COVID-19 Closeup: Anje Wynands
COVID-19 CLOSEUP
Subject: Anje Wynands, champion powerlifter and 2018 St. Catharines Athlete of the Year.
What would you be doing right now in power lifting if the pandemic hadn’t hit? I had my sites set on going to Provincial Championships 2020 and then to nationals in spring of 2021 in Newfoundland. As far as I’ve heard, nationals is still a go but I’m not training now, so it’s hard to imagine being ready for that.
What are you doing now with power lifting? I am taking a break from it right now. No deadlifts, no bench and just air squats every once in awhile. Even before COVID hit, I knew deep down that I needed to take some time off from lifting to address my overall health, but I love lifting so much that I always got drawn back into it at the gym. I really think that this time of forced rest is necessary for me to heal from past injuries, so COVID is a blessing in disguise for me. I miss lifting like I’d miss a best friend, but I’m feeling better physically than I have in years.
What is the biggest obstacle to training in power lifting during the pandemic? My gym is closed.
What do you miss the most about the pre-pandemic world of power lifting? I miss feeling strong. I worry about losing muscle that I worked for years to build. Most of all, though, I miss my powerlifting friends. I miss hanging out and talking about past triumphs, shared experiences, current goals and the future of our sport.
What do you miss the least about the pre-pandemic world of power lifting? I am healing from some serious chronic issues that were worse when I constantly lifted heavy. I don’t miss the frustration I had about perpetually hurting and not getting stronger.
What is the biggest thing wrong with powerlifting? I don’t know if it’s wrong, per se, but I think that some groups are under-appreciated within our sport. I wish there were a way to shine a spotlight on our older lifters (in their 60s, 70s and beyond). At an age when a lot of people take to their rocking chairs, these people are putting in major effort to defy odds and get stronger. What they do is crazy impressive to me, much more impressive and inspiring than athletes in their youth who can lift heavier weights.
Is there an easy answer to this issue? Yes, I personally show my respect and appreciation to the older lifters by encouraging them, watching them compete, cheering them on, and letting them know how much I look up to them.
Is there a hard answer to this issue? I really don’t know how to get more people to value the older lifters. I would encourage them to get to know the older lifters personally. They have fascinating stories of overcoming all sorts of challenges, challenges that have given them the internal strength that it takes to be a powerlifter.
What would be one suggestion to make power lifting better? I would like to see more mock meets, where people get together to lift but without the pressure of a real competition. Practice competitions for fun. At real competitions, we get so focused we forget to have fun.
Has the pandemic changed how you will approach your power lifting in the future? I am going to get back into lifting slowly, without pressuring myself like I normally do. I’m driven so I abuse my body, but I hope I’ve finally learned to stop doing that.
What is the first thing you are going to do when life returns to normal? Hug friends; talk to people face to face; deadlift.
What daily activity do you miss the most? I play bass in a steel pan band and I miss playing with the other members of the band more than I have missed anything else, even the gym.
What guilty pleasure do you miss the most? I have some silly TV shows that I love (Masked Singer, Ellen’s Game of Games, etc). I love to laugh and these things have so far been like my lifeline, giving me something to look forward to now that all my evening stuff is gone. I haven’t missed them yet, but I’m kind of nervous what’s going to happen now that new episodes aren’t being recorded.
What is your favourite outfit to wear around the house if you are working from home? Shorts and T-shirt. It is the same as what I always wear.
What do you do to replace the time spent power lifting? I am very goal-driven, after years of rolling from one goal to the next. So, I set a goal to walk 500 miles during quarantine. This week, I’m already in the mid 400s. I realized I was going way farther than 400 before things get back to normal at the gym, so now I have map of St Catharines on my fridge and each day that I walk, I highlight the streets I’ve walked. It’s my goal to walk all over the city by the time life is “normal” again.
Are you most likely to be a hunk, chunk, drunk or sasquatch when the pandemic ends? I started out as sasquatch and I’m trying to maintain that as much as I can. Hahaha.
What is the worst habit you have picked up during the pandemic?: Staying up WAY too late.
What is the best habit you have picked up during the pandemic? As soon as I start to feel sorry for myself that I hadn’t heard from friends, it is a reminder to me to reach out to someone. If I’m feeling lonely, that means other people must be too and that has given me the chance to make some person’s day a little better.
What is something good about yourself you have discovered during the pandemic? While I have sad days here and there, I bounce back to having hope rather quickly and I think that some good things are going to come out of this very unusual time.
What is something bad about yourself you have discovered during the pandemic? I have no business teaching my kids math.
In the weeks ahead, BPSN is hoping to get people in Niagara’s sporting community to share their COVID Closeups. If you want to volunteer, shoot Bill or I a text. You have our numbers.
