The powerlifting competitions no one talks about.

Often times people look at individuals who have spent time in prison and have come to the consensus that most inmates that are locked away usually come out as completely different animals. While doing hard time, prisoners are put on a tremendous amount of muscle through weight training and exercise. It’s pretty impressive really as the men who are incarcerated usually have limited resources to ensure all those gains, yet they’re able to make it happen.

When it comes to strength and conditioning training there’s no substitute for powerlifting movements. That includes the deadlift, bench press, and squat. These 3 exercises are what make up the events at any given powerlifting meet. It requires not only physical strength, but mental fortitude as well. If you ask any person in a high security prison it takes those very same attributes to survive in such a potentially hostile situation.

Now before you start saying that we’re praising criminals just keep in mind we’re talking about how these individuals are able to make impressive gains with just the bare essentials. No matter what your opinion is of the men who populate our prisons, it’s still an astounding feat. What’s even more alarming and perhaps equally as impressive is that fact that these men, though incarcerated, have been given the opportunity to not only complete these extracurricular activities, but also compete in competitions as well.

Yeah you read that right. Inmates compete in powerlifting competitions to prove who the strongest lifter is and you’d be surprised at how much weight they’re able to lift with the little equipment that’s provided to them. It’s possible that some of these men would be capable of giving some of the pros a run for their money. Check out the video below to witness the one of the most bizarre lifting meets out there.

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