Olympic Weightlifting/Strength Training

We are the only CrossFit gym in the Atlanta area that is also a Local Weightlifting Club with USA Weightlifting.

We believe that the Olympic Lifts are so important that they should be a standard component of all athletic and fitness training.  Unfortunately they are not.  None of the big chain gyms will even allow you to do O lifts, because they don't have a clue how to teach them, they don't like people using chalk, and they don't have the right equipment.  But the O lifts  have always been a foundational aspect of CrossFit programming.  Here's what Coach Glassman says about them in the "Foundations" article:

"There are two Olympic lifts, the clean and jerk and the snatch. Mastery of these lifts develops the squat, deadlift, power clean, and split jerk while integrating them into a single movement of unequaled value in all of strength and conditioning. The Olympic lifters are without a doubt the world’s strongest athletes.

These lifts train athletes to effectively activate more muscle fibers more rapidly than through any other modality of training. The explosiveness that results from this training is of vital necessity to every sport. Practicing the Olympic lifts teaches one to apply force to muscle groups in proper sequence, i.e., from the center of the body to its extremities (core to extremity). Learning this vital technical lesson benefits all athletes who need to impart force to another person or object as is commonly required in nearly all sports.
In addition to learning to impart explosive forces, the clean and jerk and snatch condition the body to receive such forces from another moving body both safely and effectively.

Numerous studies have demonstrated the Olympic lifts unique capacity to develop strength, muscle, power, speed, coordination, vertical leap, muscular endurance, bone strength, and the physical capacity to withstand stress. It is also worth mentioning that the Olympic lifts are the only lifts shown to increase maximum oxygen uptake, the most important marker for cardiovascular fitness. Sadly, the Olympic lifts are seldom seen in the commercial fitness community because of their inherently complex and technical nature. CrossFit makes them available to anyone with the patience and persistence to learn."

To which we add the following observation:  the Olympic lifts require and develop 8 of the 10 elements of fitness described in the "What Is Fitness?" article, namely: strength, flexibility, speed, power, coordination, balance, accuracy, and agility.  When done with lighter weights and high repetitions, you can add cardio/respiratory endurance and stamina to the list, so that with CrossFit workouts involving high rep O-lifts you can work all 10 elements of fitness in one workout. 

Developing proper movement technique and increasing strength are important to improving performance in CrossFit.  Virtually all of the athletes who qualified for the 2009 CrossFit Games engaged in a secondary strength training program.  CF ATL's best athletes, including the four who finished  1st & 2nd in both mens' and womens' divisions of the CrossFit Games 2010 Georgia Sectional Qualifier, have gotten great benefit from our Olympic Lifting/Strength classes. It has long been CrossFit's conviction that the needs of elite athletes and the needs of all others differ in degree, not in kind. Everyone who has participated in our Olympic Lifting/Strength program has seen rapid improvement in their overall physical abilities.

CrossFit Atlanta now offers Olympic Lifting/Strength classes specifically tailored to the the individual.   These classes are free to CF ATL members, and $20 per session to everyone else ($150 for 10 sessions).  The afternoon classes are Monday through Friday at 5:30 PM & 6:30 PM.   Morning classes are at 6:00 AM Mon, Wed, & Fri, and 7:00 AM Tue & Thur.  These classes are appropriate for members at all levels of fitness.  Beginners will focus on seven exercises that apply to both Power and Olympic weightlifting: the Back Squat, the Front Squat, the Overhead Squat, the Deadlift, the Power Clean, the Shoulder Press, and the Bench Press. While there are certain technique requirements for these lifts, there is no single method that applies to every athlete.  During our strength classes, the coaches will guide participants through technique intensive sessions in order to correct errors in form and determine the most suitable lifting technique for each athlete’s abilities, body proportions, and strength level. Once the participant’s technique has been perfected, the athletes will begin a strength program based on Mark Rippetoe’s Starting Strength. After the strength workout, the athletes will finish with a short, explosive metabolic conditioning workout. We recommend that trainees participate in two strength workouts per week. A typical beginner can expect the following schedule:

Weeks   1-2: Technique training
Weeks 3-14: Strength bias training

Once they have demonstrated proficient technique in the seven lifts, the athletes will have the option of beginning an Olympic lifting program based on Bulgarian training methods. These classes will begin with technical instruction on the Olympic lifts followed by several sets of either the Snatch or the Clean and Jerk, a squat session and followed by a short, explosive metabolic conditioning workout. These sessions will be geared toward improving CrossFit performance. A typical advanced athlete can expect the following schedule:

Weeks   1- 2: Technique training and baseline strength evaluation
Weeks: 3-14: Olympic lift training.

Morning sessions are run by Brent Wenson, (email Brent, or call him at 678-478-5695).  Evening sessions by Jason Bourgeois, (email Jason, or call him at 504-583-9743) & Travis Cooper, (email Travis or call him at 770-846-0997)