A Doctor's dressage

I have been away for a while indulging in a spot of rest and recreation. Usually, these both involve weightlifting, but this time around, I am taking a seven day break from the sport. I am actually still away, but this has been the first time I have been able to update my blog, so I will leave you with a review of Glenn's Edinbrugh seminar from the one and only Dr Eamonn Flanagan. Eamonn, is a Strength and Conditioning coach with Edinburgh rugby and he also a weightlifter. Yes, I agree with you: that is a devastating combination. Without further aplomb, here is the man in question:


Having spent more years in formal education than I care to admit, it is somewhat surprising that I would still be anxious when asked for a composition from an English teacher. But Barry’s infectious appetite for all things weightlifting is best indulged so I will try my best to summarise my thoughts regarding the recent seminar given by Glenn Pendlay in Edinburgh.
Barry has already described the general outline and content of the seminar, so I won’t spend too much time setting the scene. Rather, I will just focus on a few of the specific aspects of the seminar which I found most valuable and about which I have some of my own thoughts on.


The seminar began with a question and answer session and I opened by asking Glenn how he had achieved such great recruitment of youngsters into a weightlifting program. Glenn professed that there is no magic formula, just a willingness to work hard to spread the word and to encourage kids to come in and giving it a try. But as Glenn expanded on his answer he did offer some insight into an aspect that is just as important, if not more important than initial recruitment – athlete retention. Glenn explained that he liked new lifters to compete as soon as possible. He doesn’t demand that lifters spend an age refining perfect technique before they get an opportunity to compete and put some heavy (relatively) weights over head. It is a simple principle that is common in so many other better represented sports, but can often be neglected in weightlifting. Let kids compete, give them opportunities to win things and to beat people and they will be more likely to enjoy the sport, want to continue in the sport and develop a competitive and winning mentality. Glenn also stressed how he has gone to great lengths to publicise results and achievements from young kids in local newspapers and other media – again further developing kids excitement about the sport and excitement about their achievement. Talent Code author Daniel Coyle would call this whole process “ignition” but it is simply a process of getting kids excited about a sport and developing a desire to continue and improve in the sport. In many other more common sports like rugby, soccer or football kids compete early and often and results and achievements are often carried in local media by default. Yet in weightlifting, many newcomers to the sport can wait an age before (if ever) competing and those in the sport must make a big effort to get knowledge of results into mainstream media to get appropriate coverage and credit to young competitors.

The seminar moved on to the processes of teaching the lifts. Glenn has a straightforward and concise reverse method approach to teaching the lifts. He strictly emphasises a small number of key positions and technical cues and allows much scope for the learner to “fill in the gaps” themselves – creating a stimulating, active learning process in which the learner can explore solutions themselves.

The first key positions that Glenn focuses strictly on is the finish or power position with the bar at the hip. There is much focus from the coach on ensuring the learner is in the right position: bar at the hip, in the crease; big chest and shoulders back actively squeezing the bar into the crease; knees slightly flexed; weight through the heels. The position is drilled strictly on every rep. From this position a power snatch is performed. The cue is to “jump and catch” with little explanation beyond this. The learner observes the skill, and attempts to replicate it. The real focus is on the key position at the hip, but the learner is not inundated with information on performing the rest of the movement. Gradually, with practice, the learner catches the weight tight, bracing isometrically and fixing the bar, and begins to descend with the weight into an overhead squat. With further practice, the movement becomes smoother and the learner is performing a full snatch from the high hang/hip position. All the while the main emphasis from the coach in on getting in the correct position. The learner must be hitting the appropriate power position from the hip. Glenn described this as “90% of the lifts” – there is really no point progressing further if the learner is struggling to get the bar “in the crease” and in a position to apply power.

From this point the learning moves down the chain. The next position that is strictly drilled is from just below the knee. The learner reinforces what was previously learned by starting in the power position and then pushes the hips back and stays over the bar as he or she lowers the bar to just below the knee. This position is key. The prospective weightlifter must be strong over the bar as it passes the knees. The learner performs many reps taking the bar from the hip to below the knee and back up to the hip again and into the snatch movement from the hip. The position below the knee is focused on strongly and it is imperative to find the power position at the hip also. As the bar is lowered to below the knee, the timing of contributions to the movement of the hips and the knees is very important. On the way back up, the learner finds his or her own way a little more and fills in the gaps between positions themselves based on their own anthropometry. Little instruction is given regarding the movement in between these two points.

I quite like this approach to learning the lifts. Instruction is precise and concise. Position is of the utmost importance and progression does not occur until certain positions are mastered. The big bonus for me though is that although the goal of each drill is to facilitate developing skill in the snatch, each drill also has its own, stand alone, merits as a training modality. The snatch movements from the hip begin to allow the lifter to train rate of force development characteristics. Catching the bar “tight” and bracing isometrically develops the athlete’s ability to resist external forces, a key element for athletes in contact sports. The work moving into position to below the knee allows the athlete to begin to learn how to differentiate knee and hip movement - a key factor in sports performance and injury prevention. The slow, controlled lowering of the bar to the below knee position also begins to develop posterior chain strength in the novice lifter.

Glenn’s coaching style is concise and direct. Glenn explained that he is not afraid to really exaggerate certain aspects of technique. For example staying out “over the bar” in the as the bar transitions past the knees. This might initially appear excessive but Glenn explained that over time there is an inevitable regression to the mean (or to the way the lifter usually does it). So to make effective change in technique certain aspects may need to be over-exaggerated in practice to ensure that changes are retained when lifting meaningful weights.

Having spent much time observing, drilling and discussing the positions when learning the snatch we took a back seat and watched Jon North work his way through a brief snatch session. Jon is a rambunctious, energetic, macho lifter. He thinks he’s the man and he lifts like it. He worked his way through routine warm-up weights at 70kg, 100kg and 120kg. These are light weights for Jon but each lift was approached with appropriate focus and effort. Technique and effort was constant with each lift. This is something I think many novice lifters can learn from. You must focus your concentration and effort appropriately on the lighter warm-up weights. If you do not, then your performance at the heavier and more challenging weights will suffer. Focus, concentration and effort is not something that the novice can just switch on and off like a light bulb – the mental side of lifting must be practiced repeatedly just like everything else. You can’t snatch 100kg well, if you can’t snatch 60kg well. Jon worked up into the 150kg range – weights which many in the room had probably not seen snatched in person before. It was an impressive display, but just a normal workout for Jon.

All of us attending the seminar then had the opportunity to lift ourselves. After having watched Jon shift some serious weight and with everyone in the room eager to put what wee had learned into practice it made for a motivating environment. Jon seamlessly shape shifted from lifter into coach and was an awesome help to many in the room. Although he is a brash, aggressive lifter on the platform, in person Jon is incredibly humble and helpful. His enthusiasm for the sport shines through and he has a personality that motivates you to want to lift heavy. Everyone lifting got a massive boost from Jon’s enthusiastic coaching and Glenn’s technical advice and quite a few PBs were hit.



Eamonn is a hero, so thanks to him for that. I hope everyone enjoyed it and I will update my blog over the next few days.

Eamonn's experiences

Here is a competition report written by Dr Eamonn Flanagan, who lifted in the Scottish Open on Sunday. He works with the Scottish rugby union as a Strength and Conditioning coach and is based over there. Here is a link to other guest articles from the past year, smoe of which have been written by Eamonn. They have been appreciated by myself and others, so thanks again to the man who helped spread Trexabol throughout our beautiful island.

The 2010 Scottish Open was held in the Glasgow Palace of Art. The Palace has two gyms. A powerlifting and weightlifting gym, home to the Palace of Art Weightlifting Club, was hosting a powerlifting competition. The other gym is a high performance sports gym, run by the Scottish Institute of Sport and home to the Glasgow Warriors Rugby team. It hosted the weightlifting competition. With the two competitions running at the same time there was a lot of lifters and spectators milling about and there was a good buzz about the place. The lifting began with female lifters. The top female lifter was Amy Hamilton, and under 20 lifter from the Palace of Art Weightlifting club who snatched 67kg and clean and jerked 80kg in the 63kg class. Georgi Black from the Kilmarnock Weightlifting Club also impressed with a 73kg snatch and a 93kg clean and jerk to win the 75kg class.

In the lighter men's weight classes there were some impressive performances from young lifters from Kilmarnock Weightlifting Club and the Palace of Art Weightlifting Club. There is alot of young talent in Scottish weightlifting and there should be alot of competition for places at the 2014 Commonwealth Games which will be held in Glasgow. The top lifter in this first men's session was Mark Middleton of Edinburgh University. Middleton, who has competed in Ireland on a few occassions, has recently dropped down to the 62kg class. He opened his account on the day with a 92kg snatch and finished with a very impressive and hard fought clean and jerk at 121kg.

The Kilmarnock Weightlifting Club continued its dominance with victory for Kyle Pearson in the 85kg class. He made all three snatches, each better than the last, to finish on 103kg. He clean and jerked 125kg to seal the win over Palace of Art's Mark Fitzpatrick by 8kg.
Following the men's 85kg class, I began my warm-up. Its not every day one gets to warm up beside a former Olympian and a future Olympian. On the platform to my left was Sydney 2000 Olympian Tommy Yule while to the right was London 2012 hopeful Peter Kirkbride. Tommy snatched 155kg in the 105kg+ class at the games in Sydney. Peter Kirkbride is currently the number 1 ranked British lifter and in the driving seat for a place at the 2012 games. With such lifters in the room it made for a good atmosphere and it was interesting to watch the contrast between both lifters respective warm-up style. Yule began with several sets of muscle snatch making a number of lifts with 70kg and 90kg before dropping back to 70kg to hit quite a few full snatch singles. Kirkbride started his energetic warm-up with a few short, intense bursts of jumping rope and some very explosive empty bar and 60kg hang snatches and power snatches.

Due to some confusion in the timings of the session I was left with a little longer for the warm-up than necessary. I ended up hitting 60kg for 7 or 8 singles as I got a handle on what was happening on the competition platform and how long until I opened. I moved through two singles with 70 and two with 80 before a final warm-up with 90kg. I was then left with very little time to make my way to the platform for my opening attempt at 93kg. I was a little rushed but the weight was routine and I made it fairly easily. I called for 97kg next. It felt light but I let the bar stray too far from my body and I missed it out in front. I took 97kg again and kept it tighter to the body and felt like I made it easily as I received it overhead but perhaps I relaxed a little and it began to drift in front. I chased it a couple of steps forward and held on to complete the lift successfully. I was a bit disappointed with a sub 100kg snatch as I feel I should be hitting 100kg+ more regularly at the moment.

Peter Kirkbride and Tommy Yule continued through their warm-ups. Both lifters seemed confident and composed in the warm-up room. Kirkbride nailed a solid 135kg snatch (see video) before taking the platform for his first attempt at 140kg. From here Kirkbride began to suffer technically in the snatch. There was impressive power and speed on the bar with each attempt but the bar seemed ever so slightly out of place each time. He missed three attempts at 140kg to finish without a total. He didn't re-appear for the clean and jerk. Kirkbride lifts in the European Championships in a couple of weeks time Although he had an off day here, I know from previous experience how impressive a competitor he is and I am sure such a massive competition will bring out the best in him.

Tommy Yule made 137.5kg in the warm-up room (see video) before a warm-up miss at 140kg. On the competition platform he made no mistake and put the 140kg away confidently. Despite missing his second and third snatch he was still on course to make the 105kg qualification total for the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

I timed my clean and jerk warm up much better and was much more economical with the number of lifts I did. I began with some bar work and power clean and jerks at 60 and 80kg with a real emphasis on a complete pull and catching the bar as high as possible while whipping the elbows through as quickly as possible. I then took full clean and jerks with 100, 110 and 120kg before taking 130kg on the competition platform. The clean was routine and the jerk felt much snappier than it has in training. This was just the 2nd time in 2010 I had attempted 130kg. I went to 133kg next as I had set myself a pre-competition target of a 230kg total. I left the clean a little in front and as a result caught it with a slightly rounded, weaken back and struggled more than I should have with the recovery. I pushed through though and the jerked followed. I went to 135kg next and the clean felt much better. I finsihed the pull well and caught it in a nice, stable upright position. My leg strength is not particularly good at the moment so although I was in a good position, the recovery was hard work. I drove the jerk and chased it forward a little but just made the lift.

Tommy Yule secured his qualification with his first clean and jerk at 182kg before two misses at 190kg. His 351 Sinclair points meant he finished the competition as overall best lifter.

Understanding plyometric training and its application to weightlifting: a guest article

Here is a guest article from the one and only Dr Eamonn Flanagan. He has generously agreed to host some of his ideas on the blog, so here is his bio and I hopes everyone enjoys the article and thinks about how/if it can be applied to our training. I have taken the liberty of providing some videos to support Eamonn's ideas, all of which he suggested of course! Here is a link to his other guest article on the use of creatine for weightlifters.

Eamonn Flanagan is a strength and conditioning coach with the Scottish Rugby Union. He has formally worked with Munster Rugby and in hurling,athletics, rowing and AIL rugby. He is an 85/94kg lifter and represents the University of Limerick Weightlifting Club.

Plyometrics is the term now applied to exercises that have their roots in Eastern Europe where they were first known simply as “jump training” (Chu, 1998). They are exercises involving rapid, explosive movements for the development of athletic power. Examples of plyometrics include depth jumps, hurdle jumps and bounding. Plyometric training has been shown to have a number of beneficial effects for athletes. These primarily include the development of an athlete’s power production. Plyometrics can increase the speed at which athletes can develop force and injury prevention for athletes in sports where there is a high degree of jumping, landing and side-stepping movements. Plyometrics have been shown to be highly effective in ACL injury prevention programs for athletes in sports such as volleyball, basketball and soccer (Hewett, 1996).

The training adaptation to plyometrics takes place at a neural level (Markovic, 2005). Plyometric training does not increase muscle size. It increases the efficiency and speed of muscular contraction by training the body to activate more muscle fibers with better timing during these explosive exercises. It trains the muscles to use the stretch shortening cycle (SSC) more efficiently.

The stretch shortening cycle (SSC) is the basis of plyometric exercises. The SSC is a natural type of muscle function in which muscle is stretched immediately before in is contracted (flexed). This eccentric/concentric coupling produces a more powerful contraction than that which would result from a purely concentric action alone (Komi, 1992). For example, crouch down to a half squat position. Hold this position for one second and then jump as high as possible (without going down any further). This is a purely concentric jump, it can be difficult to get good jump height with such a jumping technique.



Now try a regular vertical jump in which you can crouch down and jump up very rapidly. This is an eccentric/concentric jump. You are sure to jump higher and develop more force, more rapidly in such a jump.


This eccentric/concentric coupling of the SSC is the natural form of muscle function, and it is evident in everyday activities, such as running, throwing and jumping.

There are a number of biomechanical mechanisms that contribute to the SSC. More about these involved mechanisms can be read in this article

All stretch shortening cycles are not created equally. The type of stretch shortening cycle can be described as fast or slow (Schmidtbleicher, 1992). Different biomechanical mechanisms are used in these different stretch shortening cycles. As a result, training in the fast SSC will not improve slow SSC performance, and vice versa.

The fast SSC is characterized by very short ground contact phases, quick eccentric/concentric (“up/down”) movements and limited range of motion at the knee hips, knees, and ankles. A typical example would be depth jumps. Other examples are fast, repeated hops over hurdles or repeated standing long jumps with short ground contact phases.

The slow SSC involves longer ground contact or contraction times, larger ranges of motion at the knee, hips and ankles and slower overall movement of the working muscles. An example would be maximal effort vertical jumps or box jumps. Other examples would be single standing long jumps and single hurdle jumps.

To understanding the application of plyometrics into a training program it helps to have an understanding of the force velocity curve. The force velocity curve dictates that humans can produce their highest levels of total force at very slow velocities and in activities of very high velocity, low total forces are produced. For example, a maximal effort back squat will generally be performed at a low velocity, but one will generate a very high level of total force. In sprinting, with each foot contact, a low total force is produced but the movement speed is very high velocity. The weightlifting movements, most likely, lie somewhere in between these extremes as moderate force, moderate velocity movements – cleans lying a little more toward maximal strength and snatches lying a little more toward maximal speed.


Plyometrics' position on the force velocity curve can be seen also. They are quick powerful movements. Many sport scientists and strength and conditioning coaches suggest that for optimal athletic development one must train across the force velocity spectrum. In powerlifting the conjugate system of Westside training also works from a similar principle with maximal high level loads lifted in the same training block as dynamic, high velocity lower loads. In most weightlifting programs this principle is also included: front and back squats are high force, low velocity. Heavy pulls are next down the curve. Then the weightlifting movements themselves.

Plyometrics could then be used to train faster force production abilities. By training across the whole force-velocity spectrum, the athlete is less likely to be inhibited by a deficiency in any one particular aspect of his performance be it speed, speed-strength or maximal strength. Plyometrics are a highly suitable way for weightlifters to train speed strength. Exercises such as box jumps, vertical jumps, depth jumps and hurdle jumps are all biomechanically similar to the weightlifting movements. They are bilateral (double legged), they use the same major muscles and joints, have similar range of motion at the active joints and similar timings of muscular activation. Uni-lateral (single leg) plyometrics such as bounding and hopping drills are probably not as biomechanically well matched to the weightlifting movements. Dreschler (1996) states that plyometrics can help to decrease the time it takes for a lifter to reach maximum force and improve their power output. But, he cautions that the modality of training is unlikely to produce any dramatic improvements in weightlifting performance.

There are a couple of other specific applications of plyometrics which could be useful in a weightlifting context. The first of those involve very young lifters or very novice lifters. With such lifters, they may not be technically proficient enough to perform cleans and snatches with enough weight to illicit a good training effect. If this is the case then from a force-velocity perspective, their training could be very lopsided toward maximal strength at low velocities. By incorporating simple plyometric exercises such as box jumps, hurdle jumps and standing long jumps the young or developing athletes can get a degree of speed-strength development in their training and also learn control and coordination of their bodies. Here is a video demonstrating this principle with Scottish coach Charlie Hamilton having his young lifters perform dynamic jumps onto plates:



Another very useful application of plyometrics is when weightlifters are suffering from upper extremity injuries such as wrist injuries. Here the weightlifter should still be able to squat heavy and develop their maximal strength capabilities. They are unlikely to be able to perform any cleans, jerks or snatches however. So plyometrics can be used extensively to keep their training volumes up and to develop their speed-strength capabilities while injured.

Lifters should use a variety of slow and fast plyometrics. The slow plyometrics such as vertical jumps and box jumps are good to use first as it is easier with these slower movements to teach good jumping and landing mechanics. Once athletes have mastered good jumping and landing mechanics they could begin to incorporate low-level fast plyometrics like repeated jumps over low hurdles. The degree of difficulty of these fast plyometric exercises could be slowly increased over time. One should exercise caution with fast plyometrics however. They are more intense than slow plyometrics and the strain they place on the nervous system is likely to be higher.

Dreschler (1998) comments on the placement of plyometrics into the weightlifter’s periodized training plan. It should be limited to one or two periods of several weeks per year. This could be one or two 4-6 week blocks of plyometrics in general preparation phases of training. The amount and intensity of the jump training should be carefully limited in the phases. Dreschler (1998) also suggests that once a weightlifter has learned the plyometric movements and begun to express fast force production well and effectively that quite a low amount practice (or the mere practice of the weightlifting lifts themselves) should be enough to retain the benefits of plyometric training. This could be as simple as the lifter performing 3 or 4 sets of 3 in the box jump at the beginning of a training session in his general preparation phase.

Overall, plyometrics offer a simple and effective way to promote fast force production and to train speed-strength capabilities of athletes. Their inclusion is probably most suitable for young or novice athletes and those with upper body injuries which limit their actual weightlifting movements. The benefit of plyometrics may be less for adult, mature lifters but they could still be used to train across the force-velocity spectrum and benefits (or maintenance) of fast force production can be achieved with a low volume of plyometrics.

Saturday’s Scottish showdown

Sami, myself and Cathal all got up at five in the morning so that we could make our flight over to Glasgow in time for the competition. I was feeling better than Wednesday and I was really looking forward to competing. I love the moments of doubt that you have to swallow down so that you are composed and relaxed enough to perform. I find that when I am nervous and even a bit jumpy, my nervous system is telling me that I am primed to go.

I weighed in at 97.5kg when I got up and for the competition, we weighed in at around twenty past nine in the morning. I had a banana and two pears with a bit of water for breakfast; I knew I would not be light enough for the 94kg class. I weighed in at 97.3kg; Sami weighed in at 85.4kg and wisely decided to leave trying to make weight as it was the total he was after, not the sinclair. Cathal weighed in at a light 73kg and Eamonn tipped a solid 88kg. Myself, Sami and Eamonn had to wait until around four to lift, so there was quite a bit of waiting around, but we were able to eat and drink without any undue worries.

Cathal lifted first, and after his 105kg opener in the Snatch, he decided that the knee that was bothering him was a bit much with his other competitions coming up. He decided to leave the rest of his Snatches, and to Power Clean and Power Jerk to his heart's content. Once his knees are not shouting at him, we will see some big lifts.

Sami then opened up with 92 in the Snatch, Squat Snatched 95 and then was startlingly close to 100kg that looked light and fast, but was not locked out. He Clean and Jerked a pb of 121 that looked very easy and then got under 125 but could not rack it properly.

Eamonn was not feeling it in the Snatch and got an easy opener with 93. He had 97 and 98 very high, but he could not quite lock them out. He Clean and Jerked 133 which looked nowhere near a limit lift and considering he has moved over to Edinburugh and his training has been severely interupted, he lifted well.

In the warm up room, my lifts were not feeling as fast and fluid as I would have liked. I was feeling fast, but the weights were falling down on me a bit and my feet were not reacting like they usually do. I had planned on opening up with 105kg, but after warming up with 97.5 and 100, I brought it down to 103. My first Snatch felt fast and comfortable, but my feet were doing weird things as you will see in the video. I had planned to lift 110 as my second attempt, but as I was not on my best form, I changed it to 108. This lift felt wrong in so many ways, but I got it. The video is gruesome viewing and shows that this and my next lift were about as attractive as a bulldog chewing a bee. My back was nowhere near locked; I was swing the bar outrageously; I needed to finish the pull; my feet were nowhere near where they needed to be and I had to do a Usain Bolt both times in order to retrieve the lifts. Basically, the way I learned to lift over the Summer was not in sight or sound. I think this was due to cns fatigue and my hips telling me to get back and improve on the flexibility I had in June.

My Clean and Jerks were pretty similar. Ugly, but brutally effective. My Cleans and Snatches would usually be my strong point, but on Saturday they were my weak points. My Jerk was the strongest it has ever been and that was quite satisfying. I warmed up with 110, 120 and 130. The Cleans never felt smooth, but I felt strong enough and the Jerks were sticking nicely. I opened with a nice 135kg that felt pretty basic. My hips were shooting up too early in the Clean and this changed my pulling trajectory. I was far too relaxed for my second attempt with 140 and I did not finish my pull. My feet also went off on a wander and all these factor meant I missed the weight. I sorted out my head for my third attempt and I got a Clean that was as ugly as sin, and a nice Jerk to follow. This was the first time I have Jerked this weight without a press out, so I was happy to get it.

Overall, I was happy with how I lifted, because I was as poor as I can be technically. My form was wincing to look at in the videos, but after how I felt in the week of, and before, the competition, I was happy for my 250 total which was a pb. I know I have a lot more speed, technique and power left to show and I am hoping the Club Championships in Cork will be the place to show it. We will see. I really enjoyed coming to this competition and it was great to get the ring rust out of the system. The video of our lifts is below, so any comments or pointers are welcome.

Thursday's tribute to some of the Clean and Jerks from Malta

Like yesterday's video, a few of the top end Clean and Jerks are missing either because I do not have a copy of the lift or the video file won't play nice with my editing software. I am missing Cathal's 143, Sami's 110 and James' 105.



Today myself and Sami did around an hour's worth of partner stretching and massage. The legs and hips feel loose but quite heavy now, almost as if they have been through a workout. My hips are gradually getting more flexible, as are my hamstrings, hip flexors and glutes. I will be training again on Saturday and I will have an ART session beforehand to try and sort out my glute med/hip flexor cramps that won't leave me alone.

Wednesday's wibbly wobbly wonders

Here are a few of the Snatches from Malta. There are a few I do not have and also some whose format is not recognised by my video editor. Neil has my 108 Snatch and Sami's 88 as well as James' 85. I will put up the Clean and Jerks tomorrow.



I had a fun session today. I Snatched up to 104 and missed 105 a few times. Sami got 90 and missed 92. I was not finishing my pull, so that when I was in the catch position, it was falling down on me with my arms and back too relaxed.

I then front squatted 150 for a single and got buried by 160. Sami got 132. Myself and Sami did around 20 minutes of partner stretching and it was gruelling, but very effective. I am trying to be have the flexiblity and mobility to for a locked back in both the starting position and recieving position of the Snatch.

Here are the things I learned from my experience in Malta:

1. I am still learning how to make weight. It was easy this time because I was eating so well, but I tend to underestimate how much I can lose over a night and a morning of a weigh in.
2. Leaving the warm up room helped keep me focused and relaxed. It also allowed me to eat and keep my sugar levels up.
3. With the Snatch, I focused on staying over the bar and finishing the pull. This worked. My flexibility is a work in progress, but it must continue to improve.
4. With the Clean, I am back on my heels instead of over the bar, as I will show tomorrow. I also need to catch the bar with a locked chest and back position.
5. With the Jerk, I need to improve my Jerk Dip by constantly repeating the proper technique with light weights.
6. Lifting in a competition is far more tiring than in training. I was wrecked for my last Jerk. This means I need to up the intensity in training.

Creatine supplementation - implications for the competitive weightlifter - Eamonn Flanagan

Here is a guest article by Eamonn Flanagan. He is an excellent lifter himself and his credentials have lots of letters after his name, so you know he must be good!
Below is a summary of his article which was published in the NSCA journal. Here is a link to the full article with references in tow if you wish to read it. He generously condensed it for this blog, so thank you Eamonn.



Eamonn Flanagan, Ph.D., CSCS*D

Creatine is a massively popular nutritional supplement. All muscle contractions are fueled by energy. The first energy source called upon is termed ATP. However, as free ATP stores are very limited they have to be regenerated by other metabolic processes in order to generate and sustain high muscle power output. The secondary source of immediate
energy is phosphocreatine. ATP, augmented by the phosphocreatine energy pathway sustains maximal effort muscular contraction for between 5 to 15 seconds. Approximately 95% of the body's creatine pool is present in skeletal muscle. Creatine supplementation, by the oral administration of the supplement "creatine monohydrate", has been shown to increase the muscular pool of creatine.

This increase in muscle creatine stores enhance work output in the latter stages of exercise which is dependent on the phosphocreatine energy pathway. Such exercise is short duration (1–30 seconds), intermittent, high intensity exercise (2, 3, 22). Fatigue, in this type of high intensity exercise is reduced by creatine supplementation. With more creatine available in the muscles, ATP can be regenerated through the phosphocreatine pathway at a more efficient rate. This leads to a greater energy provision in the latter stages of high intensitty, intermittant exercise. Weightlifting is a prime example of one such activity which can benefit from creatine supplementation.

Both anecdotally and in the published peer-reviewed research, a most popular and effective method of supplementation is to acutely load creatine over a short duration of between 5 and 7 days. This has commonly been achieved by administering 20–25 g/day of creatine monohydrate, divided into 4–5 doses of 5g each, over 5–7 days. Such protocols have
been shown to significantly increase individuals' muscle creatine content and to improve performance in high intensity, intermittent exercise.

In the published research, the only documented side effect of creatine supplementation is an increase in body mass caused by increased water retention within the muscle. There
have been many anecdotal claims that creatine users are more likely to suffer from heat-related cramping and renal dysfunction. However, empirical evidence does not support these claims and has shown that creatine supplementation over prolonged periods, within recommended dosages, is a safe practice.

For weightlifters who may be in the very light weight classes or who maybe well into the superheavyweight class a supplementation protocol standardized to body mass could be followed. The loading dosage can be individualized by supplementing with 0.3 g of creatine monohydrate for each kilogram of the athlete's body weight, per day. This amount can be divided into 4-5 equal doses, each day, for 5 to 7 days. A hypothetical female lifter in the lightest weight class (48 kg) weighing 47 kg would take approximately 14g of creatine monohydrate (47 × 0.3 g) each day in 4 doses of 3.5 g for the duration of the loading period. A hypothetical heavyweight male lifter in the heaviest weight class (105kg) weighing 110 kg would take approximately 33 g of creatine (110 × 0.3 g) each day in 4 doses of approximately 8.25g.

Following the 5-7 day loading protocol, research suggests athletes can maintain their elevated muscular creatine stores with a single daily dose ranging from 1 to 3g (for light to heavy individuals. 5g maintainence dosages are also not uncommon and have been shown to have no adverse affect on renal function and general health.

Weightlifters and their coaches should be aware of how exactly creatine supplementation can be expected to change their performance. Creatine supplementation improves the rate at which energy can be provided during fatiguing exercise but does not the improve the maximum amount of energy that can be provided in the non-fatigued state. For this reason supplementation will not increase the maximal muscular contraction velocity or the peak power production of muscle in the non-fatigued state. Weightlifters should be
aware that supplementation will not suddenly, directly increase their maximum in the snatch or clean and jerk.

However, supplementation will delay fatigue, facilitate recovery, and increase power output in the later stages of training. This will allow the weightlifter to perform a greater workload in each training session, which over time will assist in increasing performance in maximum effort lifts. Consiering the physiology, creatine supplementation is of particular benefit during high-intensity, fatigue-inducing, and high-volume training phases. In weightlifting, the preparation phase, where number of reps per set are higher, total volume is higher, recovery time between sets is lower and number of assistance lifts are higher is an example of this. In a competition phase, where average intensity is elevated but total volume is decreased, where few assistance lifts are performed and where many single effort lifts with long recovery periods are performed the supplement would be much less beneficial.

Another factor that may influence the timing of creatine supplementation within the training cycle is the rapid weight gain associated with loading. Creatine is an osmotically active substance; meaning as creatine is drawn into the muscle cells water is drawn in
with it. This water retention has been associated with acute changes in body mass ranging from 1 to 3 kg following creatine loading phases. Weightlifting is a weight-controlled sport in which many competitors commonly "make weight" prior to competition. Weightlifters bound to maintaining strict body weights prior to competition should exercise caution when introducing a supplement that can induce such a sudden increase in weight.

Weightlifters may not wish to introduce the supplement for the first time in the competition phase of preparation as the associated weight gain may elevate them out of their preferred weight classification for competition. Weightlifters should introduce the supplement early in the training cycle, in the preparation phase, so they are afforded ample opportunity to counterbalance any additional
weight gain caused by supplementation with calorie reduction or other preferred making weight practices prior to competition
weigh-in. Muscle creatine levels which are elevated due to supplementation will return to resting levels after 25-35 days of no supplementation. Lifters can therefore cease supplementation about 1 month before an important competition for which they must make weight. This could reesult in 1-3kg of weight being lost by the lifter without appreciable changes in maximal strength. The lifters fatigue resistance will be reduced but with a proper competition phase (of high intensity and lower volume with longer recovery periods between reps) and a tapering phase (reduced volume prior to competition) this should not be a deleterious effect.

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS SUMMARY:

- Weightlifters who wish to introduce a creatine supplement into their nutritional program are advised to choose creatine monohydrate as to date it is the only creatine product that has been extensively researched by the sports and exercise science community and shown to be a legitimate performance enhancer.

- Creatine monohydrate can be hugely beneficial for weightlifters particularly during high volume phases of training that are
characterized by high repetitions and are significantly fatiguing.

- Weightlifters attempting to maintain a specific body weight for competition should introduce the supplement early in the training
cycle, in the preparation phase, so that they are afforded ample opportunity to counteract any additional weight gain caused by supplementation. Creatine supplementation can be withdrawn about 1 month before competition if additional bodyweight needs to be lost.

- Particularly heavy or light weightlifters may wish to implement a creatine loading phase that is individualized to their own body weight.


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Eamonn Flanagan, Ph.D., CSCS*D