Sports - May 2003

Fountain of youth

47-year-old weightlifter still going strong

By MIKE POWELL, LTN Correspondent

At an age when most men get their exercise on the golf course, Charles Littlejohn is topping the 400-pound mark in the bench press.

The 47-year-old Littlejohn, a member of one of Lincolnton's most athletic families, has already won three weightlifting championships in his age group. He will go after another trophy June 12 in Mooresville.

At that competition, Littlejohn hopes to lift 425 pounds, 15 pounds more than his personal best. His ultimate goal is 500 pounds, an unheard-of weight for a middle-aged weightlifter.

Three times a week, Littlejohn trains at His Place Fitness Center, the gym on Lincolnton's courtsquare he co-owns with Jack Kale.

Littlejohn packs 220 pounds on a 5-foot-8 frame. He looks more like a linebacker than the grandfather he is.

"I just like to lift weights," Littlejohn said after a recent workout. "I have always done something, whether it's weights, or karate, or boxing or basketball. This is what I am talented in."

Talented is the word that best describes Littlejohn and his kinfolk. He springs from a long line of athletes. Littlejohn's uncles and cousins, nephews and nieces, have made the name Littlejohn synonymous with sports in Lincolnton.

 In the 1970s, Mike Littlejohn was a standout basketball player at Belmont Abbey College. In the early '80s, William "Ray" Littlejohn led Lincolnton’s football team to a 10-0 regular season and signed with North Carolina. More recently, Jeremy Wilson, whose mother is the former Jackie Littlejohn, set a Lincolnton High record for career scoring in basketball.

Littlejohn's own sons, Charles Jr., 30, and Brian, 28, were all-conference football and basketball players at Lincolnton High. Brian was a linebacker and running back on the Wolves' 1993 state 2A championship team.

Despite the age difference, the elder Littlejohn refuses to concede anything to his athletic sons. He still challenges them to pickup basketball games and foot races.

"The only thing they can beat me in is one-on-one in ball. They can't outlift me," Littlejohn said.

Littlejohn is so competitive he once considered attending a Carolinas Panthers tryout camp. For that reason, his goal of a 500-pound lift in the bench press may not be so unrealistic.

"I want to see how far I can go. I will probably lift weights until I die," Littlejohn said.

As for training secrets, Littlejohn eats a diet rich in chicken and fish, stays active in sports other than weight training, and does not indulge in tobacco or alcohol.

Furthermore, he is not an advocate of the old weight lifting adage, "No pain, no gain."

Littlejohn said, "You want to strain some, but not a lot. You can hurt yourself that way."

One thing seems certain: Littlejohn’s training regimen has helped him discover the fountain of youth at the age of 47.

© 2001 Lincoln Times-News  

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