The Weightlifting Encyclopedia: A Guide to World Class Performance [ILLUSTRATED] (Paperback)

by Arthur J. Drechsler (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Having been an international-level athlete, coach and judge, Arthur Drechsler brings a wealth of experience and love to this book. Is it possible that too much love and experience went into this book? At over 400,000 words it's tempting to think so,but the book's depth of coverage isn't a fault. It's the text's development and execution that are suspect here. The book is "encyclopedic," but only in the sense that it attempts to cover every aspect of the sport of Olympic-style weightlifting (It does not run through an alphabetized list of concepts and terms.).The editors at A is A, in their zeal to publish an "instant classic" (their own Words), failed to reign in Drechsler's prose (a good copyeditor should have lost 10,000 words) or focus Drechsler on one task (he could have written an encyclopedia and a training guide). Instead, the segment of the audience looking for a reference has to do a lot of sifting to get at the nuggets of information they want (the index helps), and those looking for a training guide would be better served to look elsewhere. This is not a gym-friendly book. Its bulk and poor design make it an unuseful practical tool, with less than adequately illustrated exercises and techniques scattered throughout the text.Yet despite these flaws, this book demands attention from all those serious about the sport. Drechsler's sheer determination toward thoroughness drives this work. In Drechsler's voice dedicated athletes will find an advocate that they may value; coaches and strength training professionals will find a force that they must reckon with. -- From Independent Publisher

From the Back Cover
The Weightlifting Encyclopedia Lifting weights is one of the most popular and fastest-growing athletic activities in the world today. While millions lift weights, many more would do so if they simply knew how to go about it. And those who know the most about weightlifting_serious competitive weightlifters_are not very accessible to the general public. Now, for the first time, their secrets are revealed. In material culled from more than 30 years of competitive experience, a review of more than 60 years of the weightlifting literature (including hard to obtain materials from the weightlifting powers of Eastern Europe), and extensive interviews with many of the greats of the sport, the author places the methods of the champions in your hands.

The Weightlifting Encyclopedia covers these topics and many others:

- How the Strongest Men and Women in the World Trained to Get That Way - Building the Mind of a Champion - Choosing the Right Exercises - Creating Your Own Training Programs - Learning and Perfecting Technique - Selecting Equipment - The Essentials of Sports Science - How Athletes Can Gain Unique Benefits From Practicing the "Olympic" Lifts - Developing Flexibility - Preparing for Competition - The Rules of the Game - Nutrition and Weight Control - The Special Needs of Women, Young Athletes, and Mature Athletes - Beginning Weightlifting and Converting from Other Sports to Weightlifting - Dealing with Injuries

Virtually no area is left untouched in one of the most comprehensive guides ever written about any sport!

Listen to what the champions and their coaches have to say about The Weightlifting Encyclopedia:

"Artie took more than seven years to write the book which you are about to read. It is the most comprehensive book on the subject of Olympic weightlifting that I have ever seen. It covers all aspects...from novice to the world-class athlete. Read, study, and apply the information you find within these covers and you will be richly rewarded with rapid improvement on your Olympic lifts. I wish this book had been available when I started the sport of weightlifting!" Tommy Kono, two-time Olympic Champion, eight-time World Champion, established 26 World Records in weightlifting and coached Olympic Teams from 3 different countries, including the US (from the Foreword).

"Magnificent! Covers every imaginable topic in depth yet in a down-to-earth style. A great book!" John Coffee, Coach of 14 Women's National Championship Teams and Five World Championship Teams

"The Weightlifting Encyclopedia is the most complete book on Olympic style weightlifting ever published..." Gayle Hatch, Coach of teams that have won more than 40 Junior and Senior National titles, as well as 3 Olympians

"Finally someone has published a book about weightlifting to be proud of. It's complete, accurate, informative, and inspiring. A definite must have. This book will help every weightlifter from novice to world champion, I only wish it were available when I competed." Bob Bednarski, Former World Heavyweight Champion and World Record Holder

"Everyone seeking knowledge pertaining to weightlifting must read this book. Every page offers new knowledge. It captures the power and complexity of this sport, yet explains the material in a simple and comprehensible manner." Robin Byrd-Goad, 1994 World's Champion and Former World Record Holder

"It's unbelievable that you've gotten so much information on weightlifting into this one book. Congratulations!" Ben Green, World Masters Champion, Coach of 3 Olympians and Co-coach of 2 Senior National Champion Teams

The author has been an international level athlete, coach, and official in the sport of weightlifting. He was the last male from the USA to set a world record in weightlifting recognized by the International Weightlifting Federation.

Product Details

• Paperback: 576 pages
• Publisher: A is A Communications; 1st edition (January 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0965917924
• ISBN-13: 978-0965917926
• Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 8.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #63,014 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars No serious weightlifter should be without this one, March 2, 2001

By	Stephen Cannon (Yokohama, Japan) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

One thing that strikes me about Mr. Drechsler's book, in its enormous length and striking detail, is the author's passion for the sport of olympic weightlifting. However, rather than being an encyclopedia of weightlifting, its a record of all things that this man has learned about developing a stronger clean and jerk and snatch in his career as an athlete and a coach. To be sure, Mr. Drechsler has accumulated quite a bit of wisdom on this topic, but even more striking is how careful he is to avoid injecting his own opinion on different training methods, but rather gives various different and frequently contradictory views on training equal treatment. Because of the author's neutral attitude towards various training method, the book does little to guide an athlete on how to enhance his strength, but it will definitely broaden the knowledge even the most seasoned weightlifter on various aspects of training. Moreover, since no other volume in the English language presents such a thorough and unbiased presentation of methods for stimulating strength gains, I can't see any reason for any serious weightlifter, powerlifter, or bodybuilder not to familiarize himself with this text.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Best Book On The Subject - but..., December 19, 2001

By	Lincoln F. Brigham Jr. "Lincoln" (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Given that there are so few books about Weightlifting and given Dreschler's exhaustive treatment on the subject in this book, based on his valuable personal experience, this is a must-have book for any weightlifter. This book is without peer.

That said, Dreschler could have used a good editor. The book could have covered the same material minus a few hundred pages. In addition, the book is text-long and diagram-short. Essays can be a wonderful tool, but so much of weightlifting can be explained better with photos and diagrams. For example, there is no freeze-frame analysis of lifting technique. How better to correct technique problems than to display examples of proper and improper technique? In this case, a picture truly is worth a thousand words.

That said, the reader should also purchase Dreschler's companion video or some other weightlifting video.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is an incredible book - a gold mine of information!, June 28, 1998

By A Customer

It is incredibly hard to get authoritative information on weightlifting. There are scores of books on how "bodybuilders" like Arnold Scharzenegger train to give their muscles that surreal appearence, but finding information on how the strongest athletes in the world train is almost impossible. This is because that information has been closely guarded by the Eastern European weightlifting powers, resides in the back issues of weightlifting magazines that are no longer published, or is available only in the little known hard core weightlifting gyms scattered sparsely around this country and the rest of the world. Drechsler has pulled together most of what is out there in this truly monumental book. From training, to technique, to selecting the right equipment, to creating a training program, to preparing for competiton, to preventing and dealing with injuries, to eating right, to addressing the special needs of women, young and more mature athletes - it's all here in this near 600 page/400,000 word work. The annotated bibliography and resource list alone are worth the price of the book. Despite his obvious expertise, the author guides you with simple and clear language through what can be an incredibly complex subject. He gives you the benefit of his experience and is clear about his preferences with regard to such areas as technique and training, but he presents a balanced view on each topic that gives each of the often warring factions in weightlifting theory their due. Whether you want to read this book from cover to cover or by randomly selected topics, the unbelievably extensive table of contents and index provide a solid guide. There is even an explanation of how the beginner can select 50 pages or so from the book and be well prepared for a trip to the gym. It seems like the author has thought of everything! We've need a source of weightlifting information for years and this book is certainly it. If authors of other how to books about other sports (or anything else) would take notice,! we'd all get better at what we need to do a lot faster. This book is a home run!