Methodical

I had the privilege of dining with Ursula Garza and John Thrush last weekend, both accomplished and well respected international-level coaches. On the way back from dinner, we were talking about the need for athletes to train with a deliberate mindset--to be methodical and care about technique with every repetition. Sometimes younger athletes have difficulty appreciating that. This pursuit of excellence pays off at game time, when the stakes are high.

In a weightlifting competition, it is a game of centimeters and milliseconds; technical excellence and consistency is of paramount importance. You only get three chances, so don't waste even one of them. Make each lift count. Here are a few still images showing the slight differences between a made lift and a missed lift. Some are from this weekend, while others are from previous meets.

An aside: The most gratifying aspect of sitting for three days and recording this video--then sitting for many more days and playing with it--is helping athletes learn from their competitive experience. If even a few are able to make corrections and improve their performance, or gain confidence by seeing improvement in their lifting, it is all worth it.










Comments

Anonymous said…
Great job! Thanks for sharing. It is very interesting to see your analysis. I agree with you...be methodical in your training. I always like to focus and visualize a perfect lift before I grip the bar.

Dan
5:59 PM
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