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Coaching at a National Event
Weightlifting is growing in the United States. There is no doubt in that statement, and it warms my heart to see it happening. The American Open is coming. We have less than two months to prepare, and I want all of you to be prepared.
There are a lot more rookie athletes with rookie coaches than ever before. I think that is a beautiful thing. That’s exactly what we need to grow the sport even more. However, there needs to be more material to prepare the young coaches for a National event.
A National Event is way different than a local event. Things can get crazy real quick! Here are some things that you all need to understand and prepare for:
1. Learn how to count attempts. Here is a link from USA Weightlifting that explains it pretty well: Counting Attempts
2. Prepare for multiple waves. Look at a National Meet all the athletes are strong which means that everyone is pretty close to each other. You can go up 3 kilos from attempt one to attempt two and find yourself 15 or more out. When that happens, your best bet is to wave back up.
The key is preparing for that in training with waves. For example, you might want to try something like this:
80% for 1×2
85% for 1×1
90% for 1×1
83% for 1×2
88% for 1×1
93% for 1×1
85% for 1×1
90% for 1×1
95% for 1×1
You would want to take about three to four minutes between attempts to simulate competition. You must prepare for anything, so that you are prepared for competition.
3. Chill out on all the verbal cues at a National Competition. I watched a coach giving multiple cues to his lifter as they warmed up with the bar. Look man, the technique coaching is over when you get to the meet. The lifter isn’t going to be able to change their technique on meet day.
The job of the coach on meet day is to keep the lifter calm and focused. We are there to make things easy on the lifter. I am there to help my athletes win the competition, set personal records, and set American Records. Too much coaching at a big meet will often confuse the lifter. Keep it simple, and let the athlete have fun.
A lot of times the coach is more amped and crazy than the athletes. That is not going to help the athlete perform. Your job as a coach is to keep the athlete calm and relaxed. If you are pacing like a mad dog, you are going to get your athletes acting crazy as well. Chill!!!
These are just a few things that I noticed. I am going to work on more material to help new coaches. If there are certain things that you guys would like to know more about, please let me know in the comment section below.
The American Open is coming, so it’s time to get to work!
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