DESPITE TWO HIP REPLACEMENTS, JESUS FRAGOSO IS STILL TAKING HOME AWARDS IN POWERLIFTINg

Jesus Fragoso has lived several athletic lives. 

In the early 1990s, powerlifting was his passion. He competed at the IPF Junior Worlds in Vaasa, Finland and pulled a 622.8 which earned him a Bronze in the 82.5kg class. 

After that accomplishment and six years of competition, he let up on powerlifting and concentrated on work and other activities. Mountain biking and running became his main activities for over a decade.

“Fast forward to 2010, long distance running became my go-to and that is what I identified as… I was a runner,” he said. “I took part in a 24-hour fundraiser which was a road biking event, I decided to run for the 24 hours instead with the hope of shaking up the fundraising a little. I managed to cover 120 miles in 24 hours and raise over $8,000 for the event.” 

He didn’t stop there… the 24-hour running challenge was attempted again in 2012. It was during this prep, though, that he started feeling some pain in his left groin area. 

“I was 39 at the time and we (myself and my physical therapist friend) thought it was just a case of over training,” he remembers. “I ended up only managing 106 miles that time around due to incredible pain in my left hip forcing me to pull the plug on the event. The miles were less this time, but the fundraising was not; I was able to raise over $20,000.”

Just two months after that run, he finally went in and had X-rays done on his hips. The Orthopedic then informed Jesus that he had end-case arthritis in his left hip and that his right hip didn’t look great either. 

“Managing the pain is what I was told I’d be doing for the rest of my life,” he said. “I was 39-years old and the thought of simply eating painkillers was not an acceptable option for me. I started doing some research and found Dr. Pritchett in Seattle. Dr. Pritchett agreed that a hip implant was in order and in 2013 I had my left hip replaced, less than 7 months after running 106 miles.” 

Recovery from that first surgery was extremely tough for Jesus. Post-surgery depression set in and he felt like a shell of the athletic person that he was a mere 7-8 months prior. Life went on for the next 6 years; he was still active but not competitive in any form. 

That is, until March of 2019.

“I started weight training again and I entered my first powerlifting meet just two months after,” he said. “I had taken 22 years off of the platform. My right hip was now hurting and kept me from squatting in that meet, Push/Pull is what I entered and managed to Bench 303 and Pull 529 as a 181 lb Master’s.”

It was after that meet that the fire for powerlifting was once again burning inside of Jesus. It also became clear that his other hip needed to be addressed. 

“In July of 2019, 6 weeks after that push/pull meet, I had my 2nd hip replaced,” he said. “Recovery from the second surgery was much easier mentally. I now had a goal in mind, to recover and continue to compete in powerlifting. Simply taking part in powerlifting was not what I wanted; I wanted to compete!” 

Just six months later, Jesus was back on the platform. 

He tallied a 303 bench and 501 deadlift as a 165 pound lifter. 

“I was able to get in a couple more Push/Pull meets in 2020 and continued to make progress but squatting was just not happening,” he said. “But I started hitting depth in the squat and was slated to have my first full power meet in January of 2021.”

Unfortunately, a rib separation would derail that plan… for a while. 

“I had 4 weeks of zero lifting and that was extremely difficult to deal with,” he said. “Finally, in May of this year I competed in my first Full Power meet in almost 25 years. I tallied a 352.7 squat, 314.2 bench and 551.2 deadlift for a total of 1,218 lbs. as a 165 lb Masters lifter (45-49). The 551 deadlift set a National Master's record (previously 507) as well as an Idaho State open record (previously 545).”

Next up? He wants to take on the USPA drug tested 45-49 Masters (82.5kg class) and has a goal of breaking the National – and world – deadlift record as well as the National – and world – total record. 

“Training helps me stay sane,” Jesus said. “It is a form of release and allows me to focus on me and what my body can do. I train because I want to be better than I was yesterday. I train to improve on the platform, to get the opportunity to put months of work together on one day and compete. Coming across APEMAN has been nothing but a positive. I love that all the shirts have a story and a meaning. We all have a story, we just need to be able to tell it. I choose to tell my story with my actions, with what I can accomplish physically and how I may motivate someone to want to be better themselves. I simply strive to be the best me!”