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"The Chalk Box!"
What's up with all this Olympic Lifting? Part II
By Israel A. Sanchez
Strength & Conditioning Coach
In the previous article we mentioned the benefits of proper Olympic Weightlifting training and how incorporating the lifts can make a huge difference in a conditioning or fitness program. Those involved in the field need no reassurances as to what the proper use of these lifts can accomplish. Nevertheless, when it comes to the general public, their perception is usually skewed and defensive. When it comes to general public, all the qualms and insights in regards to Olympic Weightlifting can be summarized in these two questions:
If Olympic Weightlifting is so beneficial; Why is it not taught more often or incorporated in more programs?
And
If statistics reveal that Olympic Weightlifting is a relatively safe sport; Why is it considered so dangerous?
The answer is very simple. The grand majority of the exercise population, including a significant number of trainers, does not understand the lifts properly. Their exposure to the lifts has been limited to a quick lesson in their strength program for those who took part in sports, or some do-it-yourself from a book or video.
Even several strength and conditioning coaches have only a limited exposure in the form of a weekend course practicing with an empty bar. The situation gets even worse when it comes to regular fitness trainers who in their majority are attempting to replicate what they see or think is the proper technique with no other guidance than reckoning.
It is essential to understand that when it comes to learning a highly skilled physical activity, whether it is skating, soccer, gymnastics, baseball, etc, simply watching a video or reading a book will not cut it. The athlete requires supervision to make optimal progress and prevent bad habits from developing. And not just any kind of supervision, the athlete needs the guidance of somebody who is in the trenches and gets the essence of what needs to be accomplished.
That is not the case in however, when it comes to Olympic Weightlifting. Most of the time, coaching is given by somebody who just took a casual glance at the lifts and whose form and understanding may still be that of a beginner.
As a result, what the client receives as instruction is a severely deteriorated version of the lifts, completely stripped of all its benefits and loaded with habits that materialize into musculoskeltal injuries in the short term (yes, short term, poor technique will injure you FAST
It is this kind of approach what has given Olympic Style Weightlifting its "dangerous" reputation. When done properly, you will benefit tremendously. When not, you will be performing some odd exercises that resemble the lifts in the best of cases. In the worst of the cases, you will get hurt, and get hurt BAD.
It is not uncommon to see people instructed to perform jumping reverse curls or ballistic upright rows passing as power cleans. People who have absolutely no business performing a regular squat are being forced to perform overhead squats and jumping overhead deadlifts passing as snatches.
It is imperative to understand that a competent coach must have the practical experience. Without that background, the coach will fail to see the transition in the pull that exists in every good lift, or see when the athlete is failing to coordinate hip extension and flexion, or understand that an explosive shuffle from power width to squat width is not the same as mule-kicking and stomping the floor.
A competent coach also has to have an objective understanding of exercise biomechanics. Without it, the coach will force athletes into positions their anatomical proportions may not allow without significant risk, fail to adjust the transitional positions based on the build of the athlete, or attempt to correct only the faulty outcome without even seeing the cause that led to it.
There is an argument often brought up by many strength and conditioning coaches, who feel that Olympic Lifts performed from the floor are too difficult to learn and thus have no place in the busy training schedule of the athlete. The weakness of this argument is that it fails to take into account the biomechanical and motor learning aspects of the lifts. The big picture is obviously being neglected here. The coaches should realize that if the training emphasizes proper progression when the athlete is READY, then the lifts from the floor turn into nothing more than a minor transition as opposed to an entirely different new skill.
Click here for Part III | Click here to return to archives
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