As I start writing this, I've already wrote the email and all thats left to do is spell and grammar check it (which I probably won't do) and to write this blog to accompany it.
In all honesty, I cannot for the life of me remember what I wrote in the email (that usually happens when I write programs too), but my own theme this month has seemed to be language and how you use we, us and you within your coaching.
Anyway, almost all of these are 'you' moments. Victories, big or small for my guys and I'm not here to claim any part of that from them, I'm just here to write about it.
So lets get started!
Joe who doesn't believe himself to be strong enough to compete hit some great PBs in our targeted lifts hitting PBs in a Wrapped Squat of 260kg x3, 272.5kg x3, 285kg x1 and 292.5kg x1, the only question left in this Wrapped Squat cycle is... When to take the 300kg. Joes also been focusing on Axle FTOH and has hit new 1RMs of 146kg, 150kg and 152.5kg within this month. The 152.5kg is actually only 2.5kg under both natural federation world records and they were utterly smoked and while doing it in a competition setting is a different ball game, it's very encouraging.
Learning to wrap
Joe is the first person I've ever wrapped and it's been a learning experience basically going from nothing and having a quick lesson in his first session, to finding something that I am not only familiar with and can repeat, but to finding something that ticks his preferences. Learning to wrap knees for squats is a skill that I've added to my bag and will continue to refine, but it also (even more so) highlighted the collaborative nature of training between athlete and coach and how important it is to listen to their feedback and preferences.
Sam is just going into golf season and has had a really nice month of training hitting new 1RMs in the Squat of 128kg x1, Deadlift of 172.5kg x1 and Bench Press of 82.5kg x1 followed by 85kg x1. He also took 115kg x6 in the Stiff Leg Deadlift. All this is very nice but the main feedback I'm interested in is how far he's hitting golf balls and the feedback has been pretty good. I've been working with Sam for around 6 months now and we're starting to reap the rewards of getting stronger.
Taj is flying in the C&J and has hit 1RMs of 66kg, 69kg and 72kg. There's appears to be a little mental block in the Snatch but we'll get by that soon enough.
Mental Blocks
So, I'm going to speak specifically about Olympic Weightlifting here in terms of mental blocks. First off, they're no fun and while you may be getting stronger on everything else, they can effect one specific lift. A good work around I find is to create a complex or use a close variant and push that instead. If your block is in the classic Snatch, maybe a period of pushing a Pull + Touch & Go Snatch (or some other close variant that allows a high absolute load) where you'd usually perform the classic Snatch might be the answer. Movement literacy is also an answer and utilising (and maxing out) complexes that limit the load you can move at the start of your session before your main work can help too. Lastly, skipping the weight you usually miss at and going past it can work if it's a specific number, but thats not something I'd usually apply. There's no straight forward answer, but if this is you, there are a few ideas you could impliment.
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James had a great training cycle in the lead up to UKNS UK and Irelands Strongest Junior and hit PBs in a variety of lifts in April during the last 2 weeks lead up to it. I'll leave a list below because there's not one lift that has multiple PBs, it was just a great training cycle all around.
BTN Snatch Grip Push Press - 105kg x2
Snatch Grip Stiff Leg Deadlift - 165kg x3
Axle Push Press - 115kg x1 (Bodyweight PB)
Stones - 140kg x3
Axle C&J - 140.5kg x1 (World Record)
Circus DB - 64kg x3
A notable one though was his 140kg Axle Clean & Jerk which set a world record at the time of doing it and while it didn't take long for the record to be surpassed, the look on James face when he made the lift was priceless and lots of hard work came to fruition at that single point. Outside of the Axle, we've pin pointed Jame's static strength as his biggest weakness and thats what we'll be looking to bring up in his off season period.
Big Jo didn't set any records, but put in an all round fantastic performance taking 2nd place at UKNS UK & Irelands Strongest Junior which capped off a great training cycle. On the way to this Jo hit PBs in the Power Jerk of 120kg & 130kg x1 along with an Axle Push Press PB of 125kg and Axle FTOH PB of 120kg x1. He also hit Rep PBs on Atlas Stones of 140kg x7 in competition and 140kg x5 in 30 secs in training. In terms of assistance he hit 6RMs on the Good Morning of 160kg and Bent Over Row of 140kg signalling his posterior chain is strengthening and we're probably in a good place to push the Deadlift for a PB before we get on that Kratos Bar at Worlds.
The importance of tracking assistance
I think I posted about this in May too. Tracking and pushing your assistance is the low hanging fruit people rarely pick. I often get looked at when I say I know my 10, 8, 6, 5 & even 3RM Bent Over Row and I often look back and go ask...
'Do you not?'
Tracking things like Bent Over Rows and Good Mornings are an easy way to ensure different routes of progression outside of your main lifts, especially when the main lifts have stalled, they can also be the driver of progress in the main lifts when you're in that situation.
I don't necessarily buy in to all the structural balance and lifting ratios, they're a nice guide, but I feel like people take them as gospel that at some point they'll explode if they're not structurally balanced or in ratio and that in itself can become a self fulfilling prophecy.
Marie had a nice training cycle in the run up to a great Nixon Rowell Performance where she solidified her self as an U87 after around a year of dieting, but also had a crack at an all time Snatch PB in the process telling us that while she's 10kg lighter, she'sas strong as ever! Marie wen't 47kg, 50kg & 54kg (Miss) in the Snatch and 55kg, 59kg & 63kg in the C&J with some great looking lifts too. On the way to Nixon Rowell Marie hit PBs in the Low Hang Power Clean + Tall Clean Jerk of 49kg x1 and in the Clean of 50kg x3, 56kg x2 & Clean 58kg x2. I now think Marie is after a bit of a rest, personally I'd like to push towards that 100kg Squat thats so so close.
I've not been writing down many of Olivias PBs, mostly because she's just entered a new sport so everything is a PB right now. One of the notable ones however is her Log FTOH of 52.5kg x1. This PB signifies that not only is she able to control the biggest diameter log overhead, but we are also able to add weight to the one we have access to and load it, which opens up the progressions (and progress) available with this log.
Xena completed her 2nd competition basically a year after the 1st hitting a competition PB Snatch of 41kg and an all time C&J of 51kg taking 1st in the 87+ category. She also hit some nice PBs in May in the lead up which i'll leave listed below.
No Foot Power Snatch - 36kg x1
Snatch Grip Push Press - 45kg x2
Box Squat - 95kg x1
Low Block Snatch Deadlift - 85kg x1
Bent Over Row - 55kg x5
We've battled a bum knee for a while and chased to pain around with the help of Alex from Pro Health Physio and we're now getting on top of it. We've had to alter the way we train to accommodate it and often put focus on other areas while we allow it to settle and sometimes Squatting high to a box was the answer than allowed us to continue squatting, which as a weightlifter, is less than ideal. Despite that, Olympic Weightlifting is a head game for Xena and if we can break down those barriers, there's big progress to unlock, even as a Masters lifter.
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Little Jo finished her training cycle as strong as ever hitting all time 1RMs in the Squat of 70kg, Bench Press of 51kg, Deadlift of 82.5kg & Seated OHP of 33kg. She also took 77kg in the Deadlift for a triple on the way. Jos goal is to get strong and look great while doing it and at a low bodyweight hitting numbers like this, she's certainly doing that!
Powerbuilding
I hate that term... 'Powerbuilding', but it's a great buzzword for people who basically are saying I want to be strong and look good. The reality is, Jos training doesn't really look that much different to anybody else's training who prioritise essentially, the Squat, Bench & Deadlift. She maybe has a little more in the way of bodybuilding than most powerlifters, but thats mostly because she has a higher recovery capacity due to the reduced absolute loads she's handling from being a 50kg female rather than because it fits some named training modality. So yea, I don't know where I was going with that... Regardless of goal, coach the person rather than trying to coach the label maybe?
Wil finished his last training cycle strong with new 1RMs in the Deadlift of 180kg and 181.5kg (yes that is a very odd number and not a typo). He also hit a new 5RM in the Reverse Lunge of 123kg x5 and I believe this is what has helped drive his Squat 1RM up from 160kg to 175kg this training cycle.
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In Savage Strength School our focus has been on controlling bodyweight and recently we have found setups for Ella, Megatron, Penny & Georgia in the Pull-up and the Press-up that allow them to do multiple high quality reps per set allowing us to build strength in a safe way.
Kids and barbells
Firstly, I'm going to say that you should not be scare of barbells and free weights for kids, however, they are kids and they are still developing, both physically and psychologically. Their brains amd nervous system are still developing and their bodies growing. That sometimes makes it hard to load them with a barbell the way you would an adult as they physically can't access the strength levels needed to make physical changes through those modalities. That doesn't mean I don't use barbells in the sessions, it just means I use them sparingly and with a focus on technical proficiency and control utilising lots of reps often combined with pauses and eccentrics. Where I find the loading often happens in kids is with plyometrics and getting them to jump simple around (often hidden in games). In terms of loading, you can get up to 4 times their bodyweight going through their bodies during plyometrics which often just isn't possible using a barbell. Combine that with teaching them to control and master their own bodyweight and you're onto a winner when they are ready to make the barbell a real focus.
Our Kids sessions runs two nights per week out of Stag Fitness Strength Centre and it's focus is to introduce kids to lifting in a safe, supportive and educative environment.
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In our Weightlifting Club Jack is flying hitting PBs in the C&J of 113kg x2+1 & 115kg x1 along with a Push Press + Jerk 1RM of 105kg. This lead to a great performance at Nixon Rowell where he came 3rd in the U81 category hitting a competition and post lockdown PB in the Snatch of 93Kg and an all time PB in the C&J of 118kg. I would love for him to hit 95kg and 120kg at his next competition in July and then push on for that 220kg total.
Your attitude can be a virtue
Jack has the best attitude when it comes to training. He asks questions, looks to understand things himself and doesn't get frustrated when things don't go his way. He just adjusts or accepts the adjustment and moves on. Being perpetually frustrated can stall progress just like bad programming can. It's not always going to go your way and the quicker you accept that the faster you'll progress.
Our Weightlifting Club runs multiple nights per week out of Stag Fitness Strength Centre and it's focus is to introduce people to the sport of Olympic Weightlifting while giving them the opportunity to compete if they wish to do that.
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In our Strongman Club Cori and George have been working hard, and both hitting PBs while starting preparation for competition. Cori hit some great new 1RMs in the Monster DB of 38kg followed by 45kg and George finally hit that 220kg Deadlift. Cori is currently prepping for Strong on the Tyne in October (so a while and probably 2 training cycles away) and George is prepping for the Units Strongest on the 24th August which quite happily, lands on the same day as Worlds so the two competitions we're prepping for in our Strongman Club and Online Strongman Team line up beautifully.
Our Strongman Club runs multiple nights a week out of Stag Fitness Strength Centre and has a history of taking people from the level of complete beginner to British Finalist.
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In our Online Weightlifting Team Karen has been in Hong Kong for the month, but that didn't stop her making progress and hitting PBs. Karen hit PBs in the Snatch + TAG Snatch of 46kg x1 and Snatch of 47kg x2, 50kg x1 & 51kg x1. She also increased her C&J with a 56kg x2+1 and new 1RM at 57kg and i'd love to see that 60kg C&J fall soon!
Our Online Weightlifting Team follows the British Weightlifting competition calendar with a focus on the bigger national competitions and the regional ones in the North East of England and is perfect for those competing in that area and for those looking for guidance and a periodised and focussed program.
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Our Online Strongman Team has been going strong and we've just started a new training cycle on the trajectory to Worlds (and the Units Strongest) on the 24th of August... So it's a great time to join us!
George F recently moved over to our Online Strongman Team as it fit his home life better, I was sad to lose him in person, but pleased to keep hold of him as a British level strongman. At the end of the last training cycle George hit PBs in Log FTOH of 122.5kg and 125kg which are both comeback PBs and only 5kg off his all time PB. He also hit PBs in Sandbag over Yoke taking 150kg for a ride and in the Bent Over Row of 170kg x3.
Comeback PBs
So a comeback PB may seem like a cop out, but last year George hurt his back at UKNS Finals as well as becoming a new Dad weeks later. not only did his training change for a while, his life and priorities did, and in that it's important to acknowledge exactly where you're at in this moment. George wasn't as strong as he was back in July 2023, and to make progress we had to acknowledge that and adjust things to suit. Now you can either dwell on how strong you were, or take the wins where they are. No he's not as strong as his all time self, but he is stronger than he was when he came back. Take the wins where you can and frame them positively.
Despite a disappointing result at UKNS UK Finals where Jonny finished off the podium (passing out during an event rarely leads to desirable results) Jonny still did Jonny things hitting rep PBs in 3 of the 6 events and putting to bed the ghosts of his stone performance in the same competition last year taking 150kg x6 for a PB. He also took 310kg on the Deadlift in training to push his 1RM up another 7.5kg. The real thing that struck me about Jonnys performance was his mental strength. Sometimes things happen in competition that you have no control over and despite his hopes of a podium place being all but gone, he still continued to perform, was in the mix and didn’t complain, or feel sorry for himself. Thats the sign of a true competitor. I believe his response going into the final event was ‘ they win this round.’ which for me is perfect… He followed that statement by blitzing a PB and finishing high in the event.
To finish, Stephen hit a 110kg Axle FTOH at the end of our last training cycle increasing his 1RM!
Our Online Strongman Team follows the UK Natural Competition Calendar with room to stop off and compete through a few other competitions too. It’s perfect for those competing on the circuit and for beginners who don’t plan to compete yet but want a coaches guidance and a periodised plan.
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Right, thats about two and a half hours of writing and I need to get my shit together and go train... Battle for Mercia prep starts now and I have a date with some sandbags.
Hopefully you got some value out of this and as usual…
Until next time
Adam
