Interview With Professional Powerlifter Cosette Neely.

Think vegans can't be strong? Think again! In this interview I chat with Cosette Neely. Cosette is a professional powerlifter who fuels her training with a plant-based vegan diet. She recently took 2nd place in the WPO Super Finals where she broke the all-time world record in the bench press.

Photo by Jessica Wiggins Photography.

Scott Shetler: Thank you for taking the time to do this interview! Please tell my readers a little bit about yourself and your background.

Cosette Neely: I was born in the Philippines and moved to California when I was five years old, where I spent most of my life. After I finished graduate school, I married my high school sweetheart. We’ve moved around a bit since due to his military service. We got out of active duty military in 2014 and moved back to our hometown of Monterey, California. We relocated to Ohio in January, 2019 with our two sons. I work as a behavior specialist where I help children with behavior challenges, mostly children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Photo by Jessica Wiggins Photography.

SS: How did you become interested in powerlifting?

CN: My husband got me into lifting weights after high school, but he didn’t get me to start lifting heavy until I was in college. My first meet was when I was 23 years old, 18 years ago. I set a federation world record for the bench press at this meet as a junior, and was bitten by the bug instantly.

SS: Have you always competed in equipped powerlifting?

CN: I started powerlifting equipped from the beginning and have never competed raw. There wasn’t really an emphasis on raw vs. gear then. You could compete raw, but most were competing in gear. I’ve always entered multi-ply in competition, even when I used single-ply bench shirts.

SS: What gear do you use and how do you cycle it into your training?

CN: I’ve used several different brands of gear throughout the years. After competitions, I usually don’t get back into gear for a couple of weeks. When I get back into gear, I generally wear briefs for squat and deadlift. Since I am a geared competitor, I feel it is important to train in gear regularly. However, I work in raw training into my cycles as I also believe a strong raw base is important. As I get closer to a meet, I start to wear my bench shirt, deadlift suit, and squat suit more often.

SS: What are your best competition lifts and total at the various weight classes you have competed in?

CN: In the 97lbs. class, my best lifts in competition are 225.9lbs. squat, 220.4lbs. bench, 259lbs. deadlift, and 705.4lbs. total. In the 105 lbs. class, my best lifts in competition are 457.4lbs. squat, 319.6lbs. bench, 370lbs. deadlift, and 1124.3lbs. total. I was the first in the 105 weight class to bench over 300 lbs. and I hold the all time (all federations) world record for equipped bench press for my weight class. This is a triple bodyweight bench, which only 7 other women in history have done in all weight classes. I also hold the all time world record for total for the 105 weight class.

Photo by Jessica Wiggins Photography.

SS: What does your training look like? Do you have a specific coach you train with or specific training program you follow?

CN: My training follows the Westside conjugate template created by Louie Simmons. This means that I have two upper days, and two lower days per week, which consists of a dynamic effort day and a maximal effort day. My husband, Dayan Neely, has always written my programs and coached me. Since we joined Sweatt Shop earlier this year, I’ve started following Shane Sweatt’s programming and have been receiving guidance from Shane as well as Laura Phelps. However, Dayan still coaches me every day and oversees my bench program as I get closer to meets.

SS: What is your favorite lift and why?

CN: The bench press will always be my favorite lift. When I started competing, I started as a bench only competitor. Therefore, I have spent a lot more time training my bench press, so, naturally, it is my best lift.

SS: What lift is the most challenging for you to progress in and why?

CN: Even though the squat has always scared me the most, the strength in my deadlift has lagged behind my other two lifts. Most people would think that my stature is beneficial to this lift, but I have found it more of a challenge. Also, wearing equipment can be very antagonistic for pulling.

Photo by Jessica Wiggins Photography.

SS: Congratulations on your 2nd place finish at the WPO Super Finals and world record bench press! It was amazing to see professional powerlifting on ESPN. Overall, what are your thoughts on the event?

CN: Thank you! I think this year’s Super Finals was run incredibly well. It is a big step in the right direction for powerlifting and draws a lot of positive attention and new understanding and respect for geared lifting.

SS: What are your thoughts on the sport of powerlifting as it is now?

CN: I loved powerlifting when I started and I love it now. Sure, some things have changed, but I still see the pureness that reeled me in in the first place. Weights are being pushed past limits many thought were impossible 10 to 20 years ago and that’s amazing. Yet, there are some records that still stand, which is equally impressive.

SS: When did you become vegan and why?

CN: I became vegan 6 years ago. It was a decision that I had thought about for years, so it was not a spur of the moment idea. I can’t recall what finally pushed me to make the choice, but I can tell you the simplest reason for my choice: if you can do less harm in this world, why wouldn’t you?

SS: What are some of the things you noticed after switching to a vegan diet?

CN: When I became vegan, I was on my second hiatus from powerlifting, each hiatus being for my two children. There were many changes in my life around the same time, so I cannot honestly say that I noticed any changes to my health in any way that I can attribute directly to my change in diet. I was quite healthy before going vegan according all my physicals and blood work. That didn’t change. Once I started training again a year later, my recovery and overall health was at least as good as it was before the hiatus, and at an older age.

SS: What does your normal diet look like? What are your favorite foods for meet day and is nutrition difficult at all when you are travelling to compete in meets?

CN: Actually, I still experiment with my food. I’ve gone through phases where I made a lot of shakes, paid for meal prep, used vegan meat replacements, did away with meat replacements, and changed my ratios of macronutrients. I think as long as I’m not eating a lot of “vegan junk food” and my training is consistent, I’m always happy with my results. Nutrition is always more difficult when traveling, but I’ve traveled for most meets I’ve done in my life, so I’ve gotten used to it. My favorite meet day food is vegan pizza.

SS: What are some of the biggest misconceptions about plant-based nutrition and being a high level strength athlete?

CN: I think the biggest misconception is that it can’t be done: you cannot be a high level strength athlete without eating animals and animal products. However, I have not had any issues gaining strength in the past 6 years.

SS: Have you received any concerns from coaches or training partners about your diet? On the flip-side, has it sparked any interest or made people consider eating plant-based?

CN: I have been lucky in that people don’t tend to challenge my choices in lifestyle or diet. Some of my coaches, including my husband, have found it a challenge in figuring out my caloric needs and how to disperse my macronutrients. However, there has never been negativity or debate about my diet. At this age, I am fairly confident and sure in who I am and what I do and I think most people respect that. In fact, I have had people approach me interested in eating plant-based.

Photo by Jessica Wiggins Photography.

SS: What are your plans for powerlifting in the future?

CN: As long as my body will let me, I have no plans on stopping or slowing down in the near future. I am always looking to improve all of my lifts in terms of strength as well as technique. My next meet will be the WPO Semi-finals at the Arnold Classic in March.

SS: Do you have any final thoughts or comments you’d like to share with our readers?

CN: While I haven't been vegan my entire life, I've been vegan since I got back into training. I'm stronger than I've ever been. That's not me saying that I'm strong because I'm vegan. All I'm saying is that it can be done. I'm proof of that.

SS: Thanks again for doing this interview! If people are interested in learning more about you, or following your powerlifting career where should they go?

CN: Thank you so much for the interest! Currently, I am most active on Instagram, but also have a Facebook page. Both are called cosetteneelypowerlifting.