Weightlifting Coaching

I offer group in-person Olympic weightlifting coaching for athletes of all levels, including beginners trying weightlifting for the first time who may not have any prior barbell or strength training experience. Coaching sessions are a welcoming, fun, supportive environment for developing weightlifting technique and confidence.

For beginners the session format is a class with a fundamental and scalable workout including a short warmup, snatch and clean & jerk overview and practice, and some strength building work. For more independent athletes following their own training program the session format is simply coached hours.

News

😎 Register for the Summer Meet happening Saturday June 14 @ 10:00am at RCF Barbell SODO!

Sign Up & Payment

1. Sign up

Join a session

Coaching sessions are booked in advance. Walk-ins may not be accommodated if that session did not have any sign-ups.

2. Pay

Payments are due at arrival or made in advance.

All payments are made online here. For the ease of my bookkeeping, please no cash or other modes of payment.

The most cost effective option depends on how frequently you attend coaching sessions and if you're a member of RCF Barbell. We love new members!

⭐️ Guest attending 4x per month or more?
💗 Become a member of RCF Barbell for $99/month (+tax)

💗 Member attending 3x per week or more?
💖 Upgrade your RCF Barbell membership level to RCF Barbell SODO: Unlimited WL Coaching for $199/month (+tax)

Contact

💌 Email me

🫙 Tip jar

FAQs

What if I can't be there for the whole session, such as arriving late or leaving early?

No problem! A session is just a window of time to receive coaching, and we'll aim to get the most out of the time we have. However if you're running extremely late to a session and it no longer feels worth attending you should skip it and sign up for a future coaching session instead. Any payment already made can be applied to that next session.

What should I bring?

Workout clothes that are comfortable when raising your arms overhead, squatting down low, and jumping. Because weightlifting technique involves brushing the barbell close to your legs and torso it may be helpful if the workout clothes aren't extremely baggy, and some people prefer to have those areas protected with fabric to prevent accidentally scraping skin. There is a drinking fountain, but you might want the convenience of a water bottle. If you have weightlifting / squatting shoes with a raised heel please bring them, otherwise any athletic shoe will do, the flatter and firmer the sole the better.

Do you offer programming?

I provide a beginner workout to follow when first learning weightlifting that will primarily focus on developing fundamental technique and secondarily builds some strength. Once your goal shifts from learning the lifts to increasing the weight you can lift well I recommend following a more structured training program. I suggest starting with either of these options from Catalyst Athletics:

• beginner sequence level 1-4 programs — $39-$49 for each 4-12 week blocks, includes everything you need!
• 4-5 week starter block (scroll down) — free, but you must decide all your own warm ups, technique primers, and accessories

Once you're ready to progress on from these starter programs you could choose any standard weightlifting program. I suggest one of the Catalyst Athletics group training programs which have options for training 5, 4, or 3 days per week for $35/month. If you'd like to source your programming from elsewhere, I suggest avoiding programs from Torokhtiy because they have too much volume at too low percentages. Personally I use weightlifting.ai for my own training.

I do not offer individualized programming at this time. I may in the future.

In the meantime there are Rain City Fit personal trainers who may be able to provide personalized weightlifting programming.

Events

Quarterly Gym Meets

Weightlifting meets happen quarterly at RCF Barbell SODO. These meets are not sanctioned USAW competitions, but rather informal opportunities for athletes to participate in some aspects of the meet format. They are occasions to train for and cheer each other on. Perfect for beginners to the sport or just having a structured heavy day for fun.

2025 schedule:

• Spring: March 22
• Summer: June 14 — registration is open until June 7!
• Autumn: September 20
• Winter: December 13

Learn more and register for the next meet.

Coaching Education

Coach's Training Log

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