2 months ago
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Posted On: September 18th 2026, 02:29 pm
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For this lifter highlight, we’re introducing not only one of the athletes taking the platform at the Power Plant Showdown, but also the owner of Code 3 Health & Fitness and the man who created the place in which this meet will be held.
For Allen Lude, Code 3 was never supposed to be just another gym. It was created from a lifetime of learning what it means to show up when people need you.
“Being a first responder changes the way you look at life. You learn that the easy moments aren’t necessarily the ones that define you. It’s the moments when things go wrong—the moments when someone is scared, someone is hurting, someone needs help, and there isn’t time to hesitate—that stay with you.
You learn to rely on the people beside you.
You learn that preparation matters.
You learn that when the call comes, you don’t get to decide whether you’re ready. You either are, or you aren’t.” That mindset stayed with Allen long after the calls were over. He began thinking about what happens between those calls, what we do when nobody is asking us to be ready, when there isn’t an emergency, when nobody is watching, and when there is no immediate consequence for taking the easy way out.
That is where discipline is built.
And that is where the idea for Code 3 began.
“I didn’t create Code 3 because I wanted another place where people could lift weights. There are plenty of gyms. I wanted to create a place that represented something—a place where people could come in carrying whatever life had put on their shoulders and have somewhere to put it down for a while.” Rest is posted in comments. ⬇️⬇️⬇️ #PowerPlantShowdown #Gym #IPAPowerlifting #WVPowerlifting
For Allen Lude, Code 3 was never supposed to be just another gym. It was created from a lifetime of learning what it means to show up when people need you.
“Being a first responder changes the way you look at life. You learn that the easy moments aren’t necessarily the ones that define you. It’s the moments when things go wrong—the moments when someone is scared, someone is hurting, someone needs help, and there isn’t time to hesitate—that stay with you.
You learn to rely on the people beside you.
You learn that preparation matters.
You learn that when the call comes, you don’t get to decide whether you’re ready. You either are, or you aren’t.” That mindset stayed with Allen long after the calls were over. He began thinking about what happens between those calls, what we do when nobody is asking us to be ready, when there isn’t an emergency, when nobody is watching, and when there is no immediate consequence for taking the easy way out.
That is where discipline is built.
And that is where the idea for Code 3 began.
“I didn’t create Code 3 because I wanted another place where people could lift weights. There are plenty of gyms. I wanted to create a place that represented something—a place where people could come in carrying whatever life had put on their shoulders and have somewhere to put it down for a while.” Rest is posted in comments. ⬇️⬇️⬇️ #PowerPlantShowdown #Gym #IPAPowerlifting #WVPowerlifting
Comments (1)
2 months agohersheylifts
That purpose can be felt throughout Code 3. It is in the preparation, the discipline, and the willingness to show up. It is in the trust built between training partners and the community of people who stand beside one another on the platform and far beyond it. At the Power Plant Showdown, Allen will step onto the platform as a lifter, but he will also stand behind the meet as its owner and host. Every athlete who competes will do so inside a gym built to represent readiness, resilience, community, and the belief that we are stronger when we have people beside us. We are proud to introduce Allen Lude and honored to hold the Power Plant Showdown at Code 3 Health & Fitness, the gym he built to be far more than a place to lift weights.
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