When it comes to sharing a lifelong passion for competitive weightlifting and powerlifting, Joe De Stefano could go toe-to-toe with just about anyone.
Although he no longer competes, he has a command of the sport and can recall in impressive detail his most significant lifts, personal records, and meets. To listen to him is to be transported back to decades of disciplined training, many of them in the basement of the old Downtown YMCA – which was known as The Dungeon.
Joe grew up in the Bronx, where his earliest sport was punch ball, played at P.S. 17 in City Island. “Back then, kids could think for themselves,” he said. “It was pure. Now, adults think for their kids. But I think parents shouldn’t hover.”
He earned a bachelor’s in civil engineering at North Carolina State University and served in the U.S. Air Force as an aircraft mechanic and SCUBA diver before moving to Gulf Breeze in 1976 with his wife, Joann. He spent 31 years working as a technician and civil engineer with Escambia County and 19 years as an adjunct professor at UWF. Still as sharp as ever, he continues to work at Hurlburt Field.
As a young person, Joe said, “Nobody trained me. I did my reading and research and worked hard because of my passion.” Instead of going out on the town, Joe would visit the base gym or the Y and train with top-notch lifters, who helped him hone the craft, pushing his limits while always being safe.
What was so special about the old Y in those days? “The camaraderie kept me coming back,” he said. “I joined a group of fellow lifters, all hodge podge, with the same interest in improving while being safe. The sport taught me to be self-reliant and to think for myself.”
Although he doesn’t train like he did when he was younger, Joe still works out twice a week on basic lifts and runs. “Fads will come and go, but the foundations are paramount,” he said. He keeps in touch with the members of the training group from the old YMCA who are still with us.
Although he could likely talk for hours about his life experiences and lifting career without notes, he does have records – 23 books of training logs back to 1970, to be specific. “It’s important because you can tell what worked for you in pursuing a particular goal. It’s all about personal records, not what the other guy can do.”
One of Joe’s current hobbies is writing stories that reflect on his youth, family history, and people who had an impact on his life. Some of those writings share details about the old days in the Downtown Y’s Dungeon with his fellowweightlifters. Joe has shared with us “Training at the Pensacola YMCA,” which we’re delighted to share with you here.