Yuri Vlasov
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Editor's Note: The following article is reprinted by courtesy of "The Australian Weightlifter" and was originally written by Mr. Oehly and Mr. deBroglio of the South African Weightlifter's Association.
This is one of the most informative articles about how other countries train their weightlifters and we thought that readers of Lifting News would receive a great deal of benefit from it.
In this article they discuss the world championships and the lifters they observed training, and tell of some of their visits with top lifters regarding training methods.
We feel this is one of the most important and significant articles we have published and we believe you will feel the same.
- Peary Rader
PART ONE
I arrived in Vienna on the 14th September. We had our first training session on Friday the 15th with the Iranians and Columbians. The Iranians were very impressive and SERIOUS. They had about 30 supporters who had come to see them train as there is apparently a large Iranian student community in Vienna.
There were only two Columbian lifters, a lightweight and a middleweight. We shared a bar with them. The unknown Columbian lightweight, Peres, proceeded to shatter our standards by pressing 264.5.
Then the shocks started.
Two of the Iranians whom we did not recognize and who looked like a light-heavy and a mid-heavy, were snatching in the region of 300 pounds!
It turned out that one of them was [Manouchehr] Boroumand . . .
. . . who placed 4th in mid-heavy with 980 total and a 308.5 snatch.
The very next minute the featherweight, Elmkhah, did an easy clean and jerk with 297.5, then 308.5, just missing with 319.5.
Their CONFIDENCE and LACK OF RESPECT for HEAVY POUNDAGES started to rattle me. They did not look faster, stronger, more intelligent, and yet they out-lifted our best by many POUNDS.
After the Olympic lifting, all the Iranians pulled out their CANVAS STRAPS and proceeded to do high pulls with wide, then narrow grips. These straps are 1" wide canvas belting, 1/8" thick. The canvas is about 24" long with a loop in the middle to put the hands through. The two ends are then wrapped around the bar inside the hands and with a slight twisting of the fingers, made very tight. When pulling, all the strain is placed on the wrist and the hands do not hurt.
This allows lifters to train REGULARLY on their pull without developing a psychological HATE for the exercise. I know many lifters who shirk their high pulls because of sore hands and I am one of them. Immediately on my return I made a pair of these straps and tried them out on my first workout. The high pulls were a real pleasure to perform.
I feel that THIS PIECE OF INEXPENSIVE EQUIPMENT IS A MUST FOR ALL LIFTERS.
I was so impressed by the standard of lifting that I power cleaned 264.5, my best ever, and then foolishly copied Iranians with high pulls working up to 341 for 3 reps. I had never handled this sort of poundage before and was so STIFF afterwards that I could not have a proper workout again until I lifted a week later.
The Iranians did high pulls until 3 days before they lifted. The feather, [Esmaeil] Elmkhahm, seated, center . . .
. . . at the end of his workout, was doing sets of 5's on high snatch pulls with 198.25 pounds and then going down into a squat snatch on the 6th rep.
The Iranians seem to train VERY HARD and rather differently from the Russians. They do not seem to put as much stress on suppleness and agility, although THEY WARM UP VERY THOROUGHLY.
The next day we heard that the Russians had arrived so we rushed to the gym. We got there before they did and found some of the Iranians training AGAIN, doing squats, press from stands, etc.
Then the whole Russian team arrived.
They stripped in the gym and we were impressed with the physiques of Vlasov, Stepanov, Kurinov and Vorobyev. Lopatin looked very smooth and young Vorobyev looked rugged but not very impressive. However, they all had one thing in common . . .
They all looked SUPPLE, SOFT, and AGILE.
They all put on elastic belts about 4" wide under their lifting costumes (so did the Iranians) -- they seemed to be used as a support for the lower back muscles, as well as the leather belt. They did a combination of shadow weightlifting with broom sticks, sprinting, gymnastics, ballet dancing, high jumping and the S.A.B.C. daily dozen.
NOTE: What is the S.A.B.C. daily dozen?
Vlasov was probably the most supple. In fact he looked almost double jointed. He stretched all his muscles, from his neck to his wrists and his back. This was the most instructive part of their training, especially when we found out that this phase of their training is carried out on their off days as well.
It was remarked that competitors like Minaev, Vorobyev, and Stogov, although old, looked fresh, supple, and completely free of injuries, sore knees, etc.
After about 20 minutes of warming up, they started on the weights.
The surprising thing is that they did not start pressing. They all did different lifts. Stogov and Minaev did a few sets of power snatches, then snatches. Kurinov did power cleans and push presses, all very fast. Vlasov did sets of 2's up to 380 in the press. We realized later that he did his presses first because he was not snatching that day, nor cleaning. He only did presses, high pulls up to 550, incline bench presses and squats. He pulled the 550 up to his chest using the canvas straps. None of the Russians worked high on the press in that workout. They seemed to be concentrating on snatching and cleaning.
Another interesting point is that they do 3 or 4 sets on 132 to get warm and then jump to a much higher weight without wasting energy on intermediate poundages. For example, Kurinov did about 4 sets of 2's in the snatch with 220, then went straight to 275 for a single and 286 for another. Minaev would jump from 132 to 198. Vlasov took 220 for his warmup then up to 303.
They all rested the next day and then trained on the Monday again, except Stogov, who just played with a broomstick, as he was lifting on Wednesday. The Russian coaches were there during the workouts, but did not seem to direct the workout and merely made notes of the poundages handled, observing styles at the same time.
On the rest days, the Russians spent about 30 minutes in the morning doing handstands, press-ups, broad jumps, floor dips, shadow lifting with broomsticks, etc. On training days they only do the shadow lifting for about 15 minutes in the morning.
One of the most impressive lifters was [Ireneusz] Palinski. He is a very handsome, rugged individual who snatched 286 easily and toyed with a 386 clean and jerk. He did not split more than 8" for the clean, jerked it, lowered it behind his neck, and jerked it again -- by far the most impressive lift we saw in training. He faithfully recorded . . .
. . . every lift we saw in his training book which he keeps very methodically.
Another sensational training effort was 3 power snatches with 242.5 by Baszanowski, Polish lightweight . . .
You can never see enough photos of Waldemar Baszanowski lifting.
On their second workout the Russians worked on the press and the clean. Minaev pressed 242.5 easily for 3 singles. Kurinov worked up to 308.5 in good style and cleaned 374 -- a very beautiful lift.
Note: Nice site here . . . start at the oldest stuff first:
He looked in fantastic shape.
Vorobyev cleaned 386, but looked rather flat.
At the end of their workout they again spent about 15-20 minutes loosening up: jumping, running, fast squats, shadow lifting with broomsticks, etc.
The Americans and Japanese arrived on Sunday (rather late I thought). Vinci, Berger and Kono trained on Monday which was their last workout. We missed them through transport trouble.
On Tuesday, Jim George, Dick Zirk and Sid Henry trained. Their training was very conventional -- 7 sets of presses, 7 sets of snatches, and about 8 clean & jerks.
THEY DID NOT WARM UP VERY MUCH, and they paid very little attention to style. They just tried to get the whole weight up and registered LOTS OF FAILURES, contrary to the Russians, Poles, Japanese, etc. Jim George had four hopeless attempts on 396 C & J.
The Americans did not seem to be very scientific about their training.
We became very friendly with Mekhanik, one of the Russian coaches who works at the weightlifting institute in Moscow. He did not do any coaching at the championships but just watched the proceedings. He holds the Left Hand Snatch world record at 192 in the lightweight division. Quite a lift! He was very friendly and gave us lots of training tips.
When I asked him for a general training program, he said it was impossible as every athlete was different and liked different exercises. He said he would give me a course after he saw me lift.
I was surprised to see him at the side of the platform every time I came off after a lift. He saw a lot of mistakes in all my lifts; bad starting position for the press, too erect under the weight, and he suggested more lay back and dropping of the shoulders. In the snatch and clean he criticized my starting position, buttocks not low enough and BACK TOO ROUNDED, CAUSING THE WEIGHT TO TRAVEL FORWARD, poor pull due to lack of high pulls and also lack of flexibility of the hips and thighs to go into a low split.
He suggested that I should snatch and clean first in my workouts at least twice a week, doing sitting presses, incline presses, or presses from a stand at the end of the workout. This more or less confirmed the general training methods of the Russians, Iranians, Poles, etc.
It was further emphasized by Louis Martin . . .
with whom we had a long chat a couple of days before he lifted.
His workout goes something like this:
Monday:
Press - 145x3; 145x3; 220x2; 250x2; 270x2; 285x1; 300x1, 1, 1.
Snatch - concentrating on technique, working up to 250.
High Clean - 320 up to 410 in 5 sets of 2.
Front Squat - sets of 2's and singles, 300-420.
Wednesday:
Snatch - sets of 2's and singles up to 300.
Incline Press - 280-350, 6 sets in doubles and singles.
Jerk From Stands - singles, 300; 350; 380; 400; 420.
Friday:
Power Cleans - up to 280, then Cleans up to 380-390, 10 sets.
Push Press - from stands, up to 340.
Sunday:
Squat Snatch - from chest position.
Full Squats - and a couple of other optional moves such as the High Snatch and Bench Press. High Snatch = "Tall" Snatch?
As you see from this workout, Louis tries to avoid using the same muscle group two workouts in succession. After talking to him you realize how much thought he has given to his training. He is absolutely dedicated and did not leave the camp from the day he arrived until he went to the hall to lift.
He told us that he has never seen any lifting at the world's championships from bantams to light-heavies. The other top grade lifters who place in the first six all have the same attitude. They do not watch any other lifting until they go on. Otherwise they would have late nights and also lose nervous energy watching the record attempts, etc.
An interesting point is that all Russian lifters rested for the whole day in their rooms the day before they competed. You would never see the Russian feather [weight] on the day before the bantams were lifting, etc.
Vorobyev seemed to actually disappear for a couple of days. He was probably a bit off form and rested more than the others.
The day they lift they act normally, walk around, play chess, etc.
A lot of the South African lifters will be interested to know that we never saw any lifters except the Americans and Philippines taking any food supplement (protein, vitamins, pep pills, etc.). They seem to rely entirely on training, rest, and ordinary food. [Ah, the naiveté of a bygone era.] Very few lifters smoked before the contest. Palinski was an exception; seemed moderate, about 6-10 a day.
Continued Next Issue in Part Two . . .
PART TWO
I would like to condense the general training principles which seem to stand out from our observations and discussions.
1) Agility and Athletic Ability
Do not neglect this important part of training. Don't forget that most of our champion lifters were pretty athletic when they first started lifting, and because of their athletic ability looked most promising, but unfortunately they neglected their other athletic pastimes and became "muscle machines," resulting in slower improvement in the snatch and clean.
Don't be afraid of running, jumping, tennis, cricket, etc. on off days. Even if these activities are a little tiring they won't make your muscles weaker but will make them more supple and coordinated and more responsive to heavy training.
A WEIGHTLIFTER SHOULD THINK OF HIMSELF AS AN ATHLETE,
NOT AS A CRANE.
It takes a real athlete to snatch 280 pounds at 148 bodyweight, or 310 at 181. Before training spend at least 15 minutes limbering up -- toe touching, trunk twisting, leaping into the air, running short distances, loosening shoulders, hips, etc.
If you are a splitter, then do deep splits and stretching, stretching as much as possible. This warmup will prevent injuries and make the muscles soft and supple.
2) Power Movements
One of the most important factors in training is the development of ultra-maximum pulling power. How can a lifter hope to snatch 250 if he can't do a high pull in good style with snatch grip with at least 280, or clean 320 if if he can't do a decent high pull with 360? There may be exceptions to this rule due to fantastic coordination or style, but I am not dealing with exceptions.
Don't forget Vlasov can pull 550 to his chest and he cleans 464. Baszanowski can power snatch 242.5 three times. No wonder he can snatch 293, and so it goes.
The more you can pull the more you can lift. Of course if you are a squatter you must develop sufficient leg power to recover from the heavy squat and if you are a splitter, a heavy lunge.
3) Planning a Training Schedule
We discussed with the Russians the problems of how often to train and they told us that they recommend four times a week in most cases: Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.
Workouts last between 2 and 3 hours. I must point out, however, that according to our observations, the whole of the three hours is not spent lifting, but at least one hour is used to changing, warming up thoroughly and loosening up after training. Actually 1.5 to 2 hours is spent lifting.
They do not rush between attempts, but take their time. THEY DO NOT SIT DOWN, but keep walking around and limbering up for the next attempt.
Mekhanik advised only 3 or 4 movements per training session.
The four weekly training sessions are different.
Athletes must not be too rigid in their training but allow their moods to dictate their workouts. If a lifter is rather tired it is better for him to have a light workout such as light presses, light power snatches, and fast light squats than to go through a heavy workout with top poundages. By having a light workout he allows muscles to recuperate but at the same time he keeps them active. A heavy workout would only tire his muscles further for his next training session.
A lifter should feel eager to train otherwise his workouts are not well planned for his constitution, and he gets more and more sluggish, thereby restricting his possible progress.
Since my return from Vienna I have been working on the following schedule. This program is suitable for a splitter in both lifts.
Monday --
Power snatch: 7 sets of 3's, 2's, 1's.
High clean: 5 sets of 2's, 1's.
Seated press: 7 sets of 3's, 2's.
Lunges: 5 sets of 3's.
Wednesday --
Power clean: 7 sets of 3's, 2's, 1's.
Jerk from rack: 5 sets of 2's, 1's.
Seated press: 5 sets of 3's, 2's.
Lunges: 4 sets of 3's.
Friday --
Cleans: 7 sets of 2's, 1's.
Push press (from rack): 5 sets of 2's, 1's.
High snatch: 5 sets of 2's.
Light presses (from rack): 5 sets of 3's.
Saturday --
Press from racks: 5 sets of 2's.
Power clean (snatch grip): 5 sets of 2's, 1's.
Squats: 5 sets of 3's.
Bench press: 5 sets of 2's.
This schedule does not include much actual lifting as I am now trying to increase my basic strength.
Every morning I spend about 20 minutes doing agility exercises and shadow lifting with a broomstick to improve my style, coordination, timing, etc.
The Press has been pushed into the background to give a chance to the fast lifts which have been handicapped for the last 10 years.
Pressing first every workout has the following results. During the first year of training the lifter uses rather low poundages which do not tire his back muscles or shoulders unduly so that his press keeps improving for a while and the fast lifts are not adversely affected. However, as the press improves, heavier poundages are handled and the back and pressing muscles are taxed unduly at every training session. Then the press begins to stick and improvement on the fast lifts becomes almost impossible.
The press sticks because the pressing muscles never get a chance to recuperate.
The fast lifts suffer because the lifter is never fresh for snatching or cleaning.
In South Africa the majority of our lifters press between 20 and 60 pounds more than they can snatch. I contend this is because of the reasons stated above. I can think of at least a dozen lifters who snatched better than they pressed early in their careers, then the press phobia took over and 5 years later their snatch had become hopeless in comparison with their press. Don't forget it takes 3 lifts to make a total, not only a good press. Anyway, by pressing in the middle of the workout the press will not suffer but, as proved by the Russians, will most probably improve.
I am sticking my neck out here, but I feel that we have been too conventional in our training methods. It is important to experiment and try out some new ideas. Most probably the Americans are slipping back so much because their training is too conventional (Kono may be the exception because I have often read that he experimented a lot with his training.).
4) Style
Perfection of lifting technique is essential in order to use basic strength to the maximum. Proper style can make a difference of at least 20 pounds on each lift, which of course means 60 pounds on a total.
Style is a combination of speed, timing, and ability to go into a low position. For the development of speed and timing, shadow lifting with a broomstick is ideal. Shadow lifting, if carried out every day will develop reflex action. By this I mean that a perfect snatch with low position will become second nature, and will become so ingrained in the mind that the applying of maximum effort will not disturb the pattern of the movement.
I think we have all seen lifters with good style (apparently so on low poundages) suddenly lose all coordination on a heavy lift. This is due to the mind not being sufficiently impressed with the pattern of the lift.
When snatching with a weight, only 20-30 repetitions are done and some of them far from perfect. With a broomstick hundreds of reps can be performed and perfection attained.
Fear of the weight can also affect coordination and this is usually due to faulty training, i.e., registering too many failures in training.
Young lifters particularly should never be allowed in training to attempt lifts which they only have a slight hope of making.
A special day should each month should be set aside for trying out maximum lifts. This can either be a small competition or training session.
I have written far more than anticipated on training, but my enthusiasm drove my pen along. I hope some of the ideas will help young lifters to avoid the same mistakes the older lifters made.
When the lifting was over we found the lifters more friendly and relaxed. We were sorry to leave as we had made a lot of good friends and we felt that there was so much we could still learn from them.
Enjoy Your Lifting!
