Monday, March 14, 2011

Meet results

Saturday I competed in my first Olympic weightlifting competition in the 94kg weight class. It was tiring, chaotic, motivating, and fun. I made 5/6 attempts, snatching 70kg (154 pounds) and clean&jerking 107kg (235 pounds) for a total of 177kg. I missed my second snatch, and watching the video of my snatch attempts I can see why. I was not fast at all in the catch, and it cost me. My snatch PR is 175 pounds, so I'm kind of bummed that I didn't even come close to hitting it, but you have good days and bad days.

After the snatch I was pretty focused on the clean and jerk, and was able to match my PR on the platform. I'm just so much more confident in both my clean and my jerk than I am in my snatch, and that's a big factor. All said and done I placed 3rd (out of 5) in my weight class, and I'm pretty happy with my performance on my first time out.

Now that the competition is done I need to focus on getting my shoulder back to 100% and getting stronger. I did end up getting a prescription for physical therapy, and I'm seeing the PT 3 times a week. I'm going to avoid doing any movements that aggravate my shoulder for the time being, and just focus on getting as strong as possible in other parts of my body. Unfortunately this means I won't be able to do heavy snatches for a while, but I can still practice my form (which is my real problem) with lighter loads that don't bother me.

My weight is fluctuating right now due to having to make weight for the meet. I weighed in at 202 on Saturday, and this morning I was 206, so I figure it'll stabilize somewhere around 204 within a day or two, and then I can focus on getting under 200.

Friday, March 4, 2011

Quick update

Today's Weigh-In: 204.6
PhysicsDiet.com Average: 205.4

Hey, just wanted to post something quick. My weight is back on the downward slope, so I'm happy about that. I tweaked my shoulder in training the other day, so I'm going to see the doctor on Monday to hopefully get a referral to see a physical therapist, as my shoulder is a constant source of injury and missed training days. I'm hoping they can assess me and give me some rehab movements that will strengthen my shoulder and allow me to train at 100% again. I'm still planning to compete at the lifting meet, but I may have to be more conservative with my weights due to the shoulder problem. I'm sure it will be a fun experience either way, though.