A Crossfitters Guide to the International Weightlifting Championships

The International Weightlifting Championships begin tomorrow. This is the first time the US has hosted the combined men's and women's event. The best of the world have convened in Houston vying for the podium and spots in next year's Olympics.

A few basics. 

• The sport is not called Olympic weightlifting. It's just weightlifting.

• All the weights are in kilograms. Multiple the kilos by 2.2 to have the equivalent in pounds. If you're more of a visual person the plates are color coded. Green is roughly 25 pounds, yellow 35, blue 45 and red 55. The women's barbell weighs 15 kilos (33 pounds) and the men's 20 (44 pounds).

• There are two lifts. The snatch and the clean and jerk. The snatch uses a wide grip on the barbell and in one motion the bar is taken from the ground to overhead. The clean and jerk is two pieces. First the bar is brought from the ground to the shoulders where it must become stationary. From there the athlete drives the bar to a locked out position overhead. You cannot press out either lift. The lift is not completed till you can show control with arms, hips and legs not moving.

• Each person gets three attempts at the snatch, then three attempts at the clean and jerk. Their best snatch and clean and jerk attempts are combined to make their meet total.

• Two hours prior to lifting the athletes are weighed to verify they are the correct weight. The athletes in each weight class are divided into sessions based on the weights they submitted as a possible total for them. The A session are the top lifters. Then it goes down to B and C, etc.

• ESPN3 will have only the A sessions live. Various other media outlets will let you follow along. 

What to watch

If you want to see tiny women who can squat more then you Tune in for the A session of the 48 kilo females this Saturday at 5:25pm (all times are Central Time) or the 53k class Friday at 2:55pm

The US's best chance at a medal Our female lifters are more competitive on an international level then our men. Jenny Arthur will lift Friday the 27th at 2:55pm and Sarah Robles Saturday the 28th at 5:25pm.

A 15 year-old from South Carolina You may need to be creative to see his session, but his lifts will be found on Instagram immediately after (#2105wwc). His session begins at 7:25pm on Sunday the 22nd.

Crossfitters who weightlift Three names you should recognize here. Annie Thorisdottir and Katrin Davidsdottir will be lifting Tuesday the 24th at 8:25pm. Sara Sigmundsdottir competes Friday the 27th at 8:00am.

An exciting session of men battling it out Current American Record holder Jared Fleming and Kendrick Farris lift together Thursday the 26th at 10:00am

Her name is really Martha? Mattie Rogers will be taking to the platform Wednesday the 25th at 7:25pm. 

Men who will lift all the weight Caine Wilkes, our number one male lifter, competes Saturday the 28th at 10:00 in the B session. The A session of the 105+ lifters begins at 2:55pm. 

Lydia Valentin She's beautiful and freakin strong. She lifts Friday the 27th at 2:55pm.

Event Website

American Masters Championship Meet Review

It's been five months since my last trip to Savannah. Prior to my last trip I had spent a frustrating couple of months training alone in my new home. My routine was off, I had no programming to follow and I was unfocused. Lifts that had been routine prior to our move weren't even close to happening. I was nervous and was hoping that a miracle would happen when I got out onto the platform for the Masters Pan-American Games. There was no miracle. I bombed out on my snatches and sat teary eyed in the crowd watching the ladies of my session clean and jerk.

That meet became a turning point. I realized I needed to be mentally stronger.  I needed a focused training plan and a nit-picky coach who would help me fix the nagging faults in my movements. I was going to be focused and see how far I could take my weightlifting.

Event Details
The event was held at the Anderson Cohen Weightlifting Center in Savannah, GA. This facility has to be close to a one-of-a-kind in the country. It's part of the Chatham County Recreational Department. For $20 a month you have unlimited access to platforms and top end bars and plates. It operates as an open gym, but coaching is available for no additional fee. The coaching staff is led by Michael Cohen. An Olympian himself as well as a two time Olympic coach. Coach Cohen is who started me on my path from crossfitter to weightlifter.

But back to the event. The event ran from November 12-15th with several sessions each day. The competition was held on a single platform with eight warm-up platforms available. As this was a National level event, the competition bars, weights and scale are certified and National level referees run the event. For Master lifters this means your totals can be used to qualify for International events as well as the Masers Nationals also being held in Savannah March 2016. I lifted on Saturday afternoon and can only speak for the day I was competing. Weigh-ins ran on time and my session of lifting was only a few minutes behind schedule.

The event brought a couple hundred participants from across the country. Lifters range in age from their 70's to barely 35. Experience levels also run across the same spectrum. Split snatches and cleans are not foreign sights. 36 individuals set new event records which made for some exciting sessions.

The entry fee for the event was $65. A National level event includes the requirement of drug-testing and so entry fees reflect that in the price. There was no live-feed, up-to-date results page or photography offered. Event shirts are an additional cost. Food is available on site. Locker rooms contain a sauna, showers and changing areas. Weight class winners received medals and the best lifter in each age went home with a nice plaque.

Love shirt from Ladies Lift Here

My Results
My goal was to lift a 163 total and qualify for Senior Nationals. I jammed my thumb severely the week before the competition. The knuckle was still swollen and I was unable to hold a hook grip to the top of a snatch. This concerned Coach Cohen who was handling calling my lifts and he chose to start me low. Snatches went 59, 63, 66 resulting in the first time I've ever gone three for three at a meet, a 2 kilo meet PR and a American Masters record.

Going in to the cleans I knew I needed a 97 to make the qualifying total, a one kilo all time personal best. Coach agreed to let me go for it if I made my first two lifts. Again he opened me conservatively with an 85. I was following myself and sat in the back while several weight changes were called. I came out to lift 92. It was an easy clean, but the jerk was out in front and my back leg buckled. I was caught off guard. I haven't missed a jerk in weeks and certainly not at this weight. Came out to try it again. It was an even easier clean but again the jerk was out in front.

I ended winning the 58 kilo class and best lifter for the 35 year-olds. I broke three records; snatch, clean and jerk and total. I walked out to take my last two lifts hearing my daughter yell and cheer for me. I stood on the podium and smiled at my husband who was proud of me. It was a good meet.

Singlet Adidas from Hookgrip

My Favorite Things October Edition

October brought a visit from my mom-in-law, weightlifting meet at MDUSA and a whole lot of time spent at physical therapy trying to strengthen and relearn how to use my right shoulder.

Training I've Loved

• Downloaded some Barbell Shrugged podcasts for my drive home from the weightlifting meet. Mind Gainz: The Psychology of Strength and Conditioning is one of the best hours I've spent in a long time. What I keep replaying in my mind is the line about hating bumper plates. That their use implies that you think this lift isn't going to happen and you may need to drop the bar. I keep telling myself that if you put it on the bar you're going to lift it. I've PR'd my back squat, jerk and front squat triple since listening. If you're not taking your mental preparation seriously you're missing out on a key training element.
• Physical therapy, or getting an expert to watch you move and then doing what they suggest. I have a reoccurring shoulder issue and have been through PT several times. This time I've gone in with the attitude of an athlete who wants to keep moving for years to come, not just getting some relief so I feel better right now. Most days I leave cursing the therapist and mentally drained from having to think so hard to move my shoulder correctly. The goal is to strengthen my traps and upper back and to make the correct movement pattern sink in.

Good Stuff to Eat and Drink

• My mom got me this Black Raspberry Green Tea while in Savannah at what my family dubs the fancy gas station. I love having a cup of this in the afternoon. And if you're ever in downtown Savannah, GA looking for a place to buy wine, cheeses, gifts and coffee head to the Parker's. Seriously.
• I had a butternut squash and other vegetables that needed to be used so I made soup. This recipe is a great place to start and then improvise with what you have at home. I tossed a chopped red pepper, several stalks of celery and carrots in butter and cooked till they were soft. Threw the cooked veggies in a crock pot with a couple cans of coconut milk, the roasted squash and chicken broth and then used my stick blender to make it smooth. You could add chicken or sausage to make the soup a little heartier.

Workout Apparel/Accessories

• I have developed traps and lats and not much boobs to speak of. Sports bras are a pain in the ass to fit. They are too tight underneath my arms, are baggy in the cup or don't have enough padding and you give everyone a show. These Under Armour sports bras are my absolute favorite. Adjustable straps, good fit and some padding so I look like I have a chest. I have gotten my last two at the outlet mall and I paid around $35 for them. I wear an XS or Small. The blue one pictured I've had for over a year, worn once a week or so, and still is in great shape.