The Thinker Discusses Olympic Lifts
By The Thinker
Question 1: I’d like to thank you for all of the helpful tips,
but this is where we’re going to crash. As an athlete, I’ve been
performing the Olympic lifts since middle school. I use them with the
athletes I train from day one and haven’t had any problems. I think any
lift is safe, but coaches make certain lifts unsafe. I think at the
college level it’s much different. When I was at the private sector
level, I didn’t always have the luxury of using Olympic lifts because
some athletes were only there 3–4 weeks. Their current physical
development didn’t allow me to teach them. I don’t see any point in
teaching Olympic lifts to a seventh or eighth grader who is weak and
little and doesn’t grasp the concept. However, if you have an eleventh
or twelfth grader, I see no problem in teaching them.
I also don’t believe in performing heavy overhead movements for
athletes so I keep my jerks and snatches between 30–60 percent. However,
I agree with the high volume pull work. With my big guys, we usually
pull every workout during the winter/spring phase, but when the overall
conditioning increases, we have to decrease other aspects of our
program. We press three days per week, but for most of our presses, we
pause on the chest for a second and don’t use huge loads on incline and
close grip. We alternate between the bar incline and the dumbbell
incline each week and always finish the workout with medicine ball
push-ups or something similar. (Remember, between our tempo runs, we
normally do 10 sit-ups/10 push-ups.) Lastly, I think all athletes of all
levels should perform clean/snatch pulls and maybe high clean/snatch
pulls. Though, I prefer not to teach high pulls (technical issues).
Answer 1: Coach B, many roads surely lead to Rome. However, I
make it my duty to suggest to others to be aware of the cumulative
effects of the means. We are all after the same measurable things
including speed (measured by sprint times) and explosive strength
(measured using VJ and SLJ). We all know that there are many means that
serve to develop these qualities. So then the criteria must be
orthopedic soundness and economy/learning efficiency.
Consequently, regarding American football, the shoulders take a
tremendous beating. There’s no need to compound this in the weight room
with lifts that yield great stress to the glenohumeral joint (overhead).
Also, the task of developing sport mastery is enough in itself. There’s
no need to introduce weight room exercises that demand high technical
mastery.
Despite their allegiance to them, I’ve inspired coaches to drop the
Olympic lifts. I’ve showed them how I can teach an athlete simple
alternatives such as jumps, medicine ball throws, and box squats and
develop all of the same measurable things. So in the end, I know that
what I,
Coach X, #62,
DeFranco,
Louie Simmons, and Mark McGlaughlin are
doing is more orthopedically sound and efficient than the coaches who
are training athletes of the same discipline but using means that are
less orthopedically sound and less efficient.
It’s nothing against weightlifting. Weightlifting is one of my favorite
sports. The unfortunate reality is that far too many strength and
conditioning coaches have mistakenly adopted the methods of
weightlifters for the training of other sportsmen. I realize that I’m
telling you that your religion is messed up. Please don’t take offense.
Rather take a moment and consider the possibility that what you are
doing may cause damage that you don’t even know about presently.
I have the luxury to be surrounded by some of the most prestigious
orthopedic surgeons in the world here at the University of XXX. These
orthopedics are sports medicine orthopedics who routinely work with high
caliber sportsmen of all disciplines. I just had dinner with one of our
team doctors and we discussed this very matter. Couple that with the
experiences of those of us who share a similar perception of the
training process and I have confidence that we offer a convincing
argument.
Again, remember that you may not see any problems currently. However,
the cumulative effects are substantial ones and must not be ignored. If
we agree that our number one priority is to develop the highest prepared
athletes than we must also agree to utilize training means that yield
the highest results at the lowest cost. In our world, cost exists as
orthopedic considerations and trainability.
Question 2: I’d have to agree that Olympic lifts aren’t
necessary for developing a faster, stronger, and powerful athlete. For
example, Leon Hall, who is from a HIT program, ran sub 4.3 at the
combine. However, why not have as many pieces as possible in your
training bag? I like to have as many weapons as possible available
including CF, Westside, Kelly B, and Gayle Hatch because I hate
repeating the same training cycle twice.
I would have to agree with Charlie Francis that the Olympic lifts are
very efficient because when tapering, the Olympic lifts allow you to
decrease your overall training volume. This is because the clean jerk,
snatch, power clean, and power snatch all have the most fiber
involvement (80–100 percent). Also, another problem with having athletes
perform jumps, throws, and box squats for power development is that you
have to consistently watch or have a tendo unit on hand to make sure the
bar speed is high enough. This can be very difficult with a hundred or
more football players. If you have problems with the shoulders taking a
tremendous beating than why perform heavy lockouts, low bar squats, and
all of the bench work with/without bands? I may be wrong, but I think I
once heard Dave Tate say, “If you can teach the Olympic lifts then by
all means use them.”
Answer: Coach B, we are surely closer in our interests then we
are distant. The Olympic lifts are efficient in their capacity to work
many muscles, recruit many MUs, and develop coordination and power. They
are not, as you know, efficient in their trainability with regards to
(as you note) teaching one hundred or more athletes.
Remember, Charlie’s MU recruitment chart places sprints, throws, and
jumps just as high as the Olympic lifts. Consequently, considering that
we’re developing football players and not sprinters, I’m certain that
the absence of Olympic lifts in training is the wiser option. Understand
that my use of barbell lifts, such as box squats, is not a power
development means. I reserve jumps, throws, and sprints for developing
qualities to the far left of the curve. The squat and press are a means
for strength. For this reason, even though we have a tendo on every
rack, I don’t need them.
So the efficiency for power development lies in the ease with which a
jump or throw may be instructed and subsequently executed. The box
squat, as a strength means, surely requires instruction. However, the
speed with which the athlete develops mechanical efficiency and the
ability to load the bar is far more accelerated than the athlete who is
learning to perform an Olympic lift variation.
Another important note is that the Olympic lifts aren’t useful as a
means for developing explosive strength until the lifter is capable of
lifting a large amount of weight. So while one lifter is grinding their
way toward cleaning or jerking a weight equal to or far in excess of
their own body mass (without looking like a train wreck), I can teach
and subsequently have another lifter execute a throw, jump, or weighted
jump in 30–60 seconds. Couple this with a basic strength exercise such
as the box squat, and we’re accelerating their development at a lesser
structural risk.
It’s important to understand that where Coach X and I differ in our view
is that I don’t advocate dynamic effort lifts with barbells nor do I
advocate lifting against
bands and
chains. I agree with you that the
heavy lockout work and band work is very taxing to the structure. I also
think that if a football player was to only use a
safety squat bar, I
wouldn’t have any problem with it. I don’t think that the special powerlifting means (lockouts, bands, chains) are necessary for most
football players because there are more then enough monstrously strong
and powerful athletes who attained their abilities without the use of
bands and chains.
Remember, I’m no more an advocate of powerlifting than I am
weightlifting or Strongman or any other strength sport form. I
understand precisely what it takes to physically and psychologically
prepare an American football player at the lowest possible cost.
Question: I was talking about the DE
box squat, not the ME box
squat. I think if coaches prefer to use DE box squatting over Olympic
lifts than they need to watch that bar speed! I also think the same
thing can be said about the throws and jumps. You know how athletes
are…everything we do with them is like GPP and they could care less.
They just want to play their sport.
Why do you think an athlete can’t develop explosive strength until
they can lift large amounts of weight? I thought each lifter would lift
according to their max potential. If an athlete is lifting 80 percent
plus of his 1RM ability than he can develop more than enough explosive
strength while using the Olympic lifts. I can teach an athlete how to
clean/snatch pull in 10–30 seconds, which I think is a great starting
tool for developing explosive strength in athletics. I know from day one
the kind of athlete I’m working with by how they pick up the Olympic
lifts. If an athlete can’t pick up the Olympic lifts in 30–40 minutes,
then either the coaching is shitty or the athlete’s parents need to
invest in a computer and some books to prepare their son for MIT because
he doesn’t have a future in sports. Also, one thing that I think we’re
missing is aggressiveness, which the Olympic lifts do a great job
developing. If your athlete is attempting to power clean 365 lbs versus
a jump squat/throws, his or her frame of mind is different.
Answer: Coach B, I agree that a DE barbell exercise is only as
good as the speed with which the lifter moves the weight. However,
throws and jumps can be qualitatively and quantitatively assessed by
either height or distance.
Regarding explosive strength, bar weight, and the Olympic lifts, here’s
something to note. The reason why strength and conditioning coaches will
adopt the training of weightlifters is because higher class
weightlifters demonstrate impressive performance in jumps, short
sprints, and relative and maximal strength. What’s key is my use of the
term “higher” class. In this regard, we must also note that the reason
that a weightlifter reaches higher levels of qualification is because of
the rise in special strength as it relates to snatching and the clean
and jerk. So the explosive strength that is developed isn’t a yield of
simply performing the lifts with 80 percent of someone’s maximum but
developing great explosive strength in the leg and hip muscles.
It’s not so much the cleans, snatches, and jerks but the squat portion
of those lifts (and the corresponding ability of that lifters ability to
squat fast) that enables a high class lifter to jump through the roof.
The special strength exists as the ability to manifest it via the
mechanical execution of a snatch and clean and jerk. However, the
general strength (e.g. squatting, pulling, and pressing) is very useful
for many athletes. Here’s where we must devote very special attention.
The special strengths required to excel in Olympic lifting are very much
different than the special strengths required to excel in football. The
most useful aspect of Olympic lifting for football players is the
general—squatting, pulling, and pressing—aspect of the lifts. It’s here
where you and I may agree and disagree. The point in which we agree is
in regards to the use of various pulls or squats or presses. However,
beyond that, we can no longer agree because the special strength
required to snatch and clean and jerk any meaningful amount of weight
now competes with the football players’ efforts to master their own more
significant special strength.
Question: I agree that throws and jumps are easier to measure,
but we must account for the number of athletes that we’re training and
the training setting. As my great friend and mentor, Kurt Hester said,
“Olympic lifts train the athlete to explode and use maximum possible
force. Athletes will develop a high rate of force, a key point in sports
training. Athletes who implement these lifts in their lifting program
will train fast twitch muscle fibers, the fibers employed to give you
speed, explosiveness, and power. In essence, performing an Olympic lift
is performing a fast, explosive, weighted jump. Sprinting, in essence,
is a series of fast, explosive bounds. These lifts will directly help an
athlete run faster. Implement lifts such as the power clean, hang clean,
power snatch, hang snatch, split jerk, and jerk from the rack. The
amount of weight does not matter as much as the bar speed.”
I’ve adapted the Olympic lifts to my athletes’ training program
because they’re superior for developing explosive strength for athletes
in all sports. I think it’s not only the squat portion of the lift that
allows these great athletes to jump and sprint over short distances but
the overall lift. I agree that the special strength requirements for
football players or any athlete in any sport besides Olympic
weightlifting is different. However, this is where your experience as a
great coach and your creativity come into play. I wouldn’t classify
myself as a high level Olympic weightlifter, but I can power clean 350
lbs from the floor. I’ve also seen increases in my overall explosiveness
in each step as my Olympic lifts increase. Thanks, Coach B
Answer: Hello, Coach B. I don’t know who Kurt Hester is, but
if he is truly a great friend of yours, I’m sure that you’ll share some
very important information with him. First of all, his statement isn’t
correct or incorrect. It’s mostly lacking context and is very strong in
its ambiguity. I’ll elucidate the statements which demand clarification.
1. The Olympic lifts, or any lift for that matter, don’t train the
athlete to explode. They only train the athlete to exert as much force
as necessary (into the ground in the case of Olympic lifts) to lift the
barbell.
2. The lifts won’t directly help an athlete run faster. The lifts only
have the potential to assist a low qualified athlete in sprinting
faster, as do many other nonspecific means. The difference lies in their
structural risk to the organism. Once the athlete has achieved higher
qualifications in terms of sprinting speed, the ground reaction forces
that are generated and the meters per second in which the athlete is
moving far exceed any amount of force or velocity that any world class
weightlifter is capable of generating against a barbell (albeit any high
school or collegiate non-weightlifter).
3. The amount of weight is monumentally important. I’m very surprised to
read this statement. Only someone with remedial knowledge of sport
science would make such a statement. The amount of weight which must be
overcome is directly related to the amount of power and force that may
be generated. I’m sure that you know this. I would invite you to come to
our weight room and we’ll hook up a tendo to the barbell. I’ll bet you a
steak dinner that you aren’t capable of recording as high a power output
in an attempt to power clean 20 kg as forcefully as you power clean 90
kg. Afterwards, while we’re enjoying the steak dinner that you’re so
graciously paying for, I would continue to do my best to inspire you to
change your course of action in preparing your athletes.
4. I agree that performing an Olympic lift is somewhat similar to
performing a weighted jump, though not entirely. It’s for this very
reason that I must encourage a weighted jump over an Olympic lift. The
jump variations are more economical and offer monumentally less
structural risk.
The Olympic lifts aren’t superior for developing explosive strength for
athletes of all sports. They are simply one of many alternatives that
have the potential to develop explosive strength for certain athletes of
low enough preparedness. Once that level of preparedness rises to a
certain point, the nonspecific means (which are Olympic lifts and any
other barbell exercise unless the athlete is a weightlifter or
powerlifter) cease to further heighten the athlete’s rise in sport
qualification. For this reason, we, who coach athletes who possess low
to moderate strength preparedness, must select the most efficient and
“safe” course of action.
I’m not saying that Olympic lifts aren’t useful for developing X, Y, and
Z. I’m stating that they, especially the overhead versions, are poor
choices for any athlete whose sport involves collisions. Additionally,
the Olympic lifts and their potential effects are greatly misunderstood
by most coaches who advocate them. Nearly all athletes may achieve sport
mastery without the performance of Olympic lifts.
As I previously stated, I’m saying that your religion is flawed and I
understand that you will defend it to the end. I think I’ve made my
point clear enough for those who are interested. Why don’t we forgo any
further debate and continue to discuss other training factors that we do
agree on. Congratulations on the 350-lb power clean.
The Thinker is a student of Soviet and Eastern Bloc training
methodologies and is engaged in the constant pursuit to further his own
physical conditioning and coaching abilities. The Thinker’s aggregate of
professional experiences include training sportsmen in the disciplines
of American football, athletics, weightlifting, powerlifting, military
special operations, and many other Olympic sports. The Thinker is a
strength coach (football) at a major D-1 university and will no longer
operate at EFS under his real identity. The Thinker founded
Power Development Inc.
Elite Fitness Systems strives to be a recognized leader in the
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