Topic: Olympic Lifts are Bad!

[Andy Dick]

Ok so here is a great story.  A student comes to us and asks for an off-season program.  This guy is a sophomore, was on our powerlifting team and was on the Oly weightlifting team this year and play baseball.  I say lets put you on the Oly lifting fall program.  He says he can't do that because his "speed coach" told him not to do olympic lifts because they were bad and will injure his shoulder for baseball.  What a crock!  The head strength coach here at the high school was there also and basically tore in to the kids "speed coach."  On how he is full of it and how the guy didn't know what he was talking about.  He told the kid the coach was garbage and told the kid to tell the "speed coach" if he wanted to the head coach didn't care.  Then proceeded to explain how olympic lifts are great for speed development and for all sports.  It was great.

We have had encounters of this kind by this so called "speed coach" in the past.  He don't like to bad mouth other coaches but this guy is not worth his salt it seems.  His programs are not very scientifically sound.  The guy basically name drops working with all these pro-athletes even though all the big name strength coaches in the area haven't even heard of the guy.  But parents buy it and pay money to send thier kids to this guy.  The guy will basically invite people to train at one of this sessions then proceeds to tell everyone he has trained such and such a person that shows up and is a big name or becomes a big name or has any sort of success.  It really is sad and aggrivating.

So remember better stop lifting if you want to have healthy shoulders in the future.   

[Matt Erdman]

Does he prefer one arm bosu ball handstands? 

[ViKtoricus]

I blame society! 

[Arturo Gómez]

I thought that those stupid men had vanished in the 80´s. Another congelated mamut.

[ViKtoricus]

I honestly cannot wait until I coach my first athlete... He will be the happiest man on earth.

[www.liftbig.co.uk]

Yes i've encountered people with similar views... saying oly lifting wont help your power or speed... seems to be a complete lack of understading of physics and forces! Getting stronger and explosive can only be a good thing for sports performance. Plus one of the primary methods of functional movement screening for injury/dysfunction is...an overhead squat. (plus very good for shoulder stability/mobility/strength)

Something to think about there!

[Andy Dick]

I always give our kids this example.  While doing my GA, the head S&C coach at the college had me and our 3 interns take an array of fitness tests (vertical, squat, bench, clean, pull-up, 40, 300, etc.).  We then had to put together a program to improve our numbers.  At that time I was just focused on oly lifting so I just kept with my program.  In that time my lifts all went up and my vertical and all speed tests improved.  During my program I basically did not put any running/speed or "jump" drills in my program.

I see it as this antiquated thinking that the olympic movements will physically hurt you instead of help you.  You still see this about oly lifts and squatting with real old school docs (some newer docs as well, but I think it is diminishing some with regards to squatting).  That is what happens when you have brains that never have done an ounce of physical activity and get all the human anatomy and physiology schooling but no functional human anatomy or kinesiology.