He did not start as a lifter. His father is a crane operator, his mother a secretary. Neither was athletic, and they hoped their son would be a good student and qualify for a university.

As a 7-year-old in Kiev, where Pisarenko has always lived, he was a swimmer and gymnast, and played many other sports. At 10 he became a Greco-Roman wrestler. At 15 he took up lifting to help build his body, and he liked it so much that he quit wrestling.

Despite his lifting success, he insists he is an ordinary man. ''I am nobody special,'' he said. ''I am a normal individual. When I was younger, I was never aware I was good at weight lifting. I tried to prove to myself that I could lift heavy weights. It led to a state of mind now that challenges me to lift weights as heavy as the ones that bigger people lift.

''Weight lifting is not difficult. It is a pleasure. I eat a regular diet, much fruit, no special vitamins, no protein supplements. The only thing different is that I eat a lot of black caviar, 10 ounces a day.''

His wife, Valentina, is a radio technical engineer. She is unathletic, said her husband, though she exercises in the morning. Trains 5 Hours Daily

The Pisarenkos have a 1 1/2-year-old son, Vladislav, ''a big, strong, healthy boy.'' Because Pisarenko is so busy, he cannot spend as much time with his son as he would like.

He trains five hours a day, six when competition is near. He is an infantry officer in the Soviet Army, and is studying anatomy to become a coach, ''the wish that is dearest to my heart.'' He likes to read, with special attention to Tolstoy, Pushkin, Chekhov and Jack London.