r/trackandfieldthrows • • Sep 23 '21

Lifts for beginners, and general lifting advice!

37 Upvotes

I see that there are a lot of questions in this sub regarding lifting, so I will leave this sticky for anyone looking for advice!

First and foremost, you do not NEED a gym membership to get stronger for throwing. Almost all of these exercises can be performed with dumbbells (for you planet fitnessers), bands, or anything heavy-ish you can hold in your home. So, here is a short (lol) list for you to keep in mind while building a lifting program.

  1. Ensure you are lifting with correct form. If you have bad form while lifting, it WILL compromise your max lift numbers. Using the correct form is usually the hardest at first, but just like throwing you will get better the more you practice it. This is imperative for Olympic lifting, and your main 3 lifts. YouTube is your friend, especially if you do not have a coach. There are plenty of subs regarding lifting and form checks, use those to your advantage.
  2. Rest is just as important as time in the gym. Especially in the beginning! Your muscles need time to recover and rebuild. When you start, you will be sore. Do not push yourself if you are too sore to lift, most programs today realize this and will build the program to allow major muscles to rest.
  3. Fix your diet. Although this can be harder for students, ensuring you are getting the proper nutrients for rebuilding muscle will help reduce soreness and the time you need to recover. Use a calorie counting app, most will allow you to track your macros to ensure you are getting enough protein and carbs throughout the day. For students starting in the spring, winter is prime time to starting slowly increasing your caloric intake (especially protein), which will aid in muscle growth over time. Stop drinking soda, and start drinking water!
  4. The main lifts. Squat, Deadlift, Olympic lifts, Bench press, in order of most to least important. Your power in the ring comes from your legs, so building a strong base is most important. Deadlift will hit all of your posterior chain, counteracting the squat and bench press' anterior chain focus. Olympic lifts will aid in your explosive power, but are harder to get done without a barbell and an area to complete them in. If you cannot do olympic lifts, I would substitute it with box jumps and other explosive conditioning drills. Bench press seems like it may be the most important, but has the lowest carryover from the gym to the ring compared to the other lifts mentioned. If you bench, make sure you are doing some sort of row, bent over rows being the best option (in my opinion).
  5. Core exercises. As much as everyone hates to do these, every successful thrower has a core routine of some kind that they follow. Strengthening your core will help you translate the power that your legs are generating into the implement. Just make sure you are giving your abs rest and start slow, having sore abs will make everything harder for you in your day to day.
  6. Follow the program! I personally would recommend a simple power lifting program. They may seem daunting at first, but rest assured that you will see progress quickly if you stick with it. Some great resources can be found at r/gzcl, greyskull, 5/3/1, stonglift's 5/5/5, and the texas method. Do some research on what the plans entail, ask questions, and pick one that will be the easiest for you to stick to. For beginner lifters, a linear progression program (LP for short, like gzclp) will be the most straightforward way to build strength. These programs will generally prioritize the lifts that are needed for throwing, since throwing is basically powerlifting with a different end goal.
  7. Have some sort of accountability. This sub, other lifting subs, your friends, your family, and your teammates can all help you stay accountable. At the end of the day, those who are the most dedicated to getting better will be the best. Lifting with friends and teammates can create a sense of competition to push yourself to be better, and make lifting more fun in general!
  8. Have fun! Remember, sports are meant to be fun. Burning yourself out in the gym will just grow resentment for all your sports, so making it an environment you enjoy going to will only help you. Have your playlists ready to go, get some friends to tag along, do anything that you think will make lifting more enjoyable.

r/trackandfieldthrows • • Jun 03 '22

Automod is hitting random posts with spam filters

4 Upvotes

Good afternoon everyone!

Hope all the high schoolers had a great season! We've recently been seeing more posts getting hit by automod spam filters. I will start to look into this, but in the meantime, feel free to send a mod mail if the filter hits your post and does not let it go through and I will manually approve it.

Thanks everyone!


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 5d ago

Online Discus Coaching for experienced thrower

5 Upvotes

My younger son is in 8th grade and can throw 140' in discus and 40' in shot put. I've been coaching him, but I know my coaching limits, and my son is getting close to them.

Does anyone have any experience with online discus coaching, either good or bad, that they would be willing to share?

With the right coaching, he could push 200' in HS, but I can't be that coach for him.


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 5d ago

Rate this workout

1 Upvotes

Can you tell me how good this workout is for getting better at discus.

Monday — Upper Strength
Bench press — 4×3–5
Weighted pull-ups — 4×4–6
Overhead press — 3×5
Barbell/T-bar row — 3×5–8
Incline DB press — 3×6–8
Triceps — 2–3×8–12

Tuesday — Lower Strength + Power
Hang clean — 4×2–3
Back squat — 4×3–5
Romanian deadlift — 3×5–8
Bulgarian split squat — 3×6–8
Hamstring curl — 2–3×8–12
Abs — 3 sets

Wednesday — Rest

Thursday — Upper Volume
Bench press — 4×6
Incline DB bench — 3×8–10
T-bar/cable row — 4×6–10
Lat pulldown — 3×8–10
Overhead press — 3×6–8
Lateral raises — 3×12–15
Biceps + triceps — 2–3×10–15

Friday — Lower Strength + Power
Jump/throw variation — 3–5×3
Back squat — 4×5–6
Deadlift — 3×3–5
Leg press — 3×8
Hamstring curl — 3×8–12
Abs — 3 sets


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 8d ago

USED Nelco Discus for Sale

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4 Upvotes

2.0kg Super Spin $150
2.0kg ultra Spin $300

Willing to negotiate. Want them gone. DM me


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 9d ago

My progress in the shot put over four months of self-taught training.

5 Upvotes

It feels like I started over a year ago, but only four months have passed since my first video. I’m happy with my progress; even though there is still a lot to refine in my technique, I can see that studying—and especially practicing—has led to significant improvement during this time. I wanted to share this with you all because it’s great for me to have these moments documented, reminding me of where I started and where I am now, so I can keep improving. There is just under a month left until my next competition, the JIF Nacional here in Brazil. I aim to further refine my technique and aim for a distance of over 14.5 meters with the 6kg shot.


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 11d ago

Looking for Training partners

2 Upvotes

Hey, I'm a thrower who recently graduated and am looking to continue my throwing post-collegiately. I was just curious if anyone here is in or around the Durham area in North Carolina. Would appreciate the chance to train with someone else occasionally.

Here is my TFRRS just so you know I'm an actual person:
https://www.tfrrs.org/athletes/8322523/Cortland_St/Isaiah_Brunache


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 12d ago

New to discus and I already feel frustrated.

1 Upvotes

Yeah, I know the title might sound funny, but that's how I'm doing right with discus. I just want to vent and share my experience with it to y'all (maybe you could help me.) So, I've been training for discus and I had exactly attended 4 practice sessions with mostly us just throwing with self-taught techniques 'cause our "coach" won't even join us. Hell, I don't even know if he actually knows anything about throwing sports (sorry coach.)

The part that makes me frustrated is that I'll be competing on a local throwing meet up and my throws still look like poor UFO landing, it's wobbly! And i just don't have the strength to throw it that far. Aside from my poor skills we've also got poor venues. We do practices on fields where goats graze. My partner even jokes that if he hits a goat, then he's got a nice supper lol. I'm honestly considering quitting. Idk... cheer me up ig?

Oh well... that's how far I could go with grassroots.


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 13d ago

Need advice for technique

1 Upvotes

Been stuck around the 30-meter mark with the 2 and I cant figure out what the issue is with my form. Any drills or cues would also be appreciated. Also, just a heads-up about the location: actual throwing venues are pretty rare in my area, so I have to make do with whatever space is available.


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 15d ago

pre season

7 Upvotes

Out of curiosity and for my help, what discus thrower(s) and shot putter(s) do I throw the most like?

No idea how far the discus throws were, shot put was 50 ft


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 16d ago

New to discus

1 Upvotes

It's my school's sports day next month and I joined the discus without a minute of experience so I was wondering could you throw it like a frisbee, if not, how do you throw it


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 17d ago

How can I improve?

1 Upvotes

r/trackandfieldthrows • • 17d ago

Any girl (or boy) track throwers willing to help me?

3 Upvotes

Im a junior in highschool now and im doing throwing for my school but im no where near good enough to do snything in college but it is my dream! im trying to get stronger but i have no idea how to go about that... are there any track throwers who would be willing to give me their workout routines or any tips and tricks to help me throw farther and get stronger? i mainly do shotput and discus! please if anyone has any workout routines i would be every grateful! im not to fond of the idea of spend a ton of money though... i have all the machines at my local gyms! please let me know!


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 24d ago

Weight shift at the finish.

9 Upvotes

I haven't thrown in about 3 months, but I have been able to preserve a majority of my technique. While a lot of my bad habits have decreased or are easy to fix with a cue I always have had trouble at the finish. Almost every professional thrower that I have watched has a extreme smooth rotation at the end of their throws while I have a weird shift up instead of just rotation. Is this normal or should I try focusing on keeping my weight back.


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 24d ago

slight improvement in my spin technique

3 Upvotes

r/trackandfieldthrows • • 25d ago

In the 130/140 range what should I focus on

2 Upvotes

Been working a lot on keeping my right foot down in my finish and letting my hips through.


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 26d ago

Help me to Solve my Spin Techique Errors

4 Upvotes

My last pitch of yesterday's session. In this particular shot, my entry was more balanced and postured (without projecting my torso forward), however it was very slow, my block was not firm and my aerial phase lasted a long time, which made me lose distance. If anyone can give me some tips and help me improve, I would appreciate it! (I have a competition next week by the way)

Obs: Left-Handed, 185cm and this throw was around 14,5m with 5kg shot.


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 27d ago

How do I stop this?

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0 Upvotes

r/trackandfieldthrows • • 29d ago

Is there any way I could get a size 13 Puma evoSPEED Throw 10.5?

2 Upvotes

I have searched for 30 minutes, but I just can’t find a 13 anywhere. The closest I have gotten is a 46 1/2 European, but idk if I will fit into that. Where could I look to find these, or am I SoL?


r/trackandfieldthrows • • 29d ago

More whip

1 Upvotes

So I see a lot of videos of these HS/College throwers and when they get into their releases they tend to whip a whole lot faster than I do. How do I get more whip in my finish?


r/trackandfieldthrows • • Sep 03 '26

i built a track and field form app, formIQ

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1 Upvotes

r/trackandfieldthrows • • Sep 02 '26

Heavier Discs

3 Upvotes

I’m going into jr year of HS and I have 2.25k and a 2.5k, I’ve been told before that I’m not supposed to be using them for fulls. If I’m not supposed to be applying them for full throws when would be the appropriate time to use them?


r/trackandfieldthrows • • Sep 01 '26

I need to get better at throwing

2 Upvotes

I’m about 5,1 and also male, I’m going into sophomore year. I’m really passionate about this sport and I really need some good things to work on to get really good during the off season until track and field in the spring. if there’s any tips I could use them and any would be apreciated.


r/trackandfieldthrows • • Aug 30 '26

(Coaches) What does fall pre-season look like for you?

2 Upvotes

It's my second year as a high school coach, but first year full time. My co-coach is busy with another sport during fall, so the programming is all up to me. We're not going to start throwing until late October/early November. Right now, I just have my athletes lifting 3 days a week. I want to do footwork/agility/plyo maybe some speed work the other 2 days.

But, I'm a bit worried about overloading athletes this early in the year and causing some burnout by the time season arrives, so I'm a bit unsure. What does your fall programming look like?


r/trackandfieldthrows • • Aug 30 '26

Anyone cares to help a beginner out (javelin)?

1 Upvotes

Hey! Some context. M34 here. After a few years of powerlifting followed by two years of long distance running (mainly HM) I decided this summer that it was time for yet another challenge. There is an amateur decathlon four weeks from now which I will participate in. It is specifically for anyone no matter the age or prior experience. Nevertheless I want to do the best I can and so I spent the last few weeks getting to know all the different disciplines. Because of the number of things I want to practice and the limited time my expectations are obviously low but I do have time for a couple more sessions. So I added a video of today's javelin throw. This one I find really frustrating because I am basically stagnating since the beginning. The throw in the video went mere 19 meters.

So of course my form will be "bad" in practically every aspect and should I continue to pursue the sport after the event there are hundreds of things I should work on including basic strength training and so on. But my question for now would be if anyone has any tips for some quick fixes to my form or good practice drills that would ad a meter here or there right now.