The end of 2019; the end of a decade

Just a short blog post to keep track of this years progress (in relation to my past two blog posts in 2018 and 2017). 

Achievements

Olympic Weightlifting wise, my personal bests have not increased as much as I would've liked them to. However, I did hit my goal of Clean and Jerking my body weight (47kg) and I have since lifted this weight whilst only weighing 45kg. My snatch personal best has increased to 34kg and I am not far off 35kg. My Snatch technique was a bit wobbly at the start of the year as I could not get out of the bad habit of power snatching, that has now resolved itself.

This year I competed in my first Powerlifting competition (North West Juniors) and gained 6 North West records in the SubJunior -47kg Category. Later on in the year, I travelled 100 miles to compete in the British Junior Championships in Northumberland scoring myself 15 Records (2 British, 4 English and 9 North West records). I placed first and achieved a deadlift personal best of 100kg! My best lifts were: 60kg Squat, 35kg Benchpress and my 100kg Deadlift, making me a British -47kg Subjunior Champion. My personal bests for these lifts are: Squat- 63kg, Bench- 38kg, Deadlift- 100kg.

I completed my level 2 Weightlifting Coaching course this year, making me a fully qualified coach. I have enjoyed coaching and programming the OASIS Weightlifting Squad (OWLS), helping our young 6-7 year old lifters enjoy the sport and coaching the under 15's in competitions. 

Irish dance wise, we have performed quite a bit this year and I can pick up steps much quickly than I could last year. We are starting a dance that has a focus on rhythm and has no music, we will perform this in 2020 (video will be posted on my Instagram).

2020 Goals

Here are some targets I have set for myself:
Clean and Jerk: 49kg or more
Snatch: 35kg or more
Squat: 65kg or more
Benchpress: 40kg or more
Deadlift: 105kg or more
Coach within a British or English Youth competition
Gain my Weightlifting technical officials qualification
Enter more Powerlifting competitions and hopefully qualify for the British Juniors again

A decade summarized

The end of 2019 will be my official ending of a decade in the sport of Weightlifting, I came into the decade merely lifting a 15kg Women's bar, not being as technically sound as I am now and having no idea about the tactics of coaching. I had never really tired Powerlifting and I still did gymnastics! This sport has really helped me to grow and tackle anxieties throughout this decade. I cant wait to see where the next 10 years take me, as I am starting a degree in Physical Education next September. See you in the new year!