Athletes are a unique breed of people who bring a sense of passion and ego to any activity they participate in. This is not only accepted but also encouraged. There are athletes who may play a sport for recreational purposes, join an athletic club for social reasons or train at a gym for personal enrichment. But for some athletes, there is a deeper calling to sport. I’m speaking of an athlete in the truest sense of the word – a competitor. Competitors have taken their athletic prowess to a new level and opt to challenge themselves in the arena of competition. They believe they are destined for greatness, whether they actually achieve it or not. Athletes are those who always ran better on the playground, jumped higher than others in P.E. class, and could perform tasks on the first try. For those who don’t have the natural talent, their spirit, hunger and dedication can in many cases close the gap. This is the beauty of sport. That said, all competitors have certain things that make them special. It’s their passion, pursuit of greatness and obsession that provide what all spectators come to see.
During my time as an elite weightlifter, I must have experienced every emotional and physical stress possible. As a developing athlete, my stress levels were constantly changing from whether my technique was correct or how well I would do at a particular competition to how I looked or sounded during the competition in comparison to the older athletes. By the end of my career, having been a 3-time Jr. World Team Member (1995-1997), the sources of my stress were significantly more focused on making the Olympic team, staying ahead of the up and coming developing athletes, and maintaining high U.S. rankings. During this time, I developed some specific tricks to help me focus and stay at ease prior to and during competition. I teach these rituals to my athletes now and they have seen huge success, just as I did. Though not all of them have continued to practice my secrets, it certainly has allowed them to discover their own rituals to set them at ease in preparation for competition.

Pre Competition

It is important as a coach to account for the smallest detail and prepare your athlete for anything. This begins with ensuring that he or she has their gear no matter what. It sounds so simple, so obvious, but the truth is that I have witnessed many competitions destroyed by an athlete’s gear being lost by an airline. As a U.S. National Team member, I was always forced to travel with my gear close by. I could check a bag during flights, but the equipment that was needed to compete such as singlet, lifting shoes, belt and tape had to travel on the plane with me. This always brought comfort to me, since I knew that even if my luggage was lost in transit, I would still have my “stuff” to compete. You can have my toiletries, my extra clothing and my extra sneakers, but you’re not taking my gear. I continue this practice with my athletes. It is mandatory that my athletes ensure they do not check in their necessary equipment but rather carry it on when traveling to competitions.
After arriving, gear in hand, preparation continues in the days prior to competition. Most importantly, the day before competing has always been a sensitive time for my athletes as it was for me. Training is a critical component the day before competition but it must be light, aimed at loosening the athlete up rather than being load intensive. Generally, I do not surpass 60%-70% in any given exercise. In fact, I recommend any coach who trains their athlete the day or evening before competition to do so by keeping in mind that the purpose is only to stimulate the nerves and keep an athlete’s muscles firing sequentially. Not that they’ll forget how to do so, but because this training session serves as a good stimulant prior to competition.
Following the training session, the waiting period begins. The evening leading to competition is even more important as this is often when anxiety builds. As a coach, helping an athlete to manage this anxiety is critical to achieving success the next day. Some best practices are as follows:

• Watch TV sitting up with all lights on as oppose to in dim lighting, lying down on the bed. Lying in bed with lights low tells your body it’s time to sleep. When you don’t follow through on this direction to rest, you will find yourself unable to sleep once the television is off and lights are out. By then, it is too late. The body accepted watching TV with lights low as a time to be awake. Unfortunately, you will spend significant time trying to reprogram your mind, but sleep will not come easy. Sitting up with lights on offers the athlete the opportunity to shut it all down and “wind down” for sleep later. Ever heard how the mind can play tricks on you? Well. guess what? You too can play tricks on it.

• Grooming is a ritual best done the night before competition. For me, shaving my face, getting a haircut, or attending to nails etc always gave me a fresh, new feeling. This serves to revitalize an athlete and allow them to feel prepared to give a huge effort the next day. Yes, even in the sport of Weightlifting men may shave their legs. Of course, they’re going to tell you that it was to minimize friction between the barbell and the shins on the first pull as well as the quadriceps during the transition and second pull (I began my career in a time when singlets were high cut, not the knee-length they are today) but, truth is they like the way it makes their legs look.

• Do not try sleeping early in an effort to “get a full night’s rest.” This is a big mistake. I have found with my own career and my athletes’ careers that the best thing to do is to follow the points above and only lay for bed when one feels drowsy and sleepy, even if that results in the athlete only getting 6 hours of sleep. I realize this may contradict what many specialists have to say, but I speak from experience of not only myself but also of the athletes I’ve coached, which range from the 12-year-old developing athlete to the 20- year-old elite U.S. Jr. World Team to the 45-year old competing locally for the love of the sport. Attempting to go to bed early, especially if it is much earlier than normal bedtime, places the athlete at risk of a sleepless night. Their mind may wander and they are likely to stress out about the time of night and how they aren’t in deep sleep, leading their body into restlessness. Now they find that they can’t sleep and as a result sleep far less than the above example of 6 hours….or at least think they do. Perception is reality. If the athlete tosses and turns all night, most likely they do sleep some but feel as if they were in and out of consciousness all night long, whether they were or not. That feeling is not one to have before being asked to compete at maximal effort. So, I recommend allowing the athlete to read, watch TV or socialize quietly in a room until the point where they begin to feel drowsy. You may find this will actually come sooner as the athlete doesn’t stress about getting to bed early and has the freedom and empowerment to sleep when they feel ready. By encouraging them to stay up until they feel sleepy, you will both reduce some unneeded stress and ensure that whenever they do decide to sleep, they’ll do so with ease, thus providing quality sleep. 6 hours of wonderful sleep surpasses 9 hours of tossing and turning.

Day of the meet

Athletes tend to be superstitious people. The day of the meet is key in controlling anxiety and properly preparing an athlete for a perfect day. After waking well-rested and ready to compete, the athlete should do as they normally do to shower or dress. Once you’re in the day of competition, there’s no turning back. It’s time to hit the venue and perform. I teach my athletes the following:

• Never change a routine. Competitions are not the place to try something new, especially new 1RMs, which I’ll touch on in a moment. If an athlete never uses certain rituals such as sitting in a hot tub for hours the night before, then don’t allow them to do so once in competition mode. I encourage athletes to maintain the same practices they normally perform during training. Remaining consistent is important. For example, I’ve caught some of my younger athletes “overdosing” on energy drinks right before competition when they normally don’t in training. Without wasting space on how I feel about consuming these counter-productive products, I’ll only emphatically state to keep your athletes (especially the young ones) away from them. I would certainly have a different opinion if what I have experienced was more positive but unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on how you look at it, I’ve only seen them cause problems. Drinking energy drinks to get “pumped up” to compete overstimulates the body. I’ve seen plenty of athletes get the jitters during warm up or the competition. As a result, they don’t think straight and lose that very important connection between the brain, nervous system and muscular system--not to mention that their heart rate speeds, blood pressure rises, and their body temperature is higher than it needs to be, or that they could be violating USADA doping guidelines for competition without even knowing it. Isn’t natural adrenaline, excitement, and overall anticipation enough to heighten the athlete’s awareness? Now, I am not in any way bashing energy drinks for the purpose they serve. I just don’t believe they have a place in competition, especially if the athlete is not used to consuming them in training. Why have energy drinks caused problems for an athlete’s performance? Not because of the product themselves but because the athlete will more times than not consume too much. I’ve actually seen a young weightlifter kill two cans of a popular energy drink only to become nauseous and irritable, leaving them unable to perform.

• This next part applies primarily to Olympic Weightlifting focusing on maximal attempts. I’ve had a long lasting practice that tournaments are not the place to attempt new personal records with the exception of close competition where it’s worth the risk in order to win. Training is the place to try 1RMs. Why? Because you have all day to try. There are not any judges, time is not of the essence and the pressure on the athlete is significantly less. This is the circumstance where continuous efforts can be made. In Olympic Weightlifting, the athlete has 3 attempts at a particular event. That’s it. Athletes should make the best use of those attempts and ensure they are successful. My philosophy has always been that it doesn’t matter what you do in training; if you don’t do it in a meet, it doesn’t count. After all, we’re competitors. We don’t call ourselves athletes because we only exercise. We call ourselves athletes because we compete, we fight, we challenge. What good is it to have a 150kg (330lbs) Clean + Jerk in training but you only successfully lift 125kg (275lbs) when in front of referees? It is important that attempts, especially the first two, are weights that have been executed a number of times during training, perhaps in the range of 85%-95% of their current bests. If they’re strong, those weights will be enough to place high in the competition. If they’re not, well, why not keep the athlete in their comfort zone and let them walk away content with a good performance because they were not at the top of the class this time around? Now, as I said, there is an exception to this rule--and that is in the case of close competition. If you or your athlete is in a situation where personal records are needed to place high, and nothing else will matter, well then you do what you went there to do, win! Put it on the bar and give it your best. Perhaps the rush will give you the little extra strength and timing you need. Just keep in mind; you’ll only have that one chance. There are no repeats.

• During competition, there are always situations where athletes and coaches have to abort their game plan and quickly change strategies. For weightlifting, it comes when other coaches manipulate the score cards to optimize their athlete’s chances at winning but may leave you with less time to prepare or, in some cases, way too much time. It can also come from schedule delays but the most crucial component is still time on the clock. A strategy that always works for me is to not include the athlete in the decision-making process. Of course, you must know your athlete and make choices that do not negatively affect them. There are times when you consult with them to see how they feel about a scenario, but attempting to alleviate as much stress as possible is paramount. The athlete has much to worry about as is so leave them be. It’s the coach’s responsibility to filter unforeseen problems and reassure the athlete that they have nothing additional to stress about. Too often coaches wear their emotions on their sleeves, which will ultimately be reflected in the athlete who feeds off of the coach. If the athlete sees you stress and lose composure, they’ll be thinking about the wrong thing when they’re called upon the main stage. Then whose fault is it when the athlete is distracted and does not perform?

• Visualization is a huge part of mental preparation and stability. If an athlete can see it happen enough times in their minds eye, they are more likely to make it happen on the platform. I once would sit in a corner between every warm up set, staring at the ground, visualizing that I was witnessing myself commit the perfect lift. I encourage all of my athletes to find their best viewpoint and experience the movement, the strength and the meet in their head over and over again. Don’t worry. They will snap out of it when their name is called. You won’t lose them for long. Then I ask them to see it again and again. My viewpoint was third person and sometimes in the first person. Once athletes get comfortable seeing or experiencing a great performance in their heads enough times, they’ll be amazed at how it becomes reality.

• Athletes need companionship during their moments of athletic execution. Even those who prefer to seclude themselves with earphones in a corner must know that not far away from them is their companion, their coach. The person who is their only connection to the logistics of the tournament and who gives him/her the necessary information to proceed, to stand up, to get ready. It is good practice to never let your athlete feel lonely. They are in total control of their performance. Coaches prepare and mold the athlete but in the end, during those last seconds of testing, it is the athlete who has to make it happen. Nonetheless, knowing they have someone they trust nearby is essential. I make good practice of walking my athlete to the chalk tray and as far as I can until the official tells me I’ve gone too far. It is at that location that I wait for them on their return, whether successful or not. Even the toughest athlete needs that comfort. Give it to them.

There are people among us who are either born with, or develop the attributes of, being not only athletes but also competitors. It is their physical and neurological capabilities built on an unshakeable foundation of their spirit, pursuit, ego, and passion. Competitors are continuously striving for more. During training, they sacrifice themselves to pain and exhaustion, attempting to maximize every second of their sessions. They dedicate themselves tirelessly to be just one hundredth of a second faster than their competitor or just 1kg stronger than the next lifter. Prior to competition, they are in their hotel rooms staring at themselves in the mirror, moving through their technique in slow motion, visualizing being on stage. Their rituals give them the little extra edge needed for competition. Encouraging each athlete to develop their own practices before and during competition can and will reduce a certain amount of stress and bring them comfort. After competition is over, what do they talk about? The next meet.

I can tell you that I have always experienced a deeper meaning of hard work and athleticism. I had always enjoyed being an athlete, and now, coaching them, watching them grow, and feeling victorious. Athletes take with them a specific mentality to continuously strive in life when they embark on the “real world” after they have retired. Years after their athletic career is over, athletes are still dedicating themselves to something, be it work, school or family. Once an athlete, always an athlete.
It’s in us all to some degree but for those who choose, for whatever reason, to make sport an importance in their lives it is a wonderful thing. I may be a coach now but I’m always an athlete. Because us athletes, never rest.