I am enjoying the Chinese Weightlifting System series by Kirk from lifthard.com.
In Part 2 he went into “The Technique of the Chinese Weightlifters” and touches the debate of triple extension vs. catapult technique.
Part 3 is about the Various Phases of Athlete Preparation.
He explains how the Chinese train their young athletes.
By estimation, lifters will peak to world level within 8 years of consistent training. This is why you see many young lifters from China. They’re not tortured like how many horror stories of them removed from their homes and forced to train.
Age 6+
- playful gymnastics / bodyweight exercises, gradually shift focus to technique drills with a stick
Age 8 to 10
- more weightlifting specific exercises (Snatch and Clean and Jerks, pulls overhead squats, duck walks, frog jumps, lots of stretching)
Age 10 to 12-14
- athletes start lifting 60% of the world record
Age 14+
- more complex phase, develop right balance of flexibility, power, strength, speed and technique
- huge volume and variety of exercises is used to determine the athlete’s weakest and strongest points and also to determine which exercises have the greatest carryover to the athlete’s snatch and clean and jerk
- each day is spent working on one classic lift.
Training Duration
- mornings are for power work, balancing and speed
- evening is 90 minutes of classical lifts, 40 minutes of pulling, 50 minutes of strength work (squats, bodybuilding work)
