Given that it’s the holiday season, you might want to know how Mike went from a fit 145lbs (give or take) to a leaned-out 132lbs while maintaining a fairly impressive amount of strength.

How Mike DeCarlo Lost 10 Pounds in 4 Weeks

1. Define your goal. Set a timeline.

Mike started tightening up his diet four weeks ahead of the meet. This way he wasn’t overly dehydrated (and subsequently weaker) by the time he had to compete.

Four weeks was enough time to cut the weight he needed to cut and not so long that he felt like he was dieting and depriving himself forever.

Mike also set softer goals – benchmarks he wanted to reach at the end of each week. This way he could check his progress and keep motivating himself as he hit every soft goal.

2. Get daily feedback and support.

Mike weighed himself daily and then posted his weight on the whiteboard in the gym for everyone to see.

He also talked up his goals and his plan to everyone – clients, friends, coworkers. Have you met Mike? You probably heard what he was doing. If he started slacking, people held him accountable.

Because he couldn’t hide his failures, he was forced to keep trying and to reach his goal.

3. Have a set nutrition plan.

For Mike, this was 5 meals a day, with 300 calories allotted to each meal. He had to get a certain amount of protein every day and supplemented with fiber to keep things moving. As he got closer to the day of the competition, he started tapering off carbs.

Would this work for everyone? Maybe, maybe not – everyone’s nutritional needs are different and everyone’s body reacts differently to weight and fat loss. Of course, Mike is an extremely active individual with a killer gym in his house and a flexible schedule. He’s also pretty determined.

The point is, he had a plan and he stuck to it. And he lost 10lbs in 4 weeks.

There’s about 4 weeks between now and Christmas. Instead of stuffing your face at every holiday party, why don’t you get a head start on your New Year’s resolutions and try cutting 10lbs?

We don’t train to look pretty (although it doesn’t hurt). We don’t train just to train. We train because we compete. Because we are athletes.

This fall, we’re putting our money where our mouth is! Team Max Power is gearing up to throw down at 2 USA Power Lifting (USAPL) events this fall.

Check out our training logs as we prepare to lift heavy and lift strong.

Nov 19 – Scranton, PA

Stars and Stripes Bench and Deadlift Championships

December 3-4 – King of Prussia, PA

USAPL Northeastern USA Regional Bench Press & Powerlifting Championships

Vince competed in the Male 275lb Raw and Junior Raw divisions. Despite a partially torn triceps, he still managed to take first place in both divisions – that’s Max Power!

Vince Mallace
1st place – Men’s 275 Open Raw / 1st place – 275 Junior Open Raw
Best overall lifter
New APA 275 Junior Raw American and World records

Vince’s attempts:

• 440lbs
• 490lbs
• 500lbs!

Eddie Suarez took home first in the Male 242 Open Raw division, pulling a PR of 575 lb!

Eddie Suarez
1st place – Men’s 242 Open Raw Push/Pull

Eddie’s attempts (Total – 975 lb):

bench

• 380lbs
• 400lbs
• 410lbs (just missed)

deadlift

• 520lbs
• 550lbs
• 575lbs

Kris and Jesse Regan came in first and second, respectively, in the Male 181 Open Raw division. Kris pressed 295 lb and Jesse, having an off day, pressed 265 lb (still not too shabby).

Kris Regan
1st place – Men’s 181 Raw Open

• 260lbs
• 280lbs
• 295lbs

Jesse Regan
2nd place – Men’s 181 Raw Open

• 265lbs
• 290lbs (just missed)
• 290lbs (missed)

Congratulations, team!

APA New Jersey Summer Bash – July 10

Edison, NJ

Vince Mallace – 275lbs Raw Junior and Raw Open divisions
Eddie Suarez – 242lbs Raw Open division
Kris Regan – 181lbs Raw Open division
Jesse Regan – 181lbs Raw Open division

Vince will be attempting to break his own American and world records which he just set in the beginning of May.