War

All my life I’ve heard the essence of sports is found in your mental game. I love the “Little Giants” movie quote that states that “football is 20% physical and 80% mental.” As jovial as that movie is there’s some truth to the saying.
Often times in the lifting world we are capable of more than our minds will allow us to achieve. The truth is very simple. 120 kg on the bar is always going to weigh 120 kg. It doesn’t change it doesn’t become heavier one day or lighter another the only thing that will change is how we approach the bar.
I had a conversation with a lifter this week to remind him that there’s only two outcomes possible when you lift: either beat the barbell or the barbell will beat you. The question becomes how determined are you to beat the weight on the bar. Today I saw an incredible mental battle between a barbell and a lifter.
Below is a video of a relatively new lifter snatching 90 kg. This is not a whole lot of weight but he is relatively new to the sport. However the story is in all the videos that were not filmed. This lifter worked up to 90 kg, missed it five times worked back down to 60 started all over again worked back up to 90kg, missed a couple more and finally got it on this attempt. No it’s not perfect, no it would likely not count in a competition setting, but after an excruciating 90 minutes of snatching the bar was over his head and stable. A victory. This lifter went to war with the barbell and the barbell lost this time.
Are there going to be days where we just aren’t able to put the weight over our head? Yes! However most of our success is based on our mental ability to beat the barbell. What happens on the platform is always a question of who’s going to win today? Weightlifting is a war with the barbell. Your mental game determines who wins.
Freedom Ha 90 kg snatch