By Jackson Robbins
If you have a passion for breaking records and being strong, then there’s many ways you can explore this interest at your own school. You can have what it takes to be a lifter at Delta.
Lifting weights has become a hobby for the student body.
One of the key pieces in the puzzle to people falling in love with weight lifting is football coach and teacher Christopher Overholt.
“Mental/Physical Toughness and determination are two key characteristics to a good lifter,” Overholt said.
Being physically tough is starting to become a common trend at Delta, with Overholt taking charge.
Overholt teaches weightlifting classes and is the head football coach. With his weight room experience and Delta’s new multi-million dollar weight room, they make a nice combo.
One student who has benefited from the new weight room is junior Jennings Wine.
“I was going through a hard time in my life,” Wine said. “I just found weightlifting and fell in love with it. Any stress or pain I could’ve been feeling mentally, physically, or emotionally, I could just take it and leave it all in the gym.”
A few people go into high school not lifting and not really knowing about it, but a good way for people to learn is by playing sports.
One student who got into weightlifting this way is senior Braxton Russell.
“[It was] definitely sports. I didn’t really lift in middle school, but when high school started I had to lift for football and that’s really what got me into it,” Russell said.
Sports and lifting go hand-in-hand with each other. Weight lifting is a common training activity for sports at Delta.
“My after-school lifters put in three days of 90 minutes each week,” Overholt said.
Those students lift for various teams in their off-seasons, preparing for the upcoming seasons.
With the rise of weight lifting at Delta, Overholt has introduced an annual weight lifting competition.
The third annual weightlifting competition took place at the high school Monday, March 18, 2024. Some students thrive in a competitive atmosphere. Jennings’ favorite memory in the weight room was last year’s competition.
“It was my first time squatting above 400 pounds,” he said.
This year at the competition he hit a squat of 505, a record for the school. He has made improvements in the Delta weight room that allowed him to accomplish such feats.
Senior Olivia Morris said the weightlifting competition is her favorite memory from the fitness center.
“It’s super high energy and you just can’t compare it,” Morris said.
The competition isn’t the only way Delta represents weight lifting: Delta offers weightlifting classes throughout the school day. The class is taught by Coach Overholt who goes through different workouts every day.
Overholt plans out the workouts and instructs people so that they break personal records on their lifts and get work done daily. Many students take it, and Coach Overholt’s passion makes it a good class.
“Each year there are students that do something (move a weight, jump, or run) in the weight room that they did not think was possible,” Overholt said. “Those are my favorite memories each year.”
The improvements in the weight room have taken place not just on the equipment but also with the student body participation. They have taken advantage of the opportunities, the classes and sports.
Staying safe in the weight room is an aspect that is the most important to the school.
“Don’t be afraid to ask questions,” Morris said. “You never want to hurt yourself in the weight room.”
It seems like lifting heavy weights is the biggest part, but it helps with mobility and keeping parts of your body stretched and safe from injury.
Overholt said he is a big fan of the back squat.
“It promotes ankle and hip mobility while teaching the lifter how to bend,” Overholt said. “It’s great for your core and requires mental toughness. I also like iso-lateral lifts that help identify weaknesses on each side of the body. Any kind of push, pull and hinge movements are great for athletes.”
When you are an athlete you don’t want to end up injured and miss games and practices. It’s key to stay safe in the weight room.
The weight room is a big part of the school and this could only be the beginning for a “strong era” in Delta.
