The Contest
by Bomber
Whos legs are stronger?

I first met Athena in 10th grade.  She was a pretty, Japanese-American 
girl with long, black hair and classically Asian facial features.  I was 
a spindly 6', 140 lbs.  She was a squat, 4'11", 150 lbs, not fat, but 
thick, especially below the waist.  She looked like some one who was 
naturally muscular, rather than some one built up with weights.  In 
fact, she had never lifted a weight in her life.  Neither had I, for 
that matter.  She often said she had daikon ashi, a Japanese term 
meaning thick legs.  Her legs were very thick.  

We were both very smart and had the same honors classes the first 
semester and we soon became friends.  One day we got into an argument 
over whose legs were stronger. 

"Look at how much thicker mine are than yours."  She said, sitting down 
next to me to compare them.  Her legs were much thicker than mine. 

"Muscle mass isn't the only reason guys are stronger than girls.  Look 
at world powerlifting records.  Guys outlift girls who are heavier than 
they are."  I replied. 

"There's only one way to settle this.  Let's have a powerlifting 
contest." 

"You're on." 

"Meet me in the school gym after school." 

"I'll be there." 

Walking over to the school gym after school I felt fully confident I 
would win.  Who ever heard of a girl outlifting a guy?  When I got to 
the gym, Athy was waiting for me.  Her legs bulged out of her gym 
shorts.  

Neither one of us knew which exercise tested leg strength so we decided 
to ask one of the football coaches. 

"The simplest exercise to test leg strength would be the deadlift."  He 
said.  "Has either one of you ever done deadlifts before?" 

We shook our heads. 

"OK, I'll show you how.  First you have to check out some straps from 
the equipment room.  Go to the equipment room and ask for weightlifting 
straps." 

We came back a minute later with the straps.  He showed us how to put 
them on and wrap them around the bar.  Then, he did a demonstration 
deadlift. 

Now that we knew how to do deadlifts, we were ready to start the 
contest.  We each did a warm-up set at 135.  Then, I did a set at 225.  
I barely lifted it.  She added 5 lbs to the bar and lifted it easily.  
Now I was very worried.  I added an additional 5 lbs to the bar and 
couldn't lift it. 

"Now, all I have to do is lift that and I win."  She said.  Then, she 
bent down and lifted it easily.  "I win.  I want to see how much I can 
lift, just out of curiousity."  So she continued lifting, 240, 245, 250.  
She got all the way to 300 lbs.  

I was humiliated.  But, I took some consolation from the fact that girls 
were closer to physical maturity at 15 than guys and from the fact that 
none of my friends were there to watch me get outlifted by 75 lbs by a 
girl.  I learned that day that guys aren't always stronger and that 
girls aren't as weak as I thought they were.