• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

  • Fitness
  • Workouts
    • Best Shoulder Workouts
    • Best Chest Workouts
    • Best Leg Workouts
    • Best Leg Exercises
    • Best Biceps Exercises
    • Best Kettlebell Exercises
    • Best Back Workouts
    • Best HIIT Workouts
    • Best Triceps Exercises
    • Best Arm Workouts
  • Reviews
    • Supplements
      • Best Pre-Workouts
      • Best Whey Protein
    • Equipment
      • Best Home Gym Machines
    • Certifications
      • ISSA Review
  • News
  • Exercise Guides
    • Legs
      • Back Squat
      • Bulgarian Split Squat
      • Goblet Squat
      • Zercher Squat
      • Standing Calf Raise
      • Hack Squat
    • Chest
      • Bench Press
      • Dumbbell Bench Press
      • Close-Grip Bench Press
      • Incline Bench Press
    • Shoulders
      • Overhead Dumbbell Press
      • Lateral Raise
    • Arms
      • Chin-Up
      • Weighted Pull-Up
      • Triceps Pushdown
    • Back
      • Deadlift
      • Trap Bar Deadlift
      • Lat Pulldown
      • Inverted Row
      • Bent-Over Barbell Row
      • Single-Arm Dumbbell Row
      • Pendlay Row
Fitness

Learning How to Diagnose New Weightlifting Athletes Is Key

If you are running a club or program, technical and anatomical diagnosis should be your first step.

Bob Takano

Written by Bob Takano Last updated on December 23, 2014

It’s been nearly six months since the Takano Athletics weightlifting gym opened in Woodland Hills, California. One of the unique aspects of the gym is the coaching internship program I implemented from the opening. 

Thus far, seven coaches have completed an internship, three are in the process, and three more are ready to begin. The internship program was started to provide a true coaching learning experience for those wishing to go a lot deeper than the weekend coaching certification format. 

RELATED: The Evolution of Weightlifting Coaching

Diagnosis of New Athletes

One of the most important activities I expect my interns to master is the diagnosis of new athletes. At one point in the not-so-distant past, newcomers to the sport arrived at a weightlifting gym with almost no skills. Things have changed recently, though not necessarily for the better.

Just about everyone who has shown up for coaching since the gym opened has had some experience attempting the lifts. They’ve arrived at varying levels of competence, but none has demonstrated complete mastery of the lifts. Each has specific technical deficiencies and this has created the perfect laboratory in which my interns can develop their diagnostic skills.

Formulating an Exercise Selction Strategy

When a new athlete arrives, the first activity is for him or her to perform the snatch and clean and jerk as best he or she can. No coaching takes place, as I want to see what level of competence has been achieved.

RELATED: There Are No Secret Training Programs 

The newcomer is asked to work up in singles in the snatch while I and one or more interns observe. I make notes as to the most obvious technical deficiencies as the athlete lifts progressively heavier weights. My interns are expected to make note of what problems they are seeing, as well.

After the athlete has lifted a close-to-max effort in the snatch, I will go over with the athlete what deficiencies I see that need remediation. Usually, I consult with the interns to determine if they are seeing the same problems. 

“I make notes as to the most obvious technical deficiencies as the athlete lifts progressively heavier weights. My interns are expected to make note of what problems they are seeing, as well.”

Mobility issues, timing problems, bar placement errors, and lifting dynamics are all considered during this evaluation. After an intern has gone through this process a few times, I also ask him or her to start formulating an exercise selection strategy to correct the observed faults. I evaluate this strategy when considering my intern’s ability to diagnose technical problems.

The clean and jerk is then evaluated in the same way with me providing a final diagnosis while consulting with the intern(s). An exercise selection strategy is then confirmed.

Goals of the First Period of Training

The goals of this procedure are several. It allows us to develop a familiarity with the physical proficiency of the athlete. We also let the athlete know we are not going to begin the coaching process as a one-size-fits-all activity, but rather as an individualized strategy. It also allows me to know that the coaching eye and coaching mind of the intern is in a state of development.

“We also let the athlete know we are not going to begin the coaching process as a one-size-fits-all activity, but rather as an individualized strategy.”

Our goal for the first period of training is to correct all technical deficiencies so all future training will assure the balanced development of the athlete. The first part of each training session for a new athlete is dedicated to technical mastery. The second part of a session addresses the development of training habits, the correct performance of auxiliary exercises, and the proper development of strength. The final part is dedicated to remediating weak areas or weak aspects of the athlete’s lifting.

Our approach is aimed at answering the question, “How much can I lift?” But the answer will not be adequate if technical mastery is not achieved early in the process. 

RELATED: Why It’s Not All About the Weight You Are Lifting

Summary

As for the future of weightlifting coaching, it will always involve the perfecting of technical mastery and these early exercises in diagnosis will prepare my interns to develop as coaches. If you are running a weightlifting club or program, technical and anatomical diagnosis should be your first step in the preparation of an athlete.

Photos courtesy of Takano Athletics.

Bob Takano

About Bob Takano

Bob Takano is a highly respected weightlifting coach who was inducted into the USA Weightlifting Hall of Fame in 2007 for his contributions to coaching. He has been the coach of four national champions, two national record holders, and 27 top ten nationally ranked lifters. Bob has been on the coaching staffs of 17 U.S. National teams to international competitions, five of those being World Championships. His lifters have competed in seven Olympic Trials with one, Albert Hood, the third American to snatch double bodyweight, earning a berth on the 1984 team.

Furthermore Bob has been a CSCS since 1986, having authored six articles for the NSCA Strength and Conditioning Journal, and served as a member of the editorial board of that journal from 1996 to 2000. He has also co-authored a chapter for the NASM’s Essentials of Sports Performance Training, and a chapter on the Training of Weightlifters for the IOC Sports Medicine Commission’s Encyclopedia of Strength and Power. 20 of the female volleyball players he’s coached have earned Division 1 scholarships.

Bob is on the teaching staff for the USAW Weightlifting Coaching Education program and presents his own seminars as well.

View All Articles

Recommended Articles

Why Athletes Hate the Jerk Lift
committoyourgoals
The Symbiosis of Gyms and Online Training Post-Pandemic
trainingdiversity
Diversify Your Training Portfolio
newgym
How to Create a Gym on a Bare-Bones Budget

Primary Sidebar

Latest Articles

Shaun Clarida Shows Off 86-Kilogram (190-Pound) Body Weight Ahead of 2023 Arnold Classic

Bodybuilding Fixture Johnnie Jackson Teases Masters Comeback at Age 52

Powerlifter John Haack Deadlifts an Astonishing 415 Kilograms (915 Pounds) for a PR and Unofficial World Record

Seven-Time 212 Olympia Champ Flex Lewis Predicts Top 10 at 2023 Arnold Classic

Latest Reviews

ISSA Personal Trainer Certification Review

ISSA Personal Trainer Certification Review

Best Whey Proteins for Packing on Muscle, Shredding Down, Meal Replacement, and More

Best Pre-Workouts for Building Muscle, Running, Taste, and More

Best Home Gym Machines

Best Home Gym Machines

woman lifting barbell

Be the smartest person in your gym

The Breaking Muscle newsletter is everything you need to know about strength in a 3 minute read.

I WANT IN!

Breaking Muscle is the fitness world’s preeminent destination for timely, high-quality information on exercise, fitness, health, and nutrition. Our audience encompasses the entire spectrum of the fitness community: consumers, aficionados, fitness professionals, and business owners. We seek to inform, educate and advocate for this community.

  • Reviews
  • Healthy Eating
  • Workouts
  • Fitness
  • News

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS Feed

© 2023 · Breaking Muscle · Terms of Use · Privacy Policy · Affiliate Disclaimer · Accessibility · About