What's In Your Gym Bag?

We are often asked to try out and review several products during training. Over the years, we’ve picked out our favorites and tend to lean towards the same products, even as a team. Below are some of the key items that most of us carry in our gym bags to help us get through training sessions and competitions.

[Q&A] Jaden Washington: Cal Strength Junior Member or Captain America?

If Cal Strength were the Avengers, Jaden Washington would be Captain America. He’s polite, well-mannered, works hard, and always does the right thing. Jaden is representing Team USA at the IWF Junior World Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan this week and I thought it would be fitting to do a little Q&A with him.

3 Tips To Avoid Bruising Your Pubic Bone While Snatching

Having a bruised pubic bone from Snatching is painful AF. Once you have one, it feels like it will never go away. Naturally as humans, we will try to avoid pain and snatch technique will suffer. How do we even get those darn bruises? Here’s a little info regarding how they happen and how to prevent them.

Olympic Weightlifting, Strength trainingNicole LimApril 16, 2018Olympic weightlifting, Snatch, Snatch Pull, Technique, TrainingComment

How To Snatch Pain Free While Using Your Hook Grip

Experiencing discomfort in your wrist while Snatching or feel like your turnover is too slow? Nicole Lim and the California Strength Weightlifting Team weigh in on whether or not you should release your hook grip when receiving the Snatch overhead.

4 Increases To Make Before Your Next Weightlifting Competition

We are just under four short weeks away from competing at the 2017 American Open Finals. Because our team only competes a handful of times every year, having success at this competition is really important. As we get closer to game time, I like to really hone in on a couple extra things to ensure that I won’t have too many excuses as to why I didn’t perform well (jk, I’m going to do great!).

3 Scalable Exercises To Improve Your Overhead Strength And Stability

Any exercise that requires an overhead component is largely considered a core exercise. To improve stability in your overhead movements like Snatch and Jerks, we can apply unstable components to specific movement patterns in order to increase our kinesthetic awareness. One method in particular that I have found to be a huge help over the years are perturbations.

Demonstration Videos Included

Sleep Habits And Their Effect On Your Recovery

For the most part, exercise (like weightlifting) can improve your sleep quality and duration. However, it is common to see your sleep habits disrupted as a result of aggressive exercise and that can impact your recovery. Some studies suggest that excessive or aggressive exercise can overstimulate the bodies natural stress responses and stress hormones, leading to an increased heart rate and alertness. Throw into the mix a pre-workout Fast Twitch RTD and you could have trouble falling asleep missing critical recovery gains as result. We have pulled some tips that you can implement TONIGHT to dramatically change your sleep habits and improve your recovery.

IPAR, Nutrition and SupplementsNicole LimAugust 22, 2017Weightlifting, Olympic weightlifting, Training, Sleep, Recovery, Cal StrengthComment

Hand Care 101

We’ve all been there. Some days our hands are just raw from training. After training 4 to 6 days a week for 5 years on top of a full time job where I’m constantly washing my hands, I’ve managed to take pretty good care of my hands so that I have minimal tears or discomfort when I’m lifting. Here are a couple tips that have helped me along the way.

Olympic Weightlifting, Strength trainingNicole LimJuly 25, 2017Callus, Tears, Hand Care, Olympic weightlifting, CrossFit, Cal StrengthComment

Are You Taking Enough Mental Reps?

Think your weightlifting program is perfect? You've accounted for volume, intensity, exercise selection and have lined up your periodization to peak at the perfect time; but wait. Have you added mental reps into the equation? All your blood, sweat and tears could easily be for not if the mental side of training is forgotten. Don't worry, we have you covered!

A Super Food Shake to Decrease Inflammation, Boost Immunity and Aid Digestion

Sometimes, you just need to feel healthy and drink something green. I started this healthy shake to help me feel more energized and hydrated throughout the day with hopes of consuming a few more nutrients and vitamins as well. After doing more research, I’ve found that the ingredients can help combat inflammation, boost my immune system, and help with digestion!

Full Recipe Included