Debunking Strength coaching myths about Weightlifting

Myth #2

It takes too much time

Learning how to powerclean and/or powersnatch involves learning skills no more difficult than blocking or tackling, boxing out in basketball , or learning to back hand in tennis. Any skills related to athletics are developed over time. It simply begins with an athlete learning to forcefully push their legs through the ground.

It is a formal logical fallacy for coaches to say they don’t have time to teach powercleans yet have no problem with taking the time teaching squats which poses a higher risk for injury due to the compressive forces on the spine. If you can teach squats safely in a specific amount of time (squatting is already something we know how to do) you can teach athletes how to forcefully push/extend legs to powerclean.

Empirical data does not just exist in literature and on tests conducted over decades on tens of thousands of athletes over a broad spectrum sports. It also exists as evidence in the form of countless medals (especially gold) won by athletes who used weightlifting movements in their training. Along with the athletes mentioned in the previous post, here is a more extensive list. Dr. Anatoliy Bondarchuk, John Powell, Wolfgang Schmidt, Randy Barnes, Reese Hoffa, Adam Nelson, Dane Miller, Sam Mattis, Alexandr Karelin and Joe Kovacs. I would love to see a strength coach tell @joekovacsusa (or his wife @ashleykovacsusa who is his coach) he doesn’t need weightlifting in his training after he specifically states weightlifting movements lie functionally with throwing Shot.

For further reading I recommend the following books at the end of the video.