American writer, Wallace D. Wattles once said, "It is essential to have good tools, but it is also essential that tools be used in the right way."
This principle is also applicable in the context of sports. Imagine being clueless about how to use the racket for games like badminton, squash or tennis.
Many times, we fail to notice that the sports equipment and training gear should be as one as the athletes, whether it's to improve their performance or protect them from injuries.
Have you ever wondered the difference when it comes to a power-based sport like Olympic weightlifting?
In this article, we will take a look at some weightlifting equipment, as well as some attires and accessories for maximum performance and safety.
Studying The Anatomy Of A Barbell — What You're Actually Lifting
The first thing that comes to mind is certainly our main weightlifting equipment aka the barbell.
The reason why it's so heavy is due to the disc weights on both ends. The more disc weights you add, the heavier it becomes as you progress to different rounds in a competition.
So you have the sleeves at the end of the bar (both sides) to hold the weight of the discs, and then you have the bearings or bushings to help in the rotation of the barbell.
Do you know that there's a difference between the barbells used by male athletes and female athletes in terms of the original measurement and the weight for international weightlifting events?
These measurements are standardised and applied across the weightlifting World Championships, Commonwealth Games, and of course the Olympics.
The barbell used during men's competition is 2.2 metres long whereas for women's competition, it is 2.01m long.
As for the original barbell weight, the barbell weighed 20kg for men's competition while the barbell weighed 15kg for women's competition.
Having said that, we certainly cannot miss out on where the most action takes place — the grip section.
Again, the grip section for both men's and women's barbells also has different measurements. The men's barbell is 28mm in diameter and 1.31 metres in length. On the other hand, the women's barbell is only 25mm.
Familiarise yourself with the essential rules and weight classes of weightlifting.
Photo by Victor Freitas on Unsplash
Getting Used To Different Dics Weight — How Much You're Lifting
Now this is where the fun part begins. If you have watched an Olympic weightlifting event, you'll notice that it's rather a colourful event. For one moment, the disc is in this colour, and the next moment, the disc is in another colour.
Let's unveil the mystery behind the different colours of different discs. For Olympic weightlifting, the discs used are either metal or rubber plastics. Generally, rubber plastic discs weigh more than metal discs.
Altogether there are five types of disc colours:
White
The white disc is the lightest among the five. Each white metal disc is 0.5kg while each white rubber plastic disc is 5kg.
Green
Next, each green metal disc weighs 1.0kg whereas each green rubber disc weighs 10kg.
Yellow
We've come to the middle-level range. The yellow metal disc is 1.5kg while the yellow rubber plastic disc is 15kg.
Blue
When it comes to the blue discs, the metal disc is 2.0kg while the rubber plastic disc is 20kg.
Red
Last but not least, we have the heaviest disc among these five. The red metal disc weighs 2.5kg whereas the red rubber plastic disc weighs 25kg each.
Important note: Collars are also placed on each end to secure the weight of the increasing disc. Each collar weighs around 2.5 kg.
To calculate the total weight that the athlete is lifting, you can use this equation:
The weight of the barbell (20kg/15kg) + the weight of two collars (5kg) + the number/types of disc weights that you add.
For Olympic weightlifting, the final winner will be determined through the combined weight of both the snatch event and the clean and jerk event.
Generally, the weight lifted during the snatch event will be less than the clean and jerk event because the snatch event requires one to lift the barbell from the ground to overhead in one cohesive motion as compared to the latter where athletes can pause before lifting the weight.
Interested to learn more about weightlifting? The best time is always now as you can always reap the benefits of weightlifting at any learning stage and age.
Dressing and Looking The Part — What To Wear
When it comes to competitive weightlifting, you must ensure your whole ensemble is functional from top to bottom for maximum support and performance.
Here are three key things to pay attention to:
Lifting Singlet
Weightlifting athletes competing during the Olympics usually put on a form-fitting lifting singlet that meets the criteria of the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) such as:
- It must be one piece
- It must be collarless
- It must not cover the elbow
- It must not cover the knees
- It can be in any colour
When you're trying out the lifting singlet, it's important to check if it allows a full range of motion when you perform different weight lifts.
Weightlifting Belts
To smoothen the lifting process as well as provide firmer support, you'll need a weightlifting belt. With the gradual increase in weight, it helps to support your lower back and core muscles during each lift.
In terms of measurement, it can be a maximum of 12cm in width and worn outside the clothes (visible).
Training Shoes
Training shoes for weightlifting ought to have flat and sturdy soles to maintain proper foot positioning during each lift.
Make sure you choose a pair that's designed with stability and balance in mind — offering good ankle support during crucial moments to avoid injuries.
It is important to know the basics of weightlifting before you pursue it as a professional sport or fitness activity.
Photo by Alora Griffiths on Unsplash
Undergo Training With Additional Protective Equipment
With great sports power comes great intensity, and also great probability for injury.
It's probably every athlete's greatest nightmare to lose an opportunity to qualify or proceed in an important competition when this happens.
Thankfully, there are certain measures that one can take to minimise this occurrence with the right protective equipment/apparel.
Let's go through some of the most common protective equipment worn by weightlifting athletes:
Weightlifting Gloves
Wearing gloves often gives athletes a firmer grip as they are lifting the barbell. Not only that, it protects hands from blisters and calluses.
Wrist Wraps
Still talking about hands, some athletes wear this to protect their wrist joints while offering stability and support as they lift heavier weights.
Apart from reducing strains on your wrists, it can also help you enhance lifting performance by having greater grip strength. It can also be worn by those who have previously had a minor wrist injury as they are recovering.
Knee Wraps
Whether an athlete is attempting the snatch or clean and jerk weightlifting, you'll need a strong and stable lift.
It has a similar function to the writs wrap, this time protecting the knee joints, especially when you're in a squatting position and waiting to lift a powerful weight. Wearing it helps to ease the tension placed on your knees, knee swelling and reduces the chances of knee joint inflammation.
Shin Guards
As you go down the body, it's also good to support and protect your shin from scrapes and bruises as the barbell may sometimes brush against your legs.
Important tip: It's worth noting that it's not compulsory to wear all of them during the actual competition as every athlete has a different need and training preference. It's important to find out what works best for you in terms of stability and performance.
Where To Find An Experienced Tutor For Weightlifting Sessions?
For those of you who are into competitive weightlifting, you might want to have an effective training session with an experienced personal coach or weightlifting tutor.
Instead of visiting gym after gym to inquire, why don't you opt for a straightforward and time-effective approach?
Finding a personal coach via a tutoring platform is certainly more convenient and efficient because you get to browse through a wide selection of tutor profiles and review their basic information before making the final decision.
Guess what? You can do that anywhere and everywhere by just heading to the homepage of Superprof Malaysia, a tutoring platform that connects passionate students and dedicated tutors.
From there, you can find out about the available learning locations (different cities in Malaysia), learning mode, teaching methodology, teaching level scope, the qualification and experience of the tutor as well as the difference in hourly rates of the tutors.
Photo by Alora Griffiths on Unsplash
Not only that, you can also have a user-friendly filtering system where you can pre-set the preferred hourly rate as you browse through the tutors' profiles. For example, if your preferred rate is RM70 an hour, the system will then direct you to the profiles of the tutors who offer lessons within that rate (either equal or below RM70 an hour).
That way, you don't have to ask for any special "discount rate" or have any confusion about the hourly rate because it's clear and transparent on each tutor's profile.
We highly recommend you to connect with a private tutor because you can learn the basics of weightlifting or take more advanced weightlifting training according to your learning pace and needs. As the lessons are all one-to-one, you can have plenty of time for personalised feedback and improve the next round.
What are you waiting for then? Find out the right way to learn how to weightlift from scratch via a Superprof tutor.
We hope this article has given you some insights on how to maximize different training gear and apparel for weightlifting.
Think of them as your precious armour to win every battle safely!
Summarise with AI:
Did you like this article? Leave a rating!
Loading...
