Blog

On a spring Wednesday afternoon, Gabe VanSickle was in the gym at PowerStrength’s Alpine location honing his skills. ‘Big Gabe’ stands 6’5” tall and weighs over 300 pounds. On that late April day, there were 3 younger athletes training alongside him, each with multiple years of high school in front of them. Every session at […]

Dealing with back pain while aging can present significant challenges, impacting one’s quality of life and making even simple tasks feel paralyzing.  Sarah Debski started down that road, but she was not going to let it burden her for long, so she came to PowerStrength. “My main reason for starting was because I was having […]

Mason Conklin had seen others elevate their game and transform at PowerStrength. Finally, the Sparta High School junior was able to convince his parents to send him to West Michigan’s top training facility. Conklin plays 3 sports for the Spartans: football, basketball, and this spring joining the track team for the first time. He started […]

Strength and conditioning at the small college level can be challenging. Most schools do not have a position that focuses specifically on physical conditioning. At many schools the head coach of each sport is in charge of the teams strength training. At Aquinas College, the women’s volleyball program, under the direction of head coach Ryan […]

Eric Hoogewind encountered a life changing event in the summer of 2022. The Hudsonville native was diagnosed with colon cancer. “Went to the ER, they did a Ct Scan, came back and said it’s cancer, boom,” Eric said. “In the situation I was in, the diagnosis was, wow!” That hit hard. Receiving that diagnosis led […]

Ben Farrell has been an underdog before. The 2019 NorthPointe Christian High School graduate went to Cornerstone University as a member of the golf team as a freshman. He eventually made the switch to football and found his way to Indiana Wesleyan – where he played 3 years on the offensive line for the Wildcats. […]

Charity Plaxton found herself at a daunting crossroads in her life, grappling with a major choice that left her feeling uneasy and conflicted. Presented with 2 options, neither of which appealed to her, she felt an overwhelming sense of discomfort.  “I had herniated my disc in my lower back and basically was given the decision […]

The majority of young football players dream of two big goals – win a high school football state championship and earn the opportunity to play in college. Drew Fortino achieved both after winning a state championship with Forest Hills Central and committing to the roster at Kalamazoo College.  A dream from childhood, Drew really got […]

Several dedicated members of the Rockford Youth Lacrosse program returned to PowerStrength to build a solid foundation of strength and athleticism to prepare for the upcoming season. For the past few years, this program has made the structured training program a priority and secure time-slots just for their ahletes – and more and more athletes […]

For years, Jason Perales endured a relentless cycle of trial and error with various exercise regimens in an effort to lose weight. Despite his determination – success seemed elusive. “A lot of different beach body programs,” Jason said when asked how he attempted to lose weight in the past, “I think I’d been doing them […]