Weightlifting

The weightlifting is an Olympic sport that is also commonly known as lifting weights or weightlifting . In this type of sport the main objective is to lift a bar from the ground to pass it over the head. Athletes who play this type of sport are called weightlifters . It includes a great mental and physical strength on the part of the athletes who practice it, a lot of technique, speed and precision . The body must be trained in a functional way to achieve movements with an explosive force that helps them lift large amounts of weight with excellent technique.

History of weightlifting

Giving an answer to the question of when man began to practice weightlifting is almost impossible to provide, this because weightlifting is a sport as old as man. It is considered that the Hellenic people , in their sporting splendor, regulated the first exercises with weights, although many evidences have been found that prove that ancient peoples such as the Chinese and Sumerians also practiced this sport in the same way for several centuries. It developed with more boom in Europe during the 19th century and in 1905 the International Weightlifting Federation was created., which is the entity in charge of regulating this sport. Weightlifting was incorporated into Olympic sports in the Olympics in Athens in 1896 and in those of Saint Louis in 1904. During the year 1908 it stopped being practiced, but again it returned to the games in Antwerp 1920. The female category entered the program of the Sydney 2000 Olympics .

Weightlifting exercises

• Snatch : This is the first exercise given in competition. It consists in that the person must lift the bar from the position in which it is on the ground above the head with a full extension of the arms while performing a squat, all this in a single movement. It is considered as the most technical exercise of the entire competition. The bar is placed in front of the lifter who must hold it with his hands pronated and lift it off the ground in a single movement.
• Two times: This exercise consists of the lifter first lifting the bar from the ground to the shoulders while simultaneously performing a squat and then recovering to reach the standing position. After this step, you must perform a leg curl by pushing the bar above your head, which is popularly known as a Jerk, then place your feet in a parallel position and lower the bar to the ground again. It may also be possible for the feet to be placed in different planes and for the legs to remain flexed throughout the exercise.

Weightlifting training

Weightlifting training mainly seeks to work and increase both the physical and mental strength of the athlete, in addition to their speed and technique for lifting weights. To strength train, the athlete must do a strength routine based primarily on compound exercises at low repetitions with long breaks in order to move the greatest amount of weight in each repetition and set. Training should be focused on grip as it is key to correctly lifting weights, with a good grip you can mobilize a greater weight.

Categories:

There are two types of categories in this sport and they are male and female and these in turn are divided into other types depending on the weight of the participants. In the male class there are 8 types: 56 Kg., 62 Kg., 69 Kg., 77 Kg., 85 Kg., 94 Kg., 105 Kg. And more than 105 Kg; and the female in 7 types: 48 Kg., 53 Kg., 58 Kg., 63 Kg., 69 Kg., 75 Kg. and more than 75 Kg.

Material to practice weightlifting

• The shoes are usually made of leather and have a flat heel to achieve greater stability to the person who uses them.
• The jersey can be one or two pieces, but it has to fit well to the body and cannot cover the elbows or knees.
• Knee pads that are very important because they are responsible for preventing any possible injury and giving protection to the knees.
• The belt or girdle can be used to avoid overloading the back .
• Wrist bands to protect the wrists.
• Knee pads are used to prevent injuries.
• Magnesium powder that is spread on the parts of the body, mainly on the hands and shoulders to avoid friction .