I guess I should start this article by telling you something you already know. Or maybe you don’t know it…I’m not sure. I can’t be certain because I’m in a different place than most of you. And I should probably explain what that means.

When I say I'm in a "different place" than you, I’m talking about the length of time I’ve been in weightlifting. At the moment, it’s been 27 years since I started competing and almost 30 since I started training. That’s a lot of mileage on the tires. I have a feeling it’s a lot longer than most of you, which is why I say I’m in a different place. The difference between you and me is simply my years of experience (unless you’re one of those people who have been in this game longer than me, which is possible but unlikely).

Please don’t think I’m bragging by talking about how much experience I have, because that’s not what this is supposed to be. It might sound like I’m claiming to be wiser or better than you because I’ve been around longer than you have, but I’m not. I say this because I know people who have been in the sport even longer than me. Some of them are wise, and some are idiots. So I totally understand that years of experience don’t make you a genius, which is why you can be sure I’m not using the length of my career as a boast.

Let me get to the point, okay? Olympic weightlifting has undergone a massive population explosion over the last 10 years. You’ve probably heard this already. Because of CrossFit and a few other factors, the sport is more popular right now than at any other point in history. I’ve always thought the readers of this magazine come mostly from that population explosion. Based on what I’ve learned, I don’t think the majority percentage of Performance Menu subscribers are grizzled old veterans. Some, maybe, but not most. The largest demographic of our readers, as far as I can tell, comes from this wave of athletes and coaches who have sprung up since around the 2005 range. How about it? Am I right?

Getting back to telling you something you already know… The “something” I’m talking about is this fact: Olympic weightlifting has changed a lot over the last decade. Even though I just speculated that many of you are relatively recent additions, I have a feeling you’ve probably clued into the fact that weightlifting is different than it used to be. I’m not talking about the technique of the lifts, or training, or any of those basic nuts and bolts. I’m talking about the landscape of the sport, the culture of it. You’re all readers, obviously, and I have a feeling you’ve learned enough to give you an awareness that the population explosion has brought the winds of change with it.

However, I want to tell you HOW weightlifting has changed. You’re reading this magazine because you want to learn, and I’m fairly certain you’ll be a better athlete or coach if you’ve got a heightened awareness of what’s going on in the sport you’ve committed a great deal of your life to. It can’t just be about training, programming, technique, and diet. You’ve gotta learn more than that. So I want to give you a short list of two big changes I’m seeing in weightlifting, and I promise I’ll make some connection to your career that’ll expand your overall understanding of this game. Smarter is better in weightlifting. After almost 30 years, I’m positive about that.


So let’s start with the ladies…

If I had to pick one thing, and I mean one overwhelmingly obvious difference I’ve seen in Olympic weightlifting since my career started in 1988, it would be the rise of the women’s division.

A little background is necessary. Organized competitive women’s Olympic weightlifting started in the late 70s. The first US women’s national championship was in 1981. However, it’s pretty important to know that women’s weightlifting wasn’t included in the Olympic Games until 2000. Didn’t know that, did you? Yup, the 2000 Games in Sydney was the first time for the ladies. Before that, they had been in the World Championship, Pan Am Games, etc. But they didn’t get into the big dance until 2000.

This fact alone reveals something. You see, most of the other countries of the world didn’t start giving a crap about women’s weightlifting until it became an official Olympic sport. The number of women competing in the sport, both in the US and internationally, was relatively small compared to today. Back when there was no Olympic carrot dangling out there, the sport wasn’t attracting the highest quality female athletes. Girls with tons of athletic ability were gravitating towards sports that had some Olympic opportunity, like track and field or gymnastics. Foreign countries weren’t dedicating any effort or money to the ladies, either. With no Olympic connection, there was no reason for them to pump their most talented girls and resources into weightlifting.

Because of this, the level of performance in women’s weightlifting was nowhere near what it is today. As soon as women got into the Olympics, everything changed. Mega-talented girls started showing some interest in the barbell, and records started getting smashed into oblivion, nationally and overseas. Let me give you a few numbers that demonstrate what I’m talking about. We’ll take a look at the US National Championship, okay? And let’s pick a pretty impressive lifting number, like a 100 kg clean and jerk. That’s an impressive weight for a female to lift overhead, any way you want to slice it. Now, this is how many C&Js you saw at 100 kg (or higher) at the US National Women’s Championships around 20 years ago, and now:

1993	1994	1995
5	7	4

2013	2014	2015
23	41	48

Back in the 80s and 90s, a US woman who could C&J 100 kg was probably going to make the World Team, whatever weight class she lifted in. Nowadays, there are 10 women in the B session of the 69 kg class at the Nationals who can hit 100 kg. We’re not even talking about medal contenders.And how much change has there been at the world level? Holy jeepers. The last World Champion we had for the United States in the women’s division was my friend Robin Byrd Goad, who won the 1994 Worlds with a 175 total in the old 50 kg weight class. That was the WORLD Championship. The current 2015 world record in the 48 kg weight class for the women is 217. Karyn Marshall clean and jerked a world record 303 lbs. back in the 80s, and Tatiana Kashirina currently holds the record at 418.

Listen, there’s just no other way to describe it. The competition level of women’s weightlifting has skyrocketed over the last 10 years. If you compare the women’s world records of the 80s and 90s to now, the gap is enough to make your jaw hit the floor.And make sure you understand I’m not disrespecting the ladies from the old days by making this comparison. They were the best lifters of their era, and they deserve all the respect in the world. I’m not pointing out this number comparison to humiliate anybody. I’m pointing it out because it’s the biggest change I’ve seen in weightlifting during my career, as I said.


And then there’s another change (and it’s awkward)…

I’m not even sure how to describe this next one. I know it’s there, and I know what it is. But putting it into words is going to be tricky, with significant potential to offend somebody.

Thousands of new people have flooded the sport in recent years, as we’ve established. But the TYPE of new people we’re seeing…that’s what I’m talking about. Let me explain. Since the population explosion has happened, I’ve noticed a big surge in the number of educated, professionally successful, high-achieving personalities in the sport. I suppose that’s the easiest way to start making this point. Sure, we all know there are some dipsticks running around out there. That’s clear enough. I’ve probably heard the word “bro” more in the last three years than I did back when I was in high school. No doubt about it, the rise in weightlifting numbers has brought along a new wave of mental midgets.

But you know what?That’s not the majority of what I’m seeing. From my perspective, a large percentage of the new weightlifting crowd is pretty impressive. They read a lot. They research things. They want to learn. They’re also ambitious. They want to be successful as athletes.They want to open gyms and build programs. They look sharp and they act right in public. Many of them are older working adults who have established themselves in their fields.There’s just no other way to describe it. We’ve got more winners in the sport than we used to.

So…does this mean I’m calling the older generation losers? No, I’m not saying that at all.We had plenty of winners in the previous generation, sure. We’ve just got a lot MORE of them now. That’s my main point. I’m also definitely saying it was easier to stay afloat in this sport 20 years ago, because the competition level wasn’t as high as it is now. Back in the old days, you could run a weightlifting program in a pretty shabby facility, host meets in garages, and have a ramshackle approach to your business. And you would still attract some talented athletes to your program simply because there weren’t that many places for lifters to go if they wanted to train seriously. Fast forward to 2015, and there are sharp new facilities popping up all over the place with charismatic young coaches who want to start building an empire. Most of these coaches aren’t real weightlifting experts yet because their experience in the sport is limited. But you know what?They work hard, and they run their programs the right way. That means they’re going to attract some talent. In other words, barnyard facilities and mediocre organizational effort just doesn’t cut it anymore. If you want to plant your flag in weightlifting these days, you’ve gotta bring better ammunition than you used to.
Back in the old days when I started, it also seemed like there was a more substantial population of borderline personalities and loose cannons in the sport. People with questionable social skills, very little business acumen, and…just not that much on the ball. Sorry, I know that sounds judgmental. I don’t mean to come across like a jerk, because I’m far from perfect myself. But I’m telling you…the overall quality of the clientele has improved. I’ll make that statement and stand behind it.


So…………..

Where does this leave you?Is there anything we can find in this discussion that will make your weightlifting career better? Any benefit to you, or did we just waste a few minutes?

You already know the answer to that. I’ve always held the opinion that it’s important to know some history about the important fields of your life. Whether it’s your professional area, your family, your ethnic background, or your sport of choice, I think it’s valuable to understand where you came from, and who came before you. The decisions you make, and the conflicts you have to manage, can often be easier to navigate if you’ve got a wider perspective of the big picture everything fits into.

There’s also a message here that the ability to adapt is going to be a valuable weapon as we all move forward into the great wide future.Staying stuck in your ways and refusing to roll with the changes that are happening around you…it can cost you dearly. Trust me, I’ve seen some of the old guard fall by the wayside in recent years. One veteran coach I used to know gave a speech at a big weightlifting meeting where he said we need to quit wasting our time on “recreational lifters” and focus all our efforts on our Olympic hopefuls. As you might imagine, his business has stayed miniscule over the years, while other gyms that treat “recreational lifters” with respect have forged ahead of him. And then there’s the CrossFit thing. Believe it or not, there are still some members of the old weightlifting generation who are establishing themselves as CrossFit enemies because of their one-sided opinion about how the Olympic lifts should be performed.

If you want to stick to your guns on points like this, it’s your right. There are certainly some areas where we need to cling to older traditions instead of going new-school. I believe this to be true. However, we all need to step back and take a good long look at which direction this whole thing is heading. Once the writing on the wall becomes clear, we have to make decisions about whether we’re going to change…or not. Most of you are in the new generation, so you don’t have any old habits that are dying hard. But if you stay in this business long enough, you’ll eventually be one of the dinosaurs. When that time comes, other changes will start happening around you. They’ll be things we haven’t seen coming, just like nobody saw CrossFit coming 25 years ago. When that time comes, will you pound your shoe on the table and refuse to budge? Or will open up your mind and move in a different direction?Because I’ll guarantee you something, it’ll move in that different direction whether you’re on board or not. If you want to stay in the game, you’ll have to decide if the changes are something you can live with. Choose your path, and don’t be afraid to let the past help you decide your future.