- Join your country's national weightlifting association. In the case of the U.S. the association to join is the USA Weightlifting association. By being a member not only you receive a weightlifting magazine but also information on competition, current rules, schedules and other important topics.
- Join a local weightlifting club affiliated with your country's association. There is no additional cost associated with this. In the U.S. I found one called the Athletes Congress which has a highly informative website.
- Get to know the correct way to perform the exercises that you will be using in your training. Again, it is highly recommended that you get a coach but even before you meet with the coach, have an idea of what the exercises entail as it will make the training session with your coach much more productive.
- Get the right coach. Without the right coach, your dreams of Olympic competition could be in serious jeopardy. The right coach will be be certified by the national weightlifting association from your country and also be certified as a National level referee. Preferably (though not an absolute must), the coach will be able to physically demonstrate you how to perform the lifts. Make sure however (and this is a must) that this coach also goes with you to your contests as this is the type of coach you'll need to make it all the way to the top. Not all coaches do that so be sure to ask.
Your coach will instruct you also on what your competitive path should look like but in a nutshell, first you will have to compete successfully at a sanctioned local meet in order to qualify for a State level competition. Once you perform well at a State level you move up to National competition and only after this level you go to International meets.
If you are a U.S. athlete interested in competition, I would strongly encourage you to visit the Athletes Congress website as through it you can get in touch with experts that can direct you to the right path.
