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No Pain, No Gain (Athlete Journal 38)

This week was all about riding the line between normal pain and dangerous pain. I am always amazed what I am capable of doing when I do not hurt.

Terry Hadlow

Written by Last updated on Oct 25, 2022

Overall this was a much better week. I’m feeling a little more optimistic.

Saturday

I took my time with my warm up. I was doing power work today and hoped everything would be fine.

  • Speed clean, power clean from floor plus jerk: 55kg for 2×3+1+1, 75kg for 2×3+1+1, 95kg for 2×3+1+1
  • Power clean from hang plus power clean from the floor plus jerk: 55kg for 2×3+1+1, 75kg for 2×3+1+1, 95kg for 2×3+1+1
  • Power clean from the floor, clean, 2 front squats and a jerk: 55kg 1+1+2+1, 75kg 1+1+2+1, 95kg 1+1+2+1, 105kg 1+2+1

My groin was way too sore, so I discontinued the clean portion of this series and switched to power clean from the floor with a jerk at 110kg. I did four power cleans and a jerk. On the first set I missed the jerk – how ugly is that? – and the second set was way worse. I thought the workout was ending, but my conscience was bothering me, so I finished with clean pulls – 145kg 2×5, with the last rep of the second set being a slow pull.

Sunday

I had to repeat Saturday’s workout, hoping it’s not the same disaster. 

  • Speed clean and jerk 5 plus 1: 60kg 2×5+1, 90kg 2×5+1, 100kg 3+1, 100kg 4+1
  • Power clean from the floor plus jerk: 90kg 2×5+1, 100kg 3+1, 100kg 4+1

I was going to give my groin a second chance as it felt much better than yesterday. Next exercise was one power clean, five front squats, and a jerk at 100kg for 2×1+5+1, then 110 kg 2×1+5+1. It’s amazing what a difference one day takes. The only problem was my blood sugar levels crashing. Must eat better in morning.

Monday – No Workout

Tuesday – Back Squats

After a long warm-up my groin was a little touchy, but I was still trying to get some work done. 

  • Back squat: 70kg for 2×6, 100kg for 4×6 – Absolutely no pain – felt great.
  • 130kg for 1×6 – A little bit of discomfort.
  • 140kg for 1×6 – A lot of discomfort.

I finished off with one set of speed squats with 90kg. The weight felt light, but my groin felt sticky.

Wednesday – Stretch and Massage

Thursday – Front Squats

The warm up felt great with 20kg. I jumped to 70kg and it still felt great. I jumped to 100kg and it was still feeling great. The gods must be with me! I moved up to 118kg for six reps, 123kg for four reps, and 123kg for two stop squats. It felt so good I jumped to 133kg for an easy set of two reps and then 138kg for another set of two. I am always amazed what I am capable of doing when I do not hurt.

Friday – Long Circuit

Sixty minutes at 35 seconds work with 25 seconds rest between stations. This was tough but work was steady. I actually enjoyed it. Must be that pain thing.

Terry Hadlow got started in Olympic weightlifting in 1970 and is the only Canadian to have competed in senior nationals in five different decades – 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s. Follow Terry’s journal here to learn about his approach to training and competing.

Terry Hadlow

About Terry Hadlow

Terry Hadlow started lifting in 1970 at the age of thirteen. He was a member of the CanadianJuniorNational team at seventeen, Senior B team at eighteen, and on the SeniorA team at nineteen. He was selected to three junior world teams and competed in two of them. His best finish was a tie for third place, but he lost on body weight. His best lifts as a junior were 140-167.5 in the 82.5 class. Terry won medals in the 1978 Commonwealth Games and 1979 Pan Am Games, and was selected to the 1980 and 1984 Canadian Olympic Games team. He competed in five senior world championships, with a best finish of twelfth in Moscow in 1983, with 90kg lifts of 155-185. Terry’s best lifts ever in competition were 160-190 and his best training lifts were 163-195 at 90kg.

Terry stopped lifting in 1991 age 33 and didn't touch a weight to Olympic lift again until 2005, at the age of 48. He went on to win the Masters Pan Am in 2006. At the age of fifty, Terry competed in the 2008 World Masters at 85kg in Greece and won with lifts of 112-135. In 2010 he went to Poland in the same category and won with lifts of 113-135. His best lifts in that division were 114-139. Those lifts were enough to qualify him for the Canadian Senior Championships as a53 year old. Terry is the only Canadian to have competed in senior nationals in five different decades -1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s.

After that, Terry took a break from world competition and trained to compete in competitions in North America.His last competition was the 2013 Pan Ams inChicago, Illinois. He won with lifts of 108 (world record)- 132, for a total of 240 (also a world record).

Terry always takes the summer off training, as his summer work schedule just doesn't allow time to workout. In addition, there’s no training in September as that’s Terry’s time to go R.V.-ing.

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