Virden’s Brett Coulter has big goals for this fall and the future.
In his third powerlifting competition, the strongman is shooting to break two, maybe three, records in his weight class in November. After that, Coulter plans to compete at nationals in 2018 with an eye on setting the Canadian deadlift record.
“These are my goals for the next little while, providing I stay strong and healthy and not get injured,” Coulter wrote in a social media interview.
The son of Sharon (Carruthers) Prystenski, Lance Prystenski, and Kerry Coulter has worked out off and on most of his life. He first stepped into the gym as a tween.
“Back then it wasn't anything serious,” wrote Coulter, who works installing eaves troughs. “Mostly biceps, all about the guns, lol.”
However, Coulter, now 30, really became invested in his training in 2013. He took a bodybuilding approach at first, but became interested in powerlifting and competed in his first two competitions this year.
“I enjoy getting up on the platform and giving everything I got, as well as meeting new people that have a passion for the sport and watching them give everything they have,” Coulter wrote.
The competitions come after countless hours spent sweating in the gym.
“The gym is my alone time where I get escape reality and do what I love,” Coulter wrote. “I also really enjoy lifting heavy weights that a lot of people can't lift.”
He recently moved back to Virden from Winnipeg. Coulter works out at the Virden Fitness Co-op in the Tundra Oil and Gas Place.
“Over the years I've tried to collect as much knowledge as I could about training and tips and different exercises that help with certain things. And I'm still learning.”
His hard work has certainly paid off. For a long time Coulter had set a goal of bench pressing 500 pounds – touch and go – which he has now achieved. He has deadlifted 825 pounds and his squat is in the mid-600s. Coulter weighs about 325 pounds – about 60 to 70 more than he used to.
“When I run into people that I haven’t seen in a while they're usually like ‘Wow, you're huge,’” he wrote.
It is not just his body that has benefitted from all of those strenuous workouts. He quotes multi-talented entertainer Henry Rollins as saying:
“The iron is the best antidepressant I've ever found. There is no better way to fight weakness than with strength. Once the mind and body have been awakened to their true potential, it’s impossible to turn back.”
