When Mary Theisen-Lappen showed up at the Arnold in 2020, most of the weightlifting community didn’t know much about her. She wasn’t a marquee name like Kate Nye or Maddy Rogers. She had been competing for a couple of years and putting up outstanding numbers, but nothing that was front-page-headline material.
 
Then she got on the platform at the Arnold and attempted the biggest clean and jerk in the history of American women’s weightlifting: 163 kg. This would have been an American record, more than Cheryl Hayworth or Sarah Robles have ever done. Have you seen the video of this lift? If not, you should find it on the internet. Mary actually made it, but got narrowly red-lighted for pressout. 163 kg.
 
People were freaking out with all kinds of “Where the hell did this girl come from?” questions. I didn’t know anything about her, but as soon as I saw this clean and jerk, I said to somebody next to me, “I bet she’s a thrower.”
 
I was right. You see, I’ve been a track and field throws coach for 20 years. I’ve trained with some of the best shot put, discus, and hammer throwers in history. One of the main things you learn with this kind of experience is that elite throwers are often some of the strongest athletes in the world. Over the years, a few of them have jumped into Olympic lifting meets just for fun and put up national-level results.
 
But with Mary, it’s a step beyond. She’s rapidly on her way to some of the biggest numbers any American woman has ever done. She’s got plenty of challenges because of the busy professional life she maintains, but she’s still plowing forward. It won’t surprise anybody if Mary Theisen-Lappen is the top name in the record books when she finishes her time on the platform. Catalyst Athletics is honored to share her story with you.
 
Tell us about your background. Where are you from, where do you currently live, what’s your occupation, family life, what kind of sports background do you have outside of lifting, etc.
 
I am from Eau Claire, Wisconsin – about 90 miles east of Minneapolis. I am the oldest of four girls and we spent our childhoods trading off going to soccer, softball and volleyball games, basketball tournaments and track/powerlifting meets. My three sisters truly are my best friends in the world. My parents provided a truly memorable childhood for us. I am a very lucky person to have the love I have from my family. My main sport growing up was basketball, but track and field was a close second. I ended up narrowing down my college choices primarily because of track – knowing that I’d get a good education at whatever of my options I chose.
 
I graduated from Indiana State in 2014 with a degree in Sport Management and Coaching. I then went on to get my masters at University of Missouri in Education. I finished college as a National Champion and a 9-time All-American in the throwing events. My last track meet was at US Championships, and at the time I didn’t know it would be. I had every intention of starting to throw again and train for Rio, but with a summer off, I decided that I truly gave track all that I had and I would channel my love for throwing on the coaching side. We lifted a lot in college, and I probably was stronger than most of my competitors. I think people do think I just showed up at the Arnold last year and attempted the heaviest clean and jerk in the history of American women in weightlifting, which I kind of accidentally did… BUT I did have a background in strength and power. Throwing is just that, and I did it about 12 years, and ended at a fairly high level.
 
I now coach track and field at University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. I have been here for six years. I coach shot put, discus, hammer throw, weight throw and javelin. I also do event management, concessions for football season, and have worked as an HR rep for athletics. I truly do wear many hats at UWO!
 
Describe your weightlifting history. When/how did you start? Who have your coaches been? What are your proudest accomplishments?
 
I started weightlifting at the end of 2017. My good friend from home, Kyle, always tried to get me to try weightlifting, but I wanted to throw instead. I ended up not doing either, and I took four years off from anything athletic instead. I got into coaching and lost about 40 pounds. I felt good physically but did feel a bit of an athletic void.
 
Long story short(ish), my friend from college, another thrower, was being recruited by USAW to lift weights. Essentially he denied the offer and “told on me.” He showed USAW some of my lifting videos from college and asked me to try weightlifting. I was nervous to say yes because like I said, I was down about 40 pounds, the smallest I had been in years. I didn’t know if I wanted to get “big” again. Obviously, I did say yes…and my friend Kyle started coaching me. I was with him for a while and he was a really fantastic coach. I’m super thankful for all he taught me and our friendship. After Kyle, I worked with Dave Ester who works closely with Mike Gattone at Forza Weightlifting Club out of Grayslake, Illinois. Dave and I did some really cool things together, and he helped me hit some fairly big numbers, especially in the clean and jerk. Eventually, with how awful and busy my schedule is, I decided I wanted to have a coach that had more experience in remote coaching. In April of 2020, I started working with Wil Fleming and lifting for 1Kilo Weightlifting Club. The timing of my switch to Wil was honestly one of the only good things to come out of 2020. I was off of work for 5 months, so I was able to visit Wil and really dial in on some technical parts of my lifts which have been so amazing.
 
It probably sounds so silly, but one of my proudest accomplishments is being able to manage everything that I have going on while improving as a lifter. I completely thought I hit my peak strength wise in college but we continue to hit numbers that I just didn’t think possible at my age. Specifically, I’m probably prouder of lifting at 2020 Nationals (online), 6 days after I tested positive for Covid. Obviously I didn’t get it that bad, being I’m here to tell about it and have no residual symptoms, but I was in bed, unable to lift for 4 full days the week of that meet. I was 100% sure I wasn’t going to be able to lift. I felt so crummy and achy and exhausted, and my time slot to lift was 11pm. My athletes ended up picking up and dropping the things I needed to do the meet at my house, like internet cords to reach the garage and a tarp on my porch, my friends dropped off kilo plates which I didn’t have, and Wil was super optimistic and supportive but also smart and safe about whether we would lift or not. I don’t know how but I PRed my clean and jerk that night. That was probably one of my proudest moments in the sport, because I did have to dig fairly deep for that one.
 
Please give a basic description of your training method. Just tell us as much as you can about your program, weekly/yearly planning, etc.
 
I train six days a week with a really light day 3 to recover a bit, mid-week. During track season, my “day off” from lifting is usually coaching a track meet. During the summer and fall, my day off will consist of something active, like a long walk with my dogs or yard work I’ve been putting off.
 
I don’t know what exactly to say about my program. I do lots of complexes, which I’ve never really done before working with Wil. I was pretty bad at them at first, which I think was mostly because I was out of shape and not prepared for it. I learned to love them. I love how they make me feel strong, but also athletic. My last day of the week is usually full lifts, a traditional snatch and clean and jerk day, like most do. I primarily front squat as back squat bothers my back a bit. I would say we don’t do anything that is “OH MY GOSH, THAT IS SO FANCY, WOW!” but Wil does a fantastic job of programming things that I need to become a better weightlifter. We have spent our first year together really tackling the snatch, so every day we train, we do something to improve in that lift.
 
Describe some of the obstacles you face, or maybe some things that frustrate you in your weightlifting life. What kinds of changes would you like to see, either personally or with the sport in general?
 
The greatest challenge that I have is trying to manage being a full-time track and field coach while weightlifting. Track season in college is from October to the end of May, with January to May having meets every weekend and me being on my feet all day. I have to figure out the best way to schedule things so that my body feels the best for lifting and hitting the numbers I need to hit. One day I’d love to be able to just lift weights and coach track on a more part-time basis, but financially, I am not in a position quite yet.
 
As for the sport, I don’t feel frustrated with the sport really. I mean, you could say that I wish snatching wasn’t so hard for me to understand, but we are making major improvements so I can’t complain too much. As someone that came from a different governing body, I see how well USAW treats their athletes. I know some people might not agree, but just the stipend and funding and communication with their members, I’ve been pretty impressed with.
           
 
What are your plans and goals for your weightlifting career? How do you see your future in the sport?
 
My plans and goals for weightlifting… speaking more short term, I want to snatch 120+ and clean and jerk the American Record by this year sometime, preferably by nationals. I believe if I can find a way to have a slightly less demanding schedule outside of weightlifting, I can be in the mix of things for some pretty significant teams in the next few years too. I don’t necessarily have exact numbers in my head of what I want to hit, at least right this second, but there is a total that I have in the way back of my mind. I’m quite far from there, but the numbers I’ve hit in training and the progress we’re making, I think even if I fall short from that number, I’ll still be quite satisfied with my time in the sport.
 
How I personally see my future in the sport, I want to be at least thought of when you think of weightlifting in the United States. I want to be put in with names like Cheryl Hayworth and Sarah Robles. I want to be an example to young girls and boys that it’s okay to be a bigger person. I want people to have examples and role models that are big and strong to look up to, especially with the flood of Instagram models on the internet.
 
 
Who are some of your major influences, people you look up to, etc.? Who are the people you want to thank for your success?
 
I’ve been very lucky with the coaches that I’ve worked with. I can easily name a handful of things from my first coaches that I will carry with me through my time as a weightlifter, and probably even after I’m done lifting competitively. I am naturally strong, thanks to my parents and the genetics they passed on, but if it weren’t for the coaches I’ve worked with, I couldn’t really do much in the sport. Strength can only take you so far in weightlifting, and I keep being reminded of that.
 
I do look up too many weightlifters in the US and the world. I obviously look up to Sarah Robles and Cheryl Haworth, as they have truly paved the way for the American super women to follow. I enjoy following the progress or other weightlifters as well, in my weight class and others. I have met some very special friends in the last three years of being a weightlifter. It truly is extraordinary to be a part of USA Weightlifting, where the bar just keeps being raised higher and higher.
 
You’ve got some fun times ahead of you, Mary. Keep fighting to maintain that balance with your coaching, because you could etch your name in history in this sport. We wish you all the best!