The Debate of Training With the Olympic Lifts

Olympic lifting has a long tradition in sports other than Olympic weightlifting for strength, power and conditioning but it is not without it’s detractors by strength coaches mostly, I suppose, because of the steep learning curve it takes to master the lifts. Many coaches are of the opinion the time could be more effectively used for other movements that provide similar benefits.

My strength and conditioning trainer who, also trains rugby players and boxers and does utilize the Oly lifts, particularly the power clean in his programs. As a strength coach and a pro strongman, he believes in their benefits and we enjoy learning them, in spite of the relative complexity. When I wasn’t training with Scott and Derek, I did them on my own; mostly wrong, but liked them nonetheless. There is nothing like picking up a loaded barbell and putting it over your head. It flat out looks cool too! (For added fun and attention, do a barbell snatch in a 24 Hour Fitness to see what happens)!

Chad Smith, writing in Elitefts, Athletes and Olympic Lifting posits the case of not using Olympics lifts for training his athletes, while acknowledging them as a viable option. In his concise article, Smith offers some alternatives, which we also do, to gain the benefits of Olympic lifting.

Question: Do you use Olympic lifting in your training? Write ‘em in comments.

Tagged with: 24 Hour Fitness • Barbell Snatch • EliteFTS • Olympic Lifts • Olympic weightlifting • Power Clean • rugby • strength and conditioning • strength coaches • Strongman • weightlifting

Filed under: Olympic Lifts • Training Tips • Weblogs

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