David Joseph Sheppard (b. 1931 d. 2000) was an American weightlifter and Olympic medalist. He received a silver medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne.
Dave was known as a “Boy Wonder” of weightlifting. With the age of 22 he was able to win his first National Championship. He began weight training in 1946, at the age f 14. During that year he showed promise of the greatness which was his by working up to 125lb press, 130lb snatch and 170lb clean and jerk at a bodyweight of only 115lb.
Here in tabular form, is a record of Dave’s progress over the years.
| Age | Ht. | Wt. | Press | Snatch | C&J | Year |
| 14 | 5’2″ | 115lb | 125lb | 130lb | 170lb | 1946 |
| 15 | 5’3″ | 138lb | 175lb | 185lb | 240lb | 1947 |
| 16 | 5’3″ | 144lb | 193lb | 215lb | 270lb | 1948 |
| 17 | 5’5″ | 146lb | 200lb | 235lb | 290lb | 1949 |
| 18 | 5’6″ | 148lb | 215lb | 252lb | 300lb | 1950 |
| 19 | 5’6 1/2″ | 160lb | 253lb | 281 | 341lb | 1951 |
| 20 | 5’7″ | 178lb | 260lb | 290lb | 360lb | 1952 |
| 21 | 5’7″ | 178lb | 270lb | 300lb | 360lb | 1953 |
| 22 | 5’7″ | 190lb | 286 1/4lb | 316lb | 391lb | 1954 |
Weightlifting training routine
| Monday | Weight x Rep |
| Press | 200lb x 2, 220 x 2, 240 x 2, 255 x 2, 270 x 1, 280 x 1 |
| Snatch | 220 x 2, 240 x 2, 260 x 2, 270 x 1, 280 x 1, 290 x 1, 300 x1 |
| Squat Clean | 255 x 2, 275 x2, 300 x 2, 325 x2, 340 x 1, 355 x 1, 375 x 1, 385 x 1 |
| Clean without split or squat | 255 x 2, 270 x 2, 280 x 2, 290 x 1, 300 x 1, 310 x 1(sometimes he went to best single of 330) |
| Barbell press on steep inclined bench | 200 x 3, 235 x3, 255 x 3, 275 x 3, 285 x 2, 300 x 1 |
| Wednesday | Weight x Rep |
| Press on Bench | 205 x 5, 255 x 5, 285 x5, 305 x5, 325 x3, 350 x3, 375 x 1 |
| High Pulls (as high as possible) with wide snatch grip | 225 x2, 255 x2, 285 x 2, 325 x2, 350 x2, 375 x2, 400 x2 |
| Full Squat | 300 x5, 350 x5, 400 x5, 425 x5, 450 x3, 470 x2, 490 x1 |
Friday: Same as Monday, but with 10 pounds less in each lift and exercise. Dave also practiced pressing on his off-days, took the weight from squat stands instead of cleaning.
His tuesday-Thursday press routine was as followed: 200 x5, 225 x5, 240 x5, 225 x5, two sets. These are all done with a wide grip.
Dave’s best single attempts:
Full squat 515lb
Benchpress 400lb
Jerk from shoulders 423lb
Dumbbell Press 120lb 4 sets 10 reps
Barbell Press 300lb x1
Dave was 7 years my elder and my teen years weightlifting idol. In 1956 in Minneapolis my buddies and I got to meet “The Man” at the local YMCA where he was working out temporarily. He surprised us by exchanging small talk and telling us his goal was to beat Vorobiev in an upcoming competition.
Flash forward 5 years and I ran into Dave again at Muscle Beach. (On purpose). By this time he wasn’t into heavy training for reasons unknown. He hung out on the beach all summer and ocasionally popped into the old downtown gym to toss around light weights and banter with Dave Ashman and the rest of us. Dave A incidentally C&Jed 445 twice one night and tweaked his back in the process.
We all known Dave Sheppard’s re -cord as a W/L but what many don’t know is what a polite well-spoken gentleman he was; maybe the nicest person I’ve ever met!