UNITY — By looking at her five-foot stature you wouldn’t expect the strength and power she possesses. However recent competition results demonstrate just how wrong that assumption is. Originally from a small village in Japan, MacDonald was often told when growing up that being a strong woman is not very ladylike. It seems ironic that this gal is now a bona fide weightlifter.
Twenty-nine-year-old Macdonald has lived in Canada for nine years and became a Canadian citizen last year. She has lived in Unity for five years with her family but will soon be relocating with her husband’s job. She says she will definitely miss being a Unity resident as she really has enjoyed the community.
MacDonaldcompeted in her first powerlifting meet at the Canadian Strength Symposium in Saskatoon Jan. 24. Powerlifting is a three-lift competition using basic strength movements. Competing in the female, under 104 pounds, category, Kanako’s lifts totalled 539 pounds – back squat, 187 pounds; bench press, 100 pounds; and deadlift, 242 pounds. Her results all set new powerlifting provincial records in her weight class and qualified her for nationals.
MacDonaldexclaims, “The hardest part of competition is cutting weight to make my weight class, because I love to eat. My goal for this year will be to hopefully set all three provincial records – snatch, clean and jerk and the total – in weightlifting as well.”
Weightlifting is a two-lift style of competition that combines strength and technique and requires bringing a loaded barbell from the floor to overhead. Weightlifting is an official sport of the Summer Olympics, and is commonly known as “Olympic lifting.”
Madonald's first competition was Nov. 8, 2014, in Saskatoon where she competed in the under 106-pound female category. She broke the Saskatchewan clean and jerk record, exceeding the old mark by 2.2 pounds with a 125-pound lift. She lifted 88 pounds in snatch for a total of 213 pounds.
She competed again Dec. 13, 2014 in Saskatoon, again reaching 88 pounds in snatch but hoisting 132 pounds in clean and jerk for a total of 220 pounds. MacDonaldsaid, “That set the (previous) provincial clean and jerk record higher by 6.6 pounds.”
When asked when she started lifting and what inspired her to do so, Macdonald responds, “I started to lift weights about one and a half years ago … as part of Crossfit class. I had never really participated in any sports or touched weights before. I thought I would try something new and try to get back into shape after having children.”
Macdonald has been a member of Crossfit Lair since the very first program introduced in Unity by Lindsey DeRoo about two years ago. She tells me she did not even know about, nor had she thought about weightlifting or powerlifting. One of her training partners encouraged her to consider this so, out of curiosity, she looked up competitions in the area and sure enough, found one that she thought she’d give a try.
As far as powerlifiting, MacDonaldsays she tried a powerlifting competition encouraged by one of her coaches.
Asked how a busy mom of three possibly finds time to train and work out, she responds, “I usually try to go when the kids are at school during the daytime so it doesn’t disrupt their activities. But if something comes up and that doesn’t work, I make time for my training. I wake up early for 6 a.m. classes or go in the evening when my husband is home, or my kids come and spend time at the gym with me when there’s no school. That's the nice thing about our Crossfit gym; they have different class times so that we can fit the training time in our busy schedules.”
Macdonald recounts her motivation coming from supporters, including her family, friends and Crossfit training partners, who are always cheering her for whatever she does. She said, “I have the best training environment where I am surrounded by the people who are so positive and so supportive of each other. We celebrate everyone’s milestones and progress in the gym every time no matter how small or big, just like it’s their own.
“That's why I just love spending time there. They always inspire me to train hard and be better. I get motivated to train when I look back and see the progress I have made so far. When we just started lifting, I was thinking picking up 75 pounds was too heavy but now that’s the weight I consider even too light for most of my workouts. Through Crossfit, weightlifting and powerlifting, I am constantly reminded and surprising myself how far I have come. Also, by meeting amazing athletes from all over the province at the competitions, they inspire me to train harder and get stronger.”
Kanako’s success story is testament to the power of believing in oneself, setting a goal and working hard to achieve that goal. As outlined in her comments, often these success stories don’t happen without a solid support system and she certainly has attested to the strength that support system played in her success.
