Check out the new website for the Oceana Weightlifting Federation.  OK, it’s not the sleekest thing on the planet, but it’s better than what they had.  And I still think it’s easier to navigate than the USAW site. 

I didn’t know that Mixed Martial Arts training is illegal in New York until I ran across the page on Ross Training.  I wouldn’t get involved myself … I’m WAY too wimpy.  But, it’s just stupid for it to be illegal there. 

Check these video’s out:

My man Greg Oden just suffered yet another knee injury.  Doesn’t look good.  He was out the 2007-2008 season because of micro fracture surgery on his right knee.  This time he’s injured is left knee.

I think so far Oden has really been proving himself this season.  It’s crappy to see him get hammered like this.

EDIT:  It sounds like it’s a fractured left patella.  He’s scheduled to have surgery (I think) tomorrow, which will take him out for the season.

EDIT 2:  Blazers Win!  Brandon Roy makes a last minute shot, and they win it 90 to 88.  At least there is something good about this game.  But, man …

Sarah at the World Championships 2009

Fellow Oregonian, Sarah Bertram recently finished competing at the 2009 World Championships in Goyang City, Korea.  She placed 16th, which makes her the 16 strongest woman on the planet in her weight class.  Put that way, what a bad-ass! Great job, Sarah!

I think she’s in a good position to be competitive in 2 years when the Olympics comes around.  I’ve competed “with” her many times, and she is very impressive to watch (as are her team mates).  It’s been cool to see her improve over the years, first winning Nationals, and now representing the US at the Worlds.

She hit an 89k snatch, and a 107k clean and jerk, for a total of 196k. The snatch was a personal record and the clean was only 2k off of her best.

All the results of the championships can be seen on the IWF website.

EDIT:  It turns out, Sarah is the first Oregonian (female or male) to go to the world championships–ever.  Fantastic.

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.

This video shows Kendrick Ferris in a fun and playful way.  I like that.  I think we need to do everything we can to make our sport seem more accessible to young people.

Olympic weightlifters make noise–a lot of noise.  And this really pisses off some people.  We’re like those guys driving by in decked out Honda’s blasting their bass-heavy music at a volume that would shake Atlas at his core.  Every time we dump a weight, the other patrons in the gym get a jolt, wince, and log it into their memories.   Eventually, they get fed up and go tell the owner that they just can’t take it anymore.  It’s them or us.  The gauntlet has been thrown.

Whether we like it or not, most of us are forced to train in commercial gyms.  If we’re lucky, they’ll have a platform.  But, that doesn’t mean they want us to use it like it was intended! The platform is there, they think, so that people can do deadlifts.  So, what the Hell are we doing dropping weights from overhead?

Bill Brian has an article at Weightlifting Exchange about how to build a quiet weightlifting platform.  And while it may seem odd to put a bunch of carpet down on it, it would help to mitigate the problem.

Here’s his list of reasons why a quieter platform could be a plus:

Gym owners, managers, trainers, and members often express irritation and fear as a result of the noise and vibration that results from controlled or uncontrolled dropping of Olympic weights from the overhead position.

Olympic weightlifting is sometimes perceived to be a violent sport because of the noise/vibration that results from controlled or uncontrolled dropping of weights.

Damage results to Olympic bumper plates and bars from weights dropped at an angle onto a solid surface or platform with insufficient padding and noise/vibration dampening ability. Some of this damage occurs because the bar quality is poor, the plates are not secured to the bar with clips or collars, or in some cases, abuse by lifters. In many cases, I have been in gyms that did not provide collars or clips, or did not replace them when they were stolen or damaged.

Olympic lifting is prohibited or discouraged by many gyms even though they have the basic lifting equipment and a rudimentary platform because of the above problems.

Olympic lifting is banned or prohibited by gyms by either removing the existing Olympic lifting equipment and platforms or not providing it in the first place because of the above problems.

Out of ignorance or inconsideration, or poorly placed platforms that invite foot traffic across them, gym members walk onto a platform while a lifter is performing a lift, inviting injury and irritation.

He hopes that measures like his quiet platform will help to restore Olympic weightlifting to some of it’s former prominence in gyms.  I’m not convinced.  In fact, I doubt there is any way commercial gyms will ever be amenable to what it is we do.  Bottom line, we mess up their bottom line!  They aren’t in business to help out our tiny sport.  They never will be.  Olympic weightlifting can only get so quiet and cuddly.  And it will never be good enough.

The quiet Olympic Weightlifting platform is still an interesting idea.  I’d love to try one out.  But, let’s face it, making noise is part of the fun!

Thanks to Barry Kinsella at Weightlifting Epiphanies for this 3 part interview with the great American weightlifting coach Jim Schmitz.

Part 1

Part 2, technique

Part 3, programming and competitions

Sumo Fan Magazine sat down with Nakamura Okamisan for a great interview published here.   For those who don’t follow Sumo, the word “Okamisan” is basically the honorific term for a female manager of a Sumo stable.

Yep, they call the gym where Sumo athletes train a “stable”.  But, hey, they really are as big as a horse!

quote:

Sumo is the condensation of Japanese culture; the beauty Japan contains within, and the way of thinking inherent in this beauty are one of the fascinating things about Ozumo. Thus, I would like to ‘offer’ these things (as representative of Japan and the sport) in order to let fans in foreign countries understand them well.

Check out this site written (in english) by a group of Malaysian Olympic Weightlifters called Lift Hard: The Asian Weightlifting Site. They’ve got a number of great articles, including this gem.

As many of you know, I lived in Japan for a number of years as a child (read about my odd food cravings here), and my parents lived there for close to 30 years.  I have a particular affinity for Asia.  My comfort foods growing up were not Mac and Cheese, but Sushi, Sukiyaki, and Yakiimo.

It’s great to see a well-run site by a group of dedicated lifters in Asia.  I wish them luck.