by Breann Thiessen
 | As a high school student, Bryce Krawcyzk was always a skinny kid and the only lifting he participated in was doing bicep curls with his friends. Around 2008 was when Bryce decided to switch his lifting goal from having giant biceps to the goal of gaining mass and strength, which lead him to start training the lifts of squat, bench press, over head press, and deadlift. Even though his technique was poor and he hated deadlift with a burning passion he still pressed through and kept training hard. However, competing was never a priority as Bryce was busy searching for a career that he could be passionate about. While he was constantly changing career paths, he was consistently training and becoming completely consumed by all things lifting. Through the countless hours of research it finally dawned on him that he should pursue a career in fitness. |
Surprisingly, Bryce’s first class he ever instructed was an all women fitness group and despite feeling awkward the class went great and he knew that this was the industry for him. What then led Bryce to powerlifting was when his boss at the time, Neil Tkatchuk, took him to compete in his first competition in 2012. During his first competition, Bryce was inspired by the work ethic and physical strength that the other lifters had and eventually Bryce decided to move to Calgary to do a 2 year program at Mount Royal. Bryce then worked with Peak Power to put all his extra energy into becoming a powerlifting athlete. Bryce remembers “nearly dying multiple times” because of the demanding programs he was put through, but the hard work paid off when he won his first provincials and went on to take silver at the 2014 Canadian Nationals.
But this was nothing compared to the success that Bryce would experience at the 2015 North American Powerlifting Championships where he delivered a groundbreaking performance. That July was Bryce’s first international competition where his main goal was to take the Open 105 kg World Record for Deadlift. But not only did Bryce break this record pulling a 343 kg (755 lbs) deadlift. He also went on to win the Best Overall Classic Male award with a wilks score of 490 along with taking around 15 other national and international records. The surreal feeling of accomplishing this milestone was well deserved for Bryce as he has spent many years working hard to be one of the biggest lifters in the world. As if this wasn’t impressive enough, Bryce is also the proud owner and founder of the Calgary Barbell Club which has around 40 members that participate in multiple strength based sports. The tight knit community at Calgary Barbell is what Bryce attributes to his international success, he believes that his own personal development wouldn’t have been so great if it weren’t for those who are around him. In fact, Bryce’s favourite part of powerlifting is the people he has met and the business opportunities he has been able to seize along with it. Through powerlifting Bryce has found focus, passion, and the opportunity to teach new lifters that it takes patience, consistency and surrounding yourself with the right people to be successful. At this moment Bryce is preparing for the 2016 National Championships with the hopes of winning the spot to represent Canada on the World Stage in Killeen, Texas.
But this was nothing compared to the success that Bryce would experience at the 2015 North American Powerlifting Championships where he delivered a groundbreaking performance. That July was Bryce’s first international competition where his main goal was to take the Open 105 kg World Record for Deadlift. But not only did Bryce break this record pulling a 343 kg (755 lbs) deadlift. He also went on to win the Best Overall Classic Male award with a wilks score of 490 along with taking around 15 other national and international records. The surreal feeling of accomplishing this milestone was well deserved for Bryce as he has spent many years working hard to be one of the biggest lifters in the world. As if this wasn’t impressive enough, Bryce is also the proud owner and founder of the Calgary Barbell Club which has around 40 members that participate in multiple strength based sports. The tight knit community at Calgary Barbell is what Bryce attributes to his international success, he believes that his own personal development wouldn’t have been so great if it weren’t for those who are around him. In fact, Bryce’s favourite part of powerlifting is the people he has met and the business opportunities he has been able to seize along with it. Through powerlifting Bryce has found focus, passion, and the opportunity to teach new lifters that it takes patience, consistency and surrounding yourself with the right people to be successful. At this moment Bryce is preparing for the 2016 National Championships with the hopes of winning the spot to represent Canada on the World Stage in Killeen, Texas.
Please click HERE to check out our upcoming events.
RSS Feed
