It’s no secret to a lot of folks out there: I’m…kind of a gym rat. My most recent love is Olympic Weightlifting. There’s really only two lifts involved. There’s the snatch, where you take a barbell from ground to overhead in one movement. And there’s the clean and jerk, where you hoist a barbell first to your shoulders before hiking it above your head.
Super simple. Pick the bar up, put it down. Repeat.
Except.
The concept of weightlifting is super-simple, but lifts are difficult. The amount of skill, precision and technique that go into a lift is positively mind-boggling. Like golf, folks can spend years honing their abilities without ever achieving full mastery. I’ve been at this almost exclusively for two years and I consider myself (mostly) a novice. Luckily, I have a coach who is a genius about eyeing my form and giving me the teaching and cues I need to improve. Case in point…
Cut to Monday. The workout for that day involved heavy snatches, and this particular video shows my attempt to tie my personal record:
Yeah. I missed it. But this miss? I feel better about it than if I had made it.
Let me explain. Ever since I’ve been at this, a miss for me has been like so:
– I set up at the bar
– I start to pull it up
– As soon as I gain momentum, I chicken out and drop it
But here – right here – is what shows my progress. I actually got UNDER the bar before I lost it. Which means that I trusted myself enough to try. Which means that slowly (oh so slowly!) I’m getting better at this thing.
Let’s see…I’ve got something that’s challenging to learn, a coach who gives me the instruction I need, and the time to practice and improve.
(And folks wonder why weightlifting has made me a better teacher…)
Soapbox: The Way I see Things 
You amaze me! I love the parallel you’ve drawn with teaching here. (And it’s no wonder you’re the brave person your family trusts to handle the spiders! 😆)
Ha! I hadn’t thought about that! And given that my family consists of three men who are taller, stronger, and way more athletic than I am, I’d hope I’d be a little less needed in the spider department…
This is SO motivating! Wow, I really appreciate you sharing this video, your experience, and explaining so well the progress you have achieved. A fantastic slice! Thank you.
Thanks, Heidi! I’ve been thinking about how to incorporate weightlifting into a Slice, but I’ve had difficulty being brief and concise with it. Luckily, this helped to get me writing.
I love this so much!!!
I don’t do what you do (that kind of weight lifting) but I have a coach at the gym and it has been life changing. I ALWAYS fail right before I move up in weight. I used to get so discouraged but I see the pattern now.
Thanks, and yes! Having a coach who gives me just the right cues is a game-changer. As for my coach, I also appreciate the life experience and perspective he shares. Come to think of it, many of my gym partners do the same. We come from so many different directions, and I love that we’re all pursuing the same thing.
There’s also that motto: failure is success (at least in picking up heavy things)…
Incredible! Awesome! Inspiring! Whoa. Today I watched a boy leave pre-K and hop over a wire 6” off the ground. He jumped and cleared the wire with both feet in the air and then kept walking to the car like that was no big deal. Both feats (his and yours) impress me to no end.
Whoa, Stephanie. How cool is that? That’s a kid to watch out for =)
And…I appreciate your kind words. It’s hard to see what I do is inspiring, given the other people around me and what they’re capable of, but I have to remember how far I’ve come.
Thank you.
You are moving forward. Good for you. Like anything, baby steps. You are building strength. You are building stamina. You are building endurance. All things that make you a good teacher.
Thanks! And actually, I’ve grown to embrace going backwards as part of the process as well – which also, I suppose, helps me as a teacher.
Oh, those life lessons…
AMAZING. And love the nod to coaching here …
I sent this to my coach, who would also agree =)
Very cool. Slow, oh so slow, can be just the right speed sometimes.
Thanks, Betsy! There’s actually a saying with weightlifting technique: Slow is smooth, smooth is fast…
Wow, this is truly amazing! I am in awe. I just recently joined a gym with personal training sessions, and for the first time picked up one of those. But I believe it was 20 pounds and that was so heavy for my weak frame. I’m really enjoying the challenge of strength training, even though I begin as a weakling. Love that this was captured in a video, and I love how you pay homage to your coach. Bravo, Lainie.
Well, Heidi, if it tells you anything, even the 10-pound dumbbells were all I could do when I first started my journey. So I started exactly where you are as well! But with good coaching and amazing folks around me, I’ve watched myself grow and develop a whole new confidence in myself. And that was really hard given that I never saw myself as anything close to athletic growing up. It’s been a journey in ALL the ways.
By the way, I tried commenting on your blog got a message that I didn’t have access! I might try on a different device and see if that helps. Has anyone else mentioned anything either?
Thanks for the reply. Not sure why my blog wasn’t accessible and I haven’t heard about this.
Wow, this slice and your weightlifting blew me away! You are brave and strong, my friend! And the commentary about how even in not making the lift, you recognized the progress. So many life lessons hiding in those words. Well done!
Thanks! I feel like it’s a super, super, SUPER niche sort of hobby…which is right up my alley. =)
And about recognizing the progress…I suppose if I didn’t, I would get discouraged WAY too quickly.
This is such an amazing slice! First off, you’re a beast if you can lift anything like that at all! Secondly, it’s a masterclass in reflection. And lastly, it’s lesson you can show your students that a “win” doesn’t always look like a win. A win can be simply trying or getting a little better than you were the last time. Kudos to you for sharing!!
Thanks! And you bring up a good point – putting myself in the position of being a learner has been a game-changer for my teaching. Plus it gives me a little street cred for them to know that I lift weights. I’d also say that it helps some of my students to see that they can be smart / love school AND take care of their bodies.