Weightlifting workshop inspires students

Weights helped give girls’ confidence a lift in a special workshop at Louth Academy.

Year 9 girls with Strong Girl Coaches Martina and Jade and Head Coach, Kristen Ingraham-Morgan

Coaches from Strong Girl Squad, based in Lincoln, showcased weightlifting and demonstrated what was possible with self-belief.

Instructors showed groups of up to three how to correctly execute a deadlift. The importance of stretching, muscle protection and posture were explained.

Head of PE at Louth Tim Lowe said the coaching was excellent. Louth Academy staff involved were Harriet Wilson and Charlotte Light.

“The girls were given great encouragement to take on the weightlifting challenge, once they had been coached how to do it properly,” said Tim.

“Once they overcame understandable nerves, they were amazed the weights they could lift.”

The girls were encouraged to perform a deadlift with just the bar, weighing 7.5kg. They were then asked to add weights to make 17.5kg.

“They were all surprised it wasn’t as heavy as they’d first thought,” said Tim.

“The session gave them a huge amount of confidence and showed them how weightlifting can help them improve in other sports by developing abilities in strength, speed and balance.

“On behalf of the girls, I’d like to thank Kristen and her coaches for coming to Louth Academy today.”

Head coach of Lincoln gym LN CrossFit, Kristen Ingraham-Morgan, said the idea was to show weightlifting could be safe, fun and cool.

Her team of female coaches travel across the country to bring their workshop to secondary schools and show its benefits to girls.

Kristen said it was the answer to ensuring more girls felt the benefit of playing sport.

“There is a gap in the group of girls aged around 13 or 14 in sport,” she said.

“They are disengaged from sport and any physical activity and there is a huge decline in the amount of girls who enjoy taking part in PE at school.

“A lot of it comes down to them being uncomfortable or simply not liking or having any interest in the sport that is on offer.”

Louth Academy Principal Philip Dickinson praised the workshop and opportunities it provided.

“Exciting enrichment at Louth Academy is essential to build confidence and achievement in our students,” Mr Dickinson said.

“We were thrilled to welcome Kristen and her team to the Academy to provide the students with a unique opportunity.

“We have had a fantastic 2022 in terms of sporting success and the varied platform of sporting enrichment we offer provides the foundations for that to continue.”