Olympic Weightlifting

What Is Olympic Lifting?

This technique-driven class will focus on teaching the classic Olympic lifts – snatch, clean, and jerk.

While it may sound simple – just pick the barbell up, right? – Olympic lifting is incredibly technical, with minute movements and control playing a huge role in the amount that a person is able to lift. [hint: the best lifters are not the necessarily the biggest or muscliest] While this component of our training will help to build strength and power, it will also help you develop stability and fine motor control throughout your entire body, from your ankles through knees, hips, core, shoulders, elbows, and wrists.

Each of these movements can be broken down into a number of different stages and there is a huge range of different drills and practice components to work on each one of these. Our lifting classes will work on developing skills at each stage of the lifts and then putting them all together to deliver beautiful and powerful Olympic lifts.

 

Who is Olympic Lifting For?

Beginners, experts, and everyone in between. It is for the young and the young at heart, for men and women, and can be adapted to take into account many constraints or disabilities. It’s perfect for beginners because learning great techniques from the start is so important. For everyone else, you never stop improving on your Olympic lifting technique so these classes will hone your skills. Furthermore, the movement patterns that we learn in Olympic lifting transfer directly to many other movements in CrossFit, other sports, and also to life in general, leading to better long-term health and wellness.

How Do Olympic Lifting Classes Work?

We run 2 types of Olympic lifting classes: our Progression Sessions and Oly Tuneups.

Our Progression Sessions are run in blocks and intended for people to attend each session across the block with each session building on techniques and drills from the previous session. These are perfect for

beginners, or experienced lifters looking to get back to basics to improve essential aspects of their lifts. The classes will involve a mixture of theory and practice so that athletes will come to understand how the lifts work and how they can work on improving, during the class but also during everyday programming during the rest of the week. The focus of these classes is not to “lift heavy” but to lift well.

Our Tune-ups are intended for people who already have some Oly experience and looking to refine specific elements of their lift. These sessions do not require attendance at previous sessions and are generally a bit less structured than the progression sessions. Your coaches will be able to watch you lift, recommend some areas for improvement and suggest specific drills to help you. These classes may be an opportunity to test out some of your lifts, although the technique is still the focus.