Weightlifting competition in Dallas just got a new home. Hunger in the Wild is hosting the Into the Wild Classic, a USA Weightlifting sanctioned Olympic weightlifting competition, on Saturday, May 2, 2026, at our facility in the Dallas Design District. This is a local meet open to all USAW registered athletes — from first-time competitors stepping on the platform for the very first time to experienced lifters chasing qualifying totals for national events.
If you have been training the snatch and clean and jerk and want to test yourself in a real weightlifting competition in Dallas, this is your opportunity. If you have never competed but have been thinking about it, this is the meet to start with. Here is everything you need to know.
Competition: Into the Wild Classic
Sanction: USA Weightlifting (USAW)
Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
Location: Hunger in the Wild — 1350 Manufacturing St, Suite 204, Dallas, TX 75207
Facility: Strength and performance gym with professional lifting platforms and competition-grade equipment
Divisions: All USAW age groups and weight classes
Meet Director: Kyle Dosterschill, USAW Level-2 National Coach
The Into the Wild Classic is open to any athlete with a current USA Weightlifting membership. If you do not have one, you can register at usaweightlifting.org before the competition. USAW membership is required for all sanctioned meets.
Athletes of all experience levels are welcome at this weightlifting competition in Dallas. Local meets like this are specifically designed to give developing lifters a structured, supportive environment to gain competition experience. You do not need a qualifying total to enter. You do not need to be strong. You need to know the snatch and clean and jerk well enough to perform them safely, and you need a willingness to step on the platform.
If you are unsure whether you are ready to compete, ask your coach. If you have been training the lifts consistently for three months or more under qualified coaching, you are likely ready for your first meet. The numbers do not matter. The experience does.
Local USAW competitions are the foundation of the sport. They serve multiple purposes depending on where you are in your lifting career.
For first-time competitors: A local weightlifting competition removes the intimidation of stepping on the platform. The environment is smaller, more personal, and typically filled with supportive lifters and coaches who remember their own first competition. You learn how the format works — weigh-ins, the warm-up room, the clock, attempt selection, the commands from the referees — in a setting where the stakes are low and the learning is high. Almost every successful competitive weightlifter started at a local meet exactly like this one.
For developing lifters: Competition exposes weaknesses that training does not. You discover how you handle pressure. You find out whether your warm-up routine actually prepares you for a first attempt. You learn to manage adrenaline — which makes some lifters miss lifts they hit easily in training and helps others exceed their training numbers. Each competition makes the next one less stressful and more productive.
For experienced competitors: Local meets are ideal for opening a qualification period, testing openers for a bigger meet, or getting a total on the books. If you are working toward qualifying for the VIRUS Weightlifting Series 2 in Fort Worth this September, the Into the Wild Classic falls squarely within the qualification window. It is also a strong opportunity to post totals for the 2026 USAW National Championships qualification period, which runs through May 21, 2026.
If this is your first meet, here is a walkthrough of what the day looks like at this weightlifting competition in Dallas.
Weigh-ins: You will weigh in before your session to confirm your weight class. Weigh-ins typically occur two hours before the session starts. You step on a scale, confirm your bodyweight, and submit your opening attempts for the snatch and clean and jerk. Your opening attempts are the weights you will lift first in each portion of the competition. Pick numbers you can hit confidently, even on a bad day. Openers are not the time to be aggressive.
Warm-up room: After weigh-ins, you will warm up on the training platforms in the back. Your coach (or a designated handler) manages your warm-up, calling for progressively heavier lifts as the session approaches. The warm-up room is where the real work happens. A good warm-up is the single biggest factor in how you perform on the competition platform.
Competition platform: When your name is called, you walk to the competition platform. The referee gives you commands. For the snatch: you lift the bar, and the referee signals “down” once the lift is complete. For the clean and jerk: you clean the bar, stand up, receive the signal to proceed, perform the jerk, and receive the “down” signal. Three white lights from the referees means good lift. Two or three red lights means no lift. You get three attempts per lift.
Attempt selection: After each attempt, you have one minute to submit your next attempt. Your coach handles this. The strategy is straightforward for beginners: hit your opener, take a small jump for your second attempt, and make a smart decision on your third attempt based on how the day is going. Going six for six (making all six attempts) is more important than chasing a heavy number and missing.
Awards: After all sessions are complete, awards are given based on weight class and age group. But the real reward is the experience of competing, testing yourself, and being part of the weightlifting community in Dallas.
The competition is on May 2. That gives you roughly eight weeks from now. Here is how to use that time depending on where you are.
If you are already training the lifts consistently: Continue your current program and shift toward a competition prep phase 3 to 4 weeks out. This means gradually increasing intensity (working up to heavier singles and doubles), reducing volume, and practicing the competition lifts from the floor more frequently. Two weeks out, start dialing in your opener weights — these should be numbers you can hit on any day, even when you are tired or nervous. One week out, reduce training volume significantly. A few easy sessions with light technique work is all you need. Show up rested.
If you are relatively new to the lifts: Eight weeks is enough time to prepare for a first weightlifting competition if you have at least a few months of training under your belt. Focus on consistency and reliability with your technique at moderate loads. Do not chase personal records in the gym during the last two weeks. Your goal for this meet is to make lifts, not to set records. Pick openers that are 85 to 90 percent of your best training lifts and plan small jumps from there.
If you have not started Olympic weightlifting yet: Eight weeks is tight but not impossible for a motivated beginner with good coaching. If you start now and commit to three sessions per week, you can develop enough proficiency in the power snatch and power clean and jerk to safely compete at a local weightlifting competition in Dallas. You will not be lifting heavy. That is fine. The point is to get on the platform and start your competitive journey. Every lifter who has made a national team lifted an empty bar at some point.
To compete at this weightlifting competition in Dallas, you will need an active USA Weightlifting membership and registration for this specific meet. USAW membership can be purchased at usaweightlifting.org. Multiple membership levels are available depending on your age and competitive goals.
Registration details for the Into the Wild Classic — including session times, weight class information, entry fees, and the registration link — will be available through our website and social media channels. Follow Hunger in the Wild on Instagram or contact us directly for updates as we get closer to the event.
If you have questions about the meet, whether you are ready to compete, or what you need to prepare, reach out. We are here to help.
The Into the Wild Classic is not the only weightlifting competition opportunity in Texas this year. The state has a strong and growing weightlifting community, and 2026 features several major events.
The VIRUS Weightlifting Series 2 returns to the Fort Worth Convention Center on September 10 to 13, 2026. This is one of the premier national-level competitions on the USAW calendar, and it includes the Texas-Oklahoma WSO Championships. The qualification period runs through August 13, 2026, which means a total posted at the Into the Wild Classic in May counts toward qualification. If you are serious about competing at a national-level event later this year, this local weightlifting competition in Dallas is the ideal place to establish or improve your qualifying total.
The USAW National Championships take place June 20 to 28, 2026, with the qualification period closing May 21. Athletes targeting Nationals have a narrow window, and the Into the Wild Classic on May 2 falls within it.
For newer lifters, local and state-level meets throughout Texas provide consistent opportunities to gain experience, post totals, and progress in the sport. The Into the Wild Classic is one of those meets — run by coaches who compete themselves and understand what athletes need on competition day.
This is not a meet run in a warehouse by people who set up a platform the night before. Hunger in the Wild is a dedicated strength and performance facility with permanent lifting platforms, competition-grade equipment, and coaching staff with deep roots in the sport.
Kyle Dosterschill, the meet director, is a USAW Level-2 National Coach and former top-ranked USA Olympic weightlifter with over 20 years of experience in the sport. The competition will be officiated by certified USAW referees and run to the same standards as any national-level event.
We care about the athlete experience from warm-ups to the final attempt. The warm-up area will be fully equipped. The competition will run on time. The atmosphere will be competitive but supportive — because that is how weightlifting should be.
Whether this is your first meet or your fiftieth, the Into the Wild Classic is designed to give you a professional weightlifting competition experience at the local level in Dallas.
If you want to compete at the Into the Wild Classic and you need coaching to get there, we can help. Our Weightlifting Training classes are built for exactly this — developing lifters from their first pull to the competition platform.
Our weightlifting coach Kenderic McMillian works with athletes at every level, with an emphasis on proper technique development, individualized progression, and competition preparation. He has prepared lifters for local, state, and national-level meets and understands the process of peaking an athlete for competition day.
If you are brand new to Olympic weightlifting, read our complete beginner’s guide to Olympic weightlifting to understand how to get started the right way.
All Hunger in the Wild memberships include unlimited access to Weightlifting Training classes along with Strength, HYROX, Engine, Glutes, and Mobility sessions. You do not need a separate weightlifting membership. You walk in, join the class, and start training under coaching.
If you are not currently a member but want to prepare specifically for this weightlifting competition in Dallas, book a free consultation and we will build a plan to get you ready.
The Into the Wild Classic is on May 2, 2026. The platform is waiting.
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For questions about the competition, registration, or training, call us at (682) 558-3165 or visit us at 1350 Manufacturing St, Suite 204, Dallas, TX 75207.
Kyle Dosterschill is the owner and head coach of Hunger in the Wild, a strength and performance gym in Dallas’s Design District. He is a USAW Level-2 National Coach with 20+ years of coaching experience and competed as a top-ranked USA Olympic weightlifter.
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