We all know strength training is supposed to be good for us as we age, right? But why is it so essential?

To answer this, Runrepeat.com posted a great summary of the scientific literature on aging and strength training. After analyzing more than 200 peer-reviewed studies, they’ve compiled a list of the benefits adults and seniors can expect from strength training.

In all, the summary highlights 78 separate, science-backed benefits from strength training for adults and seniors. These benefits fall into the following categories:

1. Increasing functional independence
2. Improving quality of life
3. Improving sleep
4. Reducing age-related muscle loss and sarcopenia
5. Burning fat and increasing lean mass
6. Improving osteoarthritic and bone health
7. Improving cardiovascular health
8. Improving mitochondrial health
9. Improving mental health and cognitive functioning
10. Fighting type-2 diabetes
11. Improving recovery from hip injury
12. Reducing risk of death

Head on over to Runrepeat.com to read the whole article.

Reminder: If you live in the LA area, consider joining us for our Basic Barbell Strength clinic on October 19, where we’ll teach you how to get started safely with barbell strength training.

Sean has a new article out on the Train Heroic blog, discussing accessory exercises for the Snatch and Clean & Jerk. From the article:

“There are three main ways that a supplemental exercise can assist with the two Olympic lifts: strengthening, teaching, and/or fixing. The more it has an impact – which can depend on what level the athlete is at or where they’re at in a training cycle – the more often we’ll use it. “

Read the whole article here.

The IWF Weightlifting World Championships run from Sept 18th-27th in Pattaya, Thailand.

We cobbled together (read: mostly copy/pasted) the schedule below for all A-sessions and all Team USA sessions based on the World’s thread from Reddit. We added our local time for those watching in the U.S.

Initial times listed are local Pattaya, Thailand time. Times in bold parenthesis are LOS ANGELES (Pacific) time.

The sessions will be broadcast live on the Olympic Channel. They will also be rebroadcasted on ESPN3 on the same day (and archived there for future viewing).

Sean is at the event as part of the broadcast team. When you hear the A-sessions announced via ESPN3 or other English broadcast, the voices you hear providing commentary include Sean Waxman, JP Nicoletta, and David Boffa, with help from Mark Canella and Michael Choi.

SESSION SCHEDULE

Sean will lead USAW’s Level 1 coaching course at our gym on August 24-25. Register here to join us.

Want expert feedback on your Olympic lifts without a major commitment? Look no further. Our Fix Your Technique Sundays are back.

Come fix your Snatch and/or Clean & Jerk technique under the watchful eyes of one of our coaches. Not a class but personal, custom coaching.

• Identify what you’re doing well
• Learn what aspect(s) of your technique needs the most work
• Learn drills you can take home for practice and improvement

This has been one of our most popular services over the last several years. We’re bringing it back by demand.

We’ll be open the following Sundays for custom coaching by appointment:

• July 28 – SOLD OUT
• August 18 – SOLD OUT
• September 15 – SOLD OUT
• NEW: October 20
• NEW: November 24

We now have 2 sessions available each Sunday: 10:00am-12:00pm and 12:00pm-2:00pm

Limited to just 4 people per session.

$45. Non-members only. Advanced registration required. Reserve your spot here.

Please note: These sessions are designed to fix your existing technique. You need not have lots of experience, but some prior practice is required (otherwise we’ll have no technique to fix!). If you’ve never practiced the snatch or clean & jerk, consider our BASICS course instead.