A quality Olympic weightlifting program is all about making people as strong as possible and helping them to develop the technique they need to perform incredibly difficult Olympic lifts. If you want to get into Olympic weightlifting, it is important that you set up the right foundation.
The high hang snatch can be used for a number of different reasons, however it is most commonly used to teach beginners how to properly pull underneath the barbell. The decreased pulling distance makes the lift much more simple than when snatching from the floor.
This year has seen many industries having to shift the way they do business. Yes, the dreaded pandemic has forced many organizations to adapt their offerings to suit new circumstances and various restrictions. One such sector that’s been hugely impacted is the gym and personal training industry. But amazingly, many gyms have bounced back in full force by taking their training online.
Although high level competitive Olympic weightlifting probably has a much lower injury rate than you might have previously thought, injuries do happen. Unlike most “extreme” sports, the common injuries in Olympic weightlifting are usually chronic conditions that arise from overtraining. This might not sound like a good thing, but it definitely is!
When beginners first start to learn the Olympic lifts, they often lack the necessary amount of mobility and flexibility to safely and effectively perform the full lifts. Aside from the top 10% of athletes who are genetically gifted with loads of flexibility, most of us will have to work very hard to achieve a strong and stable catch position.
It is incredibly uncommon to see someone perform a max effort squat, deadlift or clean without the assistance of a weightlifting belt. I bet most of you can count the number of times you have witnessed this feat on one hand. For those that have seen this, have ever asked them why they choose not to wear a belt?
The first pull is arguably the most important phase of the snatch and the clean. Your starting position, and how you pull the weight from the floor determines the trajectory of the barbell. Even the smallest error during this first movement can easily result in a missed lift.
The quality of your food choices determines how optimally your body functions. A vehicle will run farther and smoother on a higher grade of fuel. Your body is no different. Choosing foods that are higher in the vitamins and minerals that are essential to your health will go a long way in improving your performance.
Weightlifting forces the lifter to get in tune with their bodies. We know what warm-ups work well; we know what it takes to recover; and we know when things aren’t feeling right. But, then there are times when we think we know what we need, but we fall short. Training may not be going well, so we begin to think we may need “this” or should add “some of those” to our training.
At times – especially now – the aggregation of training and life can tax our bodies. Our sleep quality becomes poor. Our workouts aren’t working out. And then, all of a sudden, the onset of a cold welcomes its way into our lives. Yes, we have all been there before, and probably will find ourselves there, once again.