At age 20, Nye was the youngest American to win world titles in women’s weightlifting. Former gymnast turned weightlifter, Nye was a gold medalist in the Pan American Championship and Junior World Champion. Nye was then named the International Weightlifting Federation’s Best Woman Lifter of 2019, becoming the first American to receive the honor.
“I’m going to make sure I do all I can to represent the USA to the best of my ability” - Katherine Nye
Introduction To Katherine Nye
Katherine Nye is a weightlifter based out of Rochester, Michigan. After competing in gymnastics primarily, the dream of going to the Olympics was planted. However, Kate would not get there for gymnastics. After tearing her meniscus and having surgery, her heart was no longer in that sport. “After I quit gymnastics, I kind of had an identity crisis,” says Katherine. For the best, she found her passion for weightlifting in 2015 and her dream of competing in the Olympics was alive again.
During her training, Katherine’s mental health started to take a turn for the worse. She was diagnosed with bipolar II disorder and mild ADHD after seeking therapy for what she thought was depression. Her diagnosis has never impacted her training or her weightlifting career. She will be heading to the 2021 World Games in Tokyo. “I think your trials in life really make you who you are,” states Katherine.
Katherine’s Accomplishments
Her journey through gymnastics, to crossfit, to weightlifting has landed her on the Team USA weightlifting team to compete in the upcoming World Games. “People have this idea that weightlifting is only about strength, but years of technique work goes into this really heavy lift,” states Katherine. That hard work has paid off as Katherine holds 9 current American records and, at age 20, was featured in Forbes 30 under 30 list.
- Junior World Record Holder (Snatch, 112kg)
- 2019 Senior Pan American Champion
- 2019 Senior World Champion
- International Weightlifting Federation’s Best Woman Lifter of 2019, the first American to receive the honor.
Katherine’s Weightlift Training
“Weightlifting isn’t just about strength or hours clocked in at the gym,” Katherine says, “It’s about form and taking time to prepare and recover before the big lifts.” A lot of the work is “grind work.” There are a lot of squats, deadlifts, and dumbbell work that go into Katherine’s strength training. People tend to think weightlifting is just about strength, or the athletes are just yanking the weights over their heads, but the athletes themselves are thinking about much more -- technique.
Recovery is a vital aspect of weight training because it is preparing your body to give 100% in the next training session. “After my training, I definitely need to make sure I’m getting all the micronutrients and hydration I can get,” Nye states. If you want to continue performing at your best, you have to fuel your body after intense training.
aminoVITAL Rapid Recovery helps Katherine stay hydrated and replenished after her intense training. Katherine states, “Rapid Recovery is a great drink. It has all those good electrolytes and amino acids so not only am I drinking the actual water, but I’m staying extra hydrated and giving my body the nutrients it needs.” Rapid Recovery contains 106 mg electrolytes for hydration, 3600mg of BCAAs to reduce muscle and mental fatigue, and 2g of sugar.
Sources
https://www.teamusa.org/usa-weightlifting/athletes/Katherine-Nye
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