LIVERMORE FALLS — Teens, families and coaches gathered Jan. 31 at Renovation Training Co. in Livermore Falls for a one-day “Teen Lift Off” designed to showcase progress, build confidence and strengthen community connections among young athletes.

Betsy Mancine, owner of Renovation Training Co., said it grew out of the gym’s regular practice of testing one-rep maximum lifts throughout the year but was expanded into a dedicated competition-style experience for the Teen Barbell Club.

“We test one rep max several times a year for most of our training clients,” Mancine said. “This year we decided to make it a one-day event for the Teen Barbell Club, versus spreading the lifts across a week.”

Mancine said it also highlighted the mentorship role played by experienced young lifters Emma Mancine, 17, and her boyfriend, Rush Morrison, both competitive powerlifters.

“Our daughter, Emma, has been competitively powerlifting for the last three years,” Mancine said. “These kids all know Emma and have watched her compete online.”

She said Teen Lift Off served two primary purposes.

“One: to give our TBC an exciting new challenge and way to show off their hard work and strength increases with family and friends watching, and; Two: to give Emma and Rush a chance to mentor and encourage and inspire these younger lifters from what they’ve learned,” Mancine said. “Both are natural coaches and were amazing.”

Eleven teens participated in the main event, with two additional exhibition lifters, age 9. The remaining participants ranged from ages 12 to 16.

From a coaching perspective, Mancine said the results reflected consistent effort by both participants and their families.

“Dedication, focus, effort from them and their parents getting them here,” Mancine said. “These teens have been focused and have shown up consistently, taken coaching, pushed strength, paid attention to good nutrition and sleep. They’ve practiced commands and taken every challenge I’ve given them. And their hard work paid off and showed in the comp.”

While personal records and lift totals were important milestones, Mancine said the emotional and social moments defined the event.

“Oh my gosh, all of them,” Mancine said. “It was jumping up and down from their fellow lifters, having Emma and Melissa, another mom, lead the warmup room and be the big sister and encourager to all the kids.”

She said the support network extended beyond coaches.

“Having Rush and Travis, a parent, spot the kids, Rush bringing massive ‘big bro’ energy to pull more out of the teens, especially the guys,” Mancine said. “The parents were on their feet screaming. There were happy tears, hugs all around.”

Mancine said the sense of community stood out most.

“Everyone did their best, but also encouraged and loved on everyone else,” she said. “People filled in the holes and picked up the slack. It was fabulous.”

She said strength training provides benefits beyond physical development, particularly for teens who may not participate in traditional team sports.

“These kids learned they’re capable of so much more than they think,” Mancine said. “They build confidence doing hard things. They have to trust me as their coach, which is a responsibility I take extremely seriously, as to how I train them, how I push, what I know they can do.”

Mancine added that the sport demands accountability and personal growth.

“They have to put in the work. You can’t fake heavy lifting if you haven’t put in a decent amount of effort,” she said. “These are kids who aren’t in team sports. They get the chance to train together and have a blast, but at the end of the day, they’re competing against themselves and their previous totals. It’s awesome to see how that effort changes a kid.”

Mancine described the event as one of the most meaningful moments of her coaching career, pointing to both her personal connection to working with teens and the growth she observed in participants.

“I adore teens,” Mancine said. “I think they’re in such a cool place as they’re nearing adulthood, seeing who they’re going to become, learning, growing, trying, so to be part of stewarding that is pretty fantastic.”

She said the day represented a turning point for many participants.

“These kids proved so much to themselves, family and friends,” Mancine said. “It wasn’t just the weight lifted. It was them overcoming challenges from the training to the weight to lifting while everyone is watching, which can be extremely hard, especially for our more introverted teens.”

Mancine emphasized the focus remained on participants building confidence in themselves.

“These teens are incredible. I think that day, they started to see in themselves what I see in each of them, from the teens lifting to the teens helping,” she said. “That’s about as good as it gets.”

Following positive feedback from participants and families, Mancine said Renovation Training plans to continue similar youth-focused programming.

“This was a test drive for us to see what our teens and community enjoy,” Mancine said.

Teen Barbell Club meets Tuesday and Thursday from 5-6 p.m. for children 11 years and older. The gym offers drop-in access with a 10-class pass available for $105 or an unlimited monthly membership for $79.