November morning spiderweb

Portland Oregon Weightlifting (POW) website

Check out the new website for my club!

www.francosportstraining.com/Olympic-Weightlifting

(Like the logo? I made it.)

Have a strong and safe Halloween

Photo of Chewy (the Big Sexy) by Allyson Goble of Bodytribe Fitness used by permission

my weightlifting calendar at Bodytribe Fitness

See it? On the left? That's my 2011 Weightlifting Visions calendar, hanging behind the desk in Bodytribe Fitness in Sacramento, California. Wouldn't my current one help your gym look good?

Weightlifting clinic with Jim Schmitz and Butch Curry

I attended a weightlifting clinic with Jim Schmitz and Butch Curry last weekend at Bodytribe Fitness in Sacramento. I am huge fans of both of these guys, in weightlifting and beyond.

Soapbox moment – Where were you?
We handful of attendees were fortunate to have so much personal attention from these masters, but I can't get over the idea that there weren't more people taking advantage of this amazing opportunity. I don't care how many self-appointed experts there are in weightlifting today; the fact is there are damn few legitimate experts, and here are two old timers with riches upon riches to offer to all of us youngins, from the 20-something Crossfit lemmings to the 50-something latebloomer. There are only so many masters from the height of the USA team's pinnacle era, and they won't be around to pass down their knowledge and wisdom forever. The place should've been packed.

OK... The clinic. Jim led it and Butch supported it. Jim is known for working with individuals on their unique levels - in ability, goals and limitations. He is especially known for getting the most out of adults who are living busy lives. He worked us in combination exercises, introduced us to old lifts such as the split snatch and split clean, showed us historical archive material, talked war stories, and entertained us with this corny weightlifting stand-up. By the way, he may be the only person who does weightlifting stand-up in the world... How can you possibly allow yourself to miss that?

Butch is the class clown, but it's deceptive - he's a savvy one. I take things learning weightlifting seriously - maybe a little too seriously. But Butch kept my head above my whirlpool. In the process, he gave me a few philosophical nuggets to help adjust my perspective. LIFT STUPID is a big one. "You can't think about everything you have to do. There's too much to think about," he said. "I tell people to lift stupid. Don't think about it, just do it."

They are a great team on many levels. I'll treasure the experience. I know my lifting will improve from some of things they introduced. I came out invigorated and hopeful, eager to apply what I'd learned. What's a better response than that?

my weightlifting calendar is well hung

My friend Kristoffer sent these pics of where my 2011 weightlifting calendar hangs at his workplace.

Kris is the genius behind Virtual Meet. My 2012 calendar just might help you maximize your genius potential, too.

The calendar in action! Actual Finns - software developers doing really big things - write important info on it, demonstrating how my calendars can help you think, create, get organized and be productive.

Wouldn't my 2012 calendar liven up your workspace? It's coming... in November...

Sugar Ray Leonard

Had a great time at Fight Night Oct. 8, 2011 - Vancouver PAL Pro-Am Boxing Event. Guest of honor Sugar Ray Leonard was incredibly generous with his energy, time, attention to his glowing fans.

My favorite fighter of the night was Vancouver lightweight Sammy Perez, who made a triumphant professional debut. One to watch!

Related Post
Sugar Ray Leonard pimps book on Colbert Report

PDX Weightlifting

Visited with Nick Horton at his gym PDX Weightlifting in Portland, Oregon. It's a no-frills Olympic-style weightlifting gym that is also equipped to accommodate CrossFitters looking to sharpen their technique.

There are two custom made platforms, plus a simple plywood sheet serving as a third, which is at the single squat rack in the place. The bumpers are a menagerie, including Rogue Fitness and rubber-coated Weiders. There are plyo boxes, ropes and medicine balls (leather or vinyl), and the only known "hip thrust block" made by their resident carpenter.



Nick requires all of his weightlifters to compete, and they make an impressive show of solidarity in Oregon LWC. They train aggressively; they'd have to to keep up with Nick's energy.

Nick - Nicholas Horton - is an impressive and unique guy. He's gregarious and super friendly to everyone he meets. He competes as well as coaches, keeping the split snatch form alive. Outside of the gym, he manages to keep alter identities running; he's a prolific musician (for years, he wrote a song daily and produces a high volume of his songs - all independently), perpetual student of high-level mathematics, and a prolific and skilled writer.

Nick's blog the Iron Samurai: Zen and the Art of Weightlifting, titled for his moniker, is one of the most productive and enjoyable weightlifting blogs around, collecting highlights from the web monthly and packaging them with essays, video Q&A, and updates on his team's training and competing. He produces an email newsletter which is chock full of this good stuff.

Nick strives to balance and develop all of his yin and yang aspects. He cultivates his creativity and channels it into solid contributions to the world in projects he mostly gives away.

If you're in Portland, definitely stop by to train or just to meet Nick. If you're on the internet, then get acquainted by clicking on the links I've provided. Either way, if you're into weightlifting, you gotta find out about this Nick guy...

Hip Thrusting?
If that hip thrust block got you curious, here's what that's about.

Get your mind right: peak performance is largely mental

Higher Brain Functioning in World Class Athletes

This is an excellent article because it gives specific, hard information on especially abstract concepts. If you want to excel, do not miss reading this and spending chunks of time digesting it for a long time to come.

Along the same lines, here's a book I worked through (took months to follow all of the mental exercises as instructed) and highly recommend.