Hakaraia Jacobs of Ashburton was coerced into making a change.
He joined a gym, and it proved to be lifechanging.
He lost an impressive 45kg, took up powerlifting and can now deadlift a whopping 230kg.
It is just the beginning.
He won gold in the 120kg+ class at the recent World Powerlifting New Zealand (WPNZ) Federation national championships in Richmond.
The 31-year-old now has international success in his sights.
‘‘Next year I could be looking at going to World’s, if I get organised. It’s in Australia in October.
‘‘I could have gone to Oceania’s at the end of this month, but it’s too soon.
The event was the third time Jacobs had won gold in just eight months of focused training.
Prior to nationals he had regional and South Island successes.
He said there was tough competition within the sport, so he needed more time for training.
‘‘I’m real new. There are some pretty tough guys out there.’’
He spends on average four times a week at Snap Fitness gym training for up to two hours a session.
At work, with Mitre 10 Mega Ashburton, he can clock up more than 10,000 steps a day, so he focuses on lift and stretching at the gym.
He also loves competing.
‘‘I like the energy. I like the vibe you get when you are there on the day,’’ he said.
‘‘Everyone is so supportive, and the crowds cheering definitely helps you lift.’’
‘‘Getting up on to the stage, before you go to do your lift … you sort of just get focused and then do it,’’ he said.
Jacobs weighed 190kg before hitting the gym. He was spurred to action by his mate.
“‘He said ‘‘Cuz do you want to join this 20-week (gym) challenge that we are all doing. And I was like, ‘oh, nah maybe not. I might just do it on my own’’.
It was the start of a new beginning.
‘‘I just got addicted to the gym after that 20-weeks; I just kept going.’’
Jacobs took up the sport of powerlifting by chance.
He was spotted training in Ashburton at Snap Fitness gym by WPNZ president, and World Powerlifting Federation cofounder Steve Lousich and his wife, Tania.
‘‘They saw that I was strong,’’ Jacobs said.
No stranger to the powerlifting scene, Tania took on the role as Jacobs online coach.
‘‘I send her videos (and) I have the opportunity to go train with her, but I don’t,’’ he said.
‘‘She watches my technique, and if I ever need anything I can just talk to her and she’ll give me all of her advice.
‘‘She’s a pretty good coach.’’
Jacobs only started proper strength training last December. Then had his first competition in March.
It was the Canterbury regional championships.
‘‘It’s probably the smallest competition you can do,’’ he said.
Next was the South Island champs in June and then the nationals in August.
At nationals, about eight lifters were competing in the heavier classes.
Each competitor had three lifts in each of the disciplines: squat, bench press and deadlift. And each best lift counted for the total.
Jacobs’ total best lift was 585kg; a 230kg deadlift, 210kg in squat and 145kg bench press.
His goal is to get a total lift of 700-800kg. It will take training, but he is more than happy about that.
‘‘I just love the gym; the gym is great.’’
