Topic: To the coaches: How do you teach your athletes?

[ViKtoricus]

Hi.

I'm curious as to how you teach your lifters the lifts properly. As in what progression of exercises do you have for them and what kind of pointers do you give them?

Thanks in advance.

[Andy Dick]

Are you trying to get coached on progression or coach someone on progression?  It really varies on the athlete, the situation, and ques/fixes based on what they are doing wrong.

[ViKtoricus]

Are you trying to get coached on progression or coach someone on progression?  It really varies on the athlete, the situation, and ques/fixes based on what they are doing wrong.

I'm coaching myself.

But I wanna coach other people. But I can't coach other people if I am not 100% sure that I have my own technique mastered.

[Andy Dick]

This is how I did it, kinda backwards but also at a different time and state of USAW.  When I was in college I took the USAW sport performance coach course to learn what I could, then in grad school I took the club coach course since I was getting serious about competing and wanting to coach lifters.  This was before they made you have to pay the $20 for a background check.  So perhaps now if I would do it differently, but I do feel there is some value in it.  I would say read up a lot of you could.  One of my favorite books was the weightlifting encyclopedia by Arthur Deschler, I learned a lot in that book.  Read up on common mistakes and how to correct them.

Without all this I'd say start by watching A LOT of video of good technique.  Repeatedly.   I learn a ton doing this.  One thing that takes a while is getting an eye to see mistakes when they happen since it is so fast.  Couple this with what you learn about common mistakes and how to correct them.  If you have the opportunity get coached (I say this a lot but it is very important), most of what I learn on mistakes and how to correct them I learn from being coached through these same mistakes.  Post video get it critiqued so you can learn how to coach mistakes.  Watch videos on how to teach and coach the lifts.  I am probably leaving some stuff out but others can add their thoughts and this is just some brief thoughts as they come to my head.

As far as teaching, which is what you probably care more about, I do a hybrid method of the USAW model.  It takes a bit longer to get to the full version of the lifts but it seems to help the athletes learn the movement.  Also, remember in my situation I am coaching a lot of kids (I will say kid a lot because I usually am working with high school athletes) lifting at one time so all I can mainly do is walk around and correct flaws when I see them.  If you have a few guys it is easier to go with a perhaps different approach.  I will give you the teaching steps I use assuming I have a kid totally new to any lifting.  This will vary based on kid and some of this you may just skip.  It will also vary based on kids.  Some kid will be stuck on a step for a long time because they struggle learning it.  Some kids (usually those that are very athletic it seems) can move from step 1 to 4 in one training session and if they have good flexibility from 1 to 5 in one session.  Just depends.

First I teach the athlete to squat and RDL.  A lot of my teaching progression I will not move a kid on to a next exercise until they are good or competent with the previous exercise.  I feel if one part falls apart it can lead to problems later.  For example if a kid cannot RDL they will have problems with the proper positioning of the lifts later.  Now I will kind of list what I do since it is easier, I am assuming this is a pure weightlifter.  If you need an explanation just ask I will give it.

First step: Squat/front squat, overhead squat and RDL
Next step: Snatch/Clean shrug, snatch and clean pull, push press (maybe 1 session not hard to learn)
Third step: Snatch/Clean high pull, (this takes explanation, I used to do this a lot, as of late I may spend a day on it or not at all.  More and more I am becoming less and less of a fan of this exercise because I feel it screws up a kids technique more than it helps.  I may teach them it so they realize at the top of the pull to relax the elbows and begin to move below the weigh, but I question its worth.)  The head S&C coach likes it so wants me to teach it so I may spend a day or two on it then move the kid on pretty quick.  Split jerk
Fourth step:  Hang clean/snatch, hang clean and jerk
Fifth step: Full version of lifts.

As you can see there is a lot of overlap between exercises and sessions.  A kid may be split jerking very early on before actually doing a clean.  A few notes: I am a BIG fan of overhead squats, more often than not flexibility is an issue so I feel this is great in helping kids achieve hip mobility.  Once this is achieved I move on to the snatch balance exercises.  I do see use in them in mobility and balance in the snatch, but I do not allow heavy loading till much later after they are able to achieve the full lifts.  They are not in a set step because they progress as hip mobility and flexibility progresses.  Usually I get stuck on step 4 a lot longer than I like due to flexibility and mobility issues in kids who have trouble full squatting or catching the lift in the full squatted position.

Pointers is hard to pinpoint because it depends on what the kid is doing wrong.