Elder High School’s halls are filled with men of great strength. Our boys be grinding daily. The slogan “no days off” originated at Elder. Even though most of Elder’s strong men have decided to take their lifts to commercial gyms, the skills and work ethic established at Elder still remain with them. I talked to some of Elder’s strong men to find out what they lift and some of the routines they practice.

Antonio McCloud has been named by many as the unofficial strongest man at Elder. Just his sheer figure puts some of his opponents in wrestling in distress. Antonia has worked hard for his thighs of stone and intimidating overall physique. Antonio told me he has worked hard to get to where he is now. Antonio, “doesn’t really have a routine.” He just listens to Coach Rankin, lifts hard three days a week, and intakes protein regularly. Antonio benches at 275, squats at 405, and hang cleans at 275.

Next, the fan Favorite, Bryce Martin. Bryce has played football for four years here at Elder and looks to continue his football career at Tennessee Tech. Bryce is clearly an upper body guy. He doesn’t really stick to a routine. Bryce said, “I just lift and eat a lot of food.” Bryce’s Maximums are quite astonishing. He benches at 365, squats at 95, and dead lifts at 505. Bryce is cutting back on the lifting and focusing on a new goal: running a marathon. (Good luck, kid)

Jack Hilvert on the other hand, focuses more on his diet. Every morning, Hilvert wakes up and eats four eggs. Hilvert eats a full lunch including two sandwiches. He also eats a snack when he gets home from school. At the end of the day, Hilvert eats a big dinner. Hilvert tries to consume 4,000 calories a day (that’s a lot of food.) Hilvert has not maxed out in a long time, but from my understanding, his bench is probably near the 300 range and squats near the 400 range.

Like Hilvert, Casey Martin also focuses on his diet. Casey eats peanut butter and milk for breakfast. He then eats a “huge lunch” at school and then eats a pre-workout meal before he lifts. He will also consume one or two shakes a day depending if he needs “to hit enough calories for the day.” Then he eats a big dinner with the “fam.” Casey lifts five days a week on a three day cycle (push, pull, and then legs.) despite being the lightest on this list, Casey still benches 255 and dead lifts 455.

Last and least is Tyler Durr. Tyler Durr is currently in the middle of lacrosse season, so his lifting is taking the back seat. As of now, Tyler lifts at Elder and gets a quick workout to start the day. Tyler has a lackluster bench at 240, but makes up for it in his squat at 425. Tyler also has a remarkable dead lift at 450.

So, as you can see, Elder High School is a muscle factory. These “musclemen” are everywhere in our halls. Elder gives them the tools to craft mediocre lifters into average lifters.