10,000 hours. Or roughly 10 years. That’s about how long it takes to become an elite level athlete in nearly every sport.
Gwen Sisto posted a great piece on exactly this issue on his blog Gwen Weightlifting. He makes the following points:
Even more importantly, factual case studies show that one only needs a minimal level of talent to become, say, Olympic Champion. What makes one greater than competitors is the amount of additional work and practice you have had. In sports, music, business, or academia, their are thousands, millions of talented people; the difference between mediocre, good, and great is the great people had unique opportunities that allowed them to put in the 10,000 hours to be the best.
…
Per Popov’s comments in Bulgaria — all you need to be a good lifter is (1) the ability to do a full squat, (2) rack a bar in a clean, (3) ability to do an overhead squat— the rest is a function of who has the opportunity and desire to put in the 10000 hours or roughly ten years of hard training.
…
Consistent, hard training is paramount above all other factors– age, perceived talent, etc.
These comments jive exactly with not only my philosophy of weightlifting, but with my philosophy of life.
Lots of coaches in all sports are obsessed with finding the next young star. Youth is key, they think. After 20, it’s too late.
That’s just bullshit.
I think the United States Weightlifting community needs to focus on building an “older” population of elite lifters. Let’s be honest, Olympic Weightlifting is a pain in the ass (literally!). It takes months just to be able to do full cleans and full snatches without falling over. It takes years to be lifting anything substantial. And it is repetitive as hell (MORE snatches, clean and jerks, and front squats).
Does any of that sound like the kind of thing a teenager is going to get into? I don’t think so. They want quick, now, hurry up! … what was I doing?
Once a person gets into their 20′s they’re starting to mellow out. They’re learning the power of consistency. And they don’t mind putting in long hours, and long years, toward a goal post that keeps moving on them.
If you are 25, and you begin Olympic Weightlifting today, then when you’re 35, you’ll be remarkable. You may or may not be ready for the Olympics, but regardless, you’ll be outstanding. Take a look at Melanie Roach. She’s 34 and has 3 kids, and she made it to the Olympics.
If you’re 35 today, you’ll likely be just as strong at 45 as most competitive lifters in their 20′s. You’ll probably still qualify for the Open Nationals. And you’ll have the body of a Greek God.
If you’re 45 today or older, then in 10 years you can be competing at the Masters World Championships. You’ll be stronger, faster, and better conditioned than most high school football players. And unlike you’re peers, you’ll feel strong and vibrant because you will actually be strong and vibrant.
When I’m 65, I plan on having a 500 pound back squat. I think that’s a low ball figure. Why, cause I’ve got 35 years to train for it.
Time, it’s on your side.
Thanks for this post.
I am a 36-year old who started crossfit six months ago and is trying to learn Olympic weightlifting because I love the explosiveness. Unfortunately, learning to clean correctly is maddening. This gives me hope that its possible.
Melanie Roach started gymnastics, one of the most physically demanding of sports, at the age of 12. She made it all the way to the Washington State Gymnastic Championships before an injury led her to weightlifting in 1994. Thus, despite downtime from surgeries, she’s been training at a competitive level for much longer than 10 years (more like 15+ years), and she was physically talented to begin with. No one past the age of 30 is going to be able to put in 10k hours of weightlifting training within 10 years anyway, due to diminished recovery time. That’s over 3 hours of heavy training, for six days a week, for ten years. For an older person, just being able to achieve elite high school level performance is going to be difficult (take a look at world junior weightlifting records). It’s no wonder that Olympic-level weightlifters start to retire after 30 nowadays.
Thanks for the comment,
Make no bones about it. Someone who starts late in life isn’t going to make it to the Olympics in this sport. You’re right. But, that isn’t my point. The real question is whether or not it is “worth it” for older people to dedicate their time to the Olympic lifts, or to competition, at all. I say it is.
There is a tendency among Americans to give up immediately with anything they aren’t already good at, or something they may not ever be great at. This is the reason everyone in the US says the “hate” math. Math is hard, nearly no one is going to be the next John Von Neumann, so why bother?
We bother because it’s good for us to bother. It’s good to struggle to do the best we can, even if we can’t win. By joining an olympic lifting team, competing, and dedicating yourself to a sport you can’t possibly be the best at, you are putting these principles into practice, rather than just giving them lip-service. This the “Art” of Olympic Weightlifting. And it will make you a better person. It’s ridiculously hard. But that’s the fun. The point is in the struggle.
I think Masters level competitors can, and should, be the heart and soul of American weightlifting teams. Sure, they don’t lift as much, and they aren’t going to go as far. But, they bring other important qualities to a team that are more important. Namely, they exude a level a maturity towards training and diet that younger llifters often lack (severely lack), but should learn to emulate. They show that even against adversity, one can still make great progress–remarkable progress–while younger lifters are prone to give up at the first sign of failure. And they keep the atmosphere from devolving into a pimple-faced “bro” fest–no small feat!
You’re right about Melanie Roach. She’s a special case, and that is why she made it to the Olympics. But, I don’t agree about the over 30 thing. If you’re already at the elite level by age 30, then there is no physiological reason why you can’t continue to improve as you move towards 40. Lots and lots of Russians did just that. Norbert Shemanski did a 300+ pound split snatch at 40 years old after back surgery. The human body is fully capable of getting stronger into ones 30′s if you haven’t already peaked, and maintaining if you have peaked.
The reason they retire is not because they physically can’t take it. It’s because they’d rather have a life outside of Oly lifting. That’s reasonable. But, I don’t think there is any reason, from a biological point of view, for these people to retire.
Lastly, clearly the 10k is a heuristic. I don’t think people literally need to spend 10k hours in 10 years to be good. Tommy Kono didn’t. He only worked out for an hour a day, 3 days a week. That’s it.
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I couldn’t agree with you more. There is a bias in our society that says once you are over some arbitrary age, you can’t compete on an elite level. That’s totally bogus, and I am proof of that. This summer, I will be competing in the USABSF (USA Bobsled & Skeleton Federation)combine to determine who makes the national development team. If I make it,I will have a “chance” to make the USA 2014 Winter Olympic team that goes to Russia. My numbers, based on their qualification standards for the combine, have me scoring enough to make the development team. My age………..”47″!!!!! So,to everyone who has told me “YOU’RE TOO OLD”, I hope to have the chance to demonstrate some pertinent sign language… iiIii
Very cool!! Congrats, brother. While certain sports like weightlifting, or gymnastics, do become tougher as you get older. That is no reason why you can’t still do remarkable things.
I wish you a lot of luck, man.
Hi!
I just found this post and it describes exactly the problems I have with oly lifting. If I do a good triple extension and open my hips, I have alot of trouble getting under the bar when doing a clean. I have alot of upper body strength, so it’s actually easier for me to pull too early the way I’m not supposed to. However, I don’t have speed to get under the bar. Where are the articles about this?
Thanks
Your first step is to go back to basics, and relearn the 2nd pull (or Launch position). If you are using that much arm to get the weight up, then it is time to start over and make sure you hammer out the technique the right way.
Take a good long look at the technique video’s here, by Glenn Pendlay: http://www.californiastrength.com/olwete.html
The high-hang position is your best friend. Stay there until you are able to “jump” the weight up. Your hips are there to provide the power. Until you can do it from this position, you will never be able to do it from the floor.
Be patient. Over-pulling with the arms is a big problem that a lot of people have. In my experience, the primary reason is psychological. You THINK you have to pull up on the bar with the arms to get it to move. And diving under a heavy weight is freaky-deaky! Start with an empty bar. And stick with the high-hang position until you can do it naturally. The rest is all built from there.
I’m glad you found this post helpful. At 36, you’re young as hell. You’ve got a lot of time to improve, get stronger, faster, and more athletic. Keep at it, and don’t let anyone discourage you. I’ve got people on my team quite a bit older than you, one of whom holds a number of state records (and didn’t start till she was in her 40′s).
As for the clean. Yes, indeed. A total pain at first. Everyone talks about how tough it is to Snatch–and it is. But, after you learn how to overhead squat correctly (and are no longer afraid of it!), then the next big battle is getting low under a clean. This is true especially for men and women who have a lot of upper body strength.
Men are rarely as flexible to begin with as women, and the least flexible part of their body is their wrists. So even just racking a bar is tough. I remember when I started, it took a good solid month to be able to hold a front squat without pain.
Getting low is another issue. You’re learning to explode with maximal force … but that just makes it even harder to get under the bar! Don’t worry, these problems and more are VERY common. Keep hammering away it.
I am planning on posting soon about exactly this issue–what it takes to get over the beginners hump in the clean. So, check back often as it might help you out.