Louisiana Weightlifting Regulation

House Concurrent Resolution No. 260 required the Louisiana Dept. of Public Safety and Corrections to evaluate the prison weightlifting situation and to file a written report of its determinations to the Administration of Criminal Justice Committee of the House of Representatives and the Judiciary B Committee of the Senate at least 60 days prior to the 1998 Regular Session of the Legislature.

We visited with their legislative liaison on 13 Feb. 1998 and were told the report is not yet finished. It will probably be available to us upon its completion. Meanwhile the department has drafted and enacted Departmental Regulation No. C-01-011. They faxed me a copy of the regulation which appears below.

State Of Louisiana
Department of Public Safety and Corrections
Corrections Services

Departmental Regulation
No. C-01-011
25 July 1997

Field Operations
General
Use of Weightlifting Equipment

AUTHORITY: Secretary of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections as contained in Chapter 9 of Title 36.
PURPOSE: To establish the Secretary's policy regarding the use of weight lifting equipment by inmates housed in secure institutions.
Applicability: Assistant Secretaries and all Wardens. It is the Warden's responsibility to implement this regulation and convey its contents to the inmate population.
POLICY:
1. It is the Secretary's policy that the use of weight lifting equipment should be considered a wellness/fitness exercise activity and a tool for physical therapy or rehabilitation, and not a means to significantly increase muscular strength or be a mechanism for "body building." Competitive powerlifting is hereby prohibited.
2. Each institution should continue the transition to fixed weights from free weights. Application may be made to the Centralized Inmate Welfare Fund to assist with the costs associated with this change. Complete utilization of fixed weights must be achieved within six months of the effective date of this regulation.
3. The Health Care Authority of each institution should provide recommendations relative to the maximum amount of weight to be utilized at any one time that will minimize the chance of injury and accomplish the goals of this regulation.

Richard L. Stadler
Secretary

Strength Tech Comments

Interesting to see the wellness approach in a regulation
The term "fixed weights" must mean weight machines? It might mean plates welded onto bars? Seems like it could have been better defined.
The Health Care Authority at each institution was charged with determining the maximum amount of weight to be utilized at any one time to minimize the chance of injury and accomplish the wellness goals. The exact amount of weight will vary by exercise, by inmate, and by time as the inmate progresses from novice to wellness. Charging each unit with developing those numbers seems like a difficult challenge. I suspect they will just limit the amount of weights available at each station.