Most days after school, Woodbridge High School senior Tony Malave can be found at the Metuchen YMCA, sitting on the bench.
PHOTOS BY JAY BODAS Tony Malave, 17, can bench press 485 pounds. By the time he competes at the International Powerlifting Association’s 2008 Jersey Power Challenge, he hopes to be able to lift 500. On the bench press, that is.
“Right now I bench a maximum of 485 pounds, but my goal is to hit 500 pounds at competition,” Malave said.
On Sunday, Jan. 20, at 10 a.m. at Carteret High School, Malave, 17, will compete in the International Powerlifting Association’s 2008 Jersey Power Challenge, a competitive weightlifting event.
Malave will be competing in the bench press, dead lift, and squat exercises at the event, in which he will have three chances to put up a maximum amount of weight in each exercise.
IPA world records in his weight class and age group for the bench press, dead lift, and squat are 390 pounds, 600 pounds, and 575 pounds, respectively.As a demonstration, Malave, at 5 foot 9 and 235 pounds, easily bench pressed 405 pounds several times at the Metuchen YMCA this past weekend.
His bench press has gone up considerably over the past several years.
“My freshman year of high school, my bench was 225 pounds,” Malave said. “By my sophomore year, it was up to 315 pounds. Then a year ago, it was up to 405 pounds, and that was my junior year of high school.”
Malave said he lifts six days a week, working out a different body part each session. He says his performance has been the result of hard work, good diet, and plenty of rest.
“I have a protein shake around 7 in the morning,” he said. “I get out of school at 12:30 p.m. since I am a senior, and I then eat at least three cups of rice and two chicken breasts. Then I come to the Metuchen YMCA to work out, and I spend an hour and a half in the gym every day. I lift one body part a day, because I feel that is the best way to prevent injury.”
“Then two hours before I go to bed, I always have another protein shake, and I get seven to eight hours of sleep a night,” Malave said. “So effectively, I have four meals a day, totaling about 2,500 calories, but I take in more than 300 grams of protein a day. I am also always drinking a lot of water, at least a gallon daily.”
While some may be concerned that he is lifting such a large amount of weight at such a young age, Malave said that his doctor pronounced him in “perfect health” after his last routine physical exam in December.
“Everything was good, the blood tests were good, everything was fine,” he said. “No hernias, perfectly healthy, no problems at all.”
Malave said he has never used steroids or taken any supplements such as creatine.
“The only thing I’ve done is protein,” he said with a smile. “IPAalso randomly tests people for steroid use for this event. I have not been tested yet, but they may make me submit to a test if break the record for the event. But that’s no sweat, as I’ve never done steroids, so I would pass it. I’ve also never tried creatine, as I’m too young for it, but maybe when I turn 18 I’ll try it.”
Malave’s plans for the future include college, and either a health-related or athletic career.
“I have six more months before I graduate,” he said. “I know I am going to college and hopefully will play some college football, as I have played at the varsity level since my freshman year of high school, when I was going to school in Metuchen. Maybe even pro football one day, though that is way ahead of my game right now. I hope to also be pre-med in college, as science is my main goal for college.”
The Jan. 20 IPAweightlifting competition at Carteret High School is free for spectators. Malave also lifts better with plenty of crowd support.