Olympic Lifts

In this three-part series, get to know Coach Mike Burgener, who runs the CrossFit Weightlifting Trainer Course and coached the American Women’s Junior National Team for about a decade beginning in the mid-’90s. He’s also the man behind Mike’s Gym, a two-car garage in Bonsall, California, that serves as a USA Weightlifting Regional Training Center.

In Episode 1, we sit down with Coach B. in his home garage as he reflects on… Continue Reading

Chad Vaughn explains what lifters and coaches will learn at the CrossFit Weightlifting Advanced Trainer Course.

Weightlifting is described as ballet with a barbell, poetry in motion and a beautiful work of art. As the best weightlifters in the world train to put the greatest weight overhead, they also develop athletic attributes such as strength, flexibility, power, speed, coordination, agility, balance and accuracy. These attributes are… Continue Reading

On. Oct. 25, CrossFit Weightlifting Advanced Trainer Course leader Chad Vaughn held an event to raise money for Barbells for Boobs, an organization dedicated to the early detection of breast cancer. Vaughn’s affiliate, CrossFit CenTex, hosted the event at Horny Toad Harley-Davidson in Belton, Texas.

While most used the prescribed weight of 135/95 lb. or scaled appropriately, Vaughn, a two-time Olympian, challenged Aja Barto to complete 30 squat clean… Continue Reading

If your pre-workout prep consists of a cup of coffee and a few squats, Bill Starr has some advice for you.

As every Olympic lifter fully understands, doing full snatches and clean and jerks requires a high degree of flexibility in every part of the body. All the major muscle groups and corresponding attachments are involved in the two competitive lifts: shoulder girdle, back, and hips and legs. A lack of… Continue Reading

Smart athletes look at injuries as a chance to put in some extra work on the healthy parts of the body.

Anyone who trains seriously for any length of time is going to sustain an injury. This is simply a law of nature and no one, as of yet, has found a way to avoid it.

Even those who do fitness routines and use light weight for higher reps still get dings somewhere along the way. Then there are those… Continue Reading

Bill Starr explains that training your biceps has limited carryover to lifting, but targeting your triceps can result in PR snatches and jerks.

Everyone who ever set out to improve his physique and get stronger started out by working his arms.

Not his back or legs. Arms.

Why?

Upper arms are a symbol of manhood, especially for youngsters, and bulging biceps show that a lot of hard work has been done to… Continue Reading

A closer look at the mechanics and technique of the fastest lift in the world.

The snatch is simply lifting a barbell from the floor to overhead in one quick motion. However, this basic description barely begins to explain the complexity of the lift. The snatch requires a combination of strength, coordination, explosiveness, mobility and stability that is not seen in any other exercise.

The snatch requires high levels of skill and meticulous… Continue Reading

If you’re going to train with Mike Burgener at his home nearly an hour north of San Diego, California, there are a few rules.

First, only one person lifts on a platform at a time. Second, move your bar to create space for others lifters. Third, clean the plates off the platform.

“Other than that, let’s lift some heavy weights. Let’s have some fun,” says Burgener, affectionately called Coach B.

When Leslie Graves jerks… Continue Reading