Mechanics

Just in case you were wondering what I was doing while making this post, maybe this video can give you a good idea. Any takers?

Exercise: Virtual Shoveling 20, 20, 15, 10, 5 and Pull Ups

Food: Breakfast - 2 full eggs, 2 oz of cheese, 3 1/2 strips of bacon.

Liquids: 4 cups of coffee w/ 1/2" of heavy cream, 8 oz of water.

Topic of the Day:

Most of you would like to know what are some of the Mechanics to Olympic lifting and the drills. This is going to be a loooooong post, but I think we can manage with touching on some of the drills.

Before you start any olympic lift, it is wise to use the Burgener warm up. This is a drill that we use in CrossFit to help prepare and dial in the transitional movements of the olympic lifts. The Burgener warm up can be used for the Snatch or the Clean, depending on what movement you are going to attempt. Always remember that you must hang on the pipe or bar with the (Hook Grip). The Hook Grip is the most powerful grip that you have while doing the oly lifts. However, you must know your releasing points of the thumb during the lift so you do not limit Range of Motion (ROM) in the arms.

The Hook Grip is obtained by having a full grip on the barbell. Releasing your index and middle finger, cover the nail of the thumb with both the index and middle finger, still hanging on to the barbell. If you do not have a barbell at the moment, you can try it while sitting at your computer. Clench and ball up your fist as if you were squeezing all you fingers into your palm (or if you simulated punching something). Once you have done that, release the middle and index and cover the nail of the thumb. That is the Hook Grip.

I will go over the Burgner Warm up in the Snatch grip first:

Stance - Feet directly under the hips (8-12" apart) in a neutral position; also called the Jumping Position.

Grip - With straight arms, do PVC PassThrough's from the front of the belly button to the low back to find the sticking point. The sticking point is the point to where you have no more range of motion in the shoulders to keep the elbows straight. Pass Throughs must be started in a wider grip, pushing the bar away from the body without bending the elbows EVER! While pushing the bar away, trace a large circle from the front of the body, over the head to the low back. Again, do not ever bend the elbows. Slowly inch in closer every so often to find your snatch grip and that sticky point.

Pass Through's not only are a way to find your sticky point (which is where your Snatch Grip will reside), but it is a great warm up to open the shoulder gurdle. Keep the bar 8-12" above the head.

Action: All Movements x3 or x5 depending on your warmth. (Refer back to the video called Burgener Warm Up and watch closely to the movements.)

Shoulder Shrugs - Stand tall and with straight arms in the hang position, dip 2-3" then, as you jump coming out of the dip, shrug your sholders into your ears. Always keep the bar attached to the body (actively pull the bar into your legs) and never bend the elbows. Don't let the chest fall forward at any point of the warm up or allow the back to round. All movements are to be performed quickly.

Elbows High and Outside - Dip/jump, Shoulder Shrug then pull the elbows high into the ceiling looking like a scarecrow. Return the bar once it has reached max height but not passing the chin. (Do not pull the bar and elbows before the Shrug. Allow the legs and hips to get to full extension then execute the high pull.)

Muscle Snatch - Dip/Jump, Shoulder Shrug, Elbows high, then external rotation of the bar, catching the bar directly over head with the elbows locked out. Keep a constant upward pressure on the bar to maintain a center balance over the middle of the foot. **(DO NOT rebend the knee when catching over head after the external roatation.) That is called a Hang Power Snatch and will be touched on shortly.

Quarter Drops - With the feet under the hips and bar fully pressed over head, quickly pull your feet up and drop in the quarter squat only 2-3" deep. In the quarter squat, your feet should move from 8-12" to 12-15" approximately, in the final landing position. Stand back up out of the quarter squat with the weight still over head and reset the feet back under the hips.

Full Drops (optional depending on movement) - Start in jumping position again, execute same as the Quarter Drops, instead this time drop futher down into the full squat (hip below the knee caps) and move the feet a tad wider by and inch or two.

Hang Power Snatch - Dip/Jump, shrug, elbows high, external rotation + quarter drop simultaneously. Stand up to the full extended position with the bar over head. Do not drop the bar until you have completed the full movement and reset the feet directly under the hips.

Hang Snatch - Same as HPS but instead of the quarter drop, get into the full squat position with the hip below the knees.

** The Clean will be the exact same movements and progressions. The only thing that will change is instead of catching over head on the Muscle, catch in the Front Rack Position and the bar will rest on the shoulders under the chin with the Elbows high facing the wall.

Faults in the lift - When doing oly lifts, if not under the vue of a knowlegable coach, you will sometimes find these faults while lifting. So, if you are a garage warrior it would be a wise idea to record yourself with a camera to see and disect your lift.

1. Core to extremity violations: Pulling with the arms early before the knees and hips come to full extension. Your legs and hips are the power source of all lifting movements, and the arms should not be used as primary movers.

2. Toe Push: A lot of the time, people feel that lifters press out of the toes and have a frontal plane pressure on the ball of the foot only. To one is there own, but I coach the lifts by floating the toes and maintaining contact to the floor with the balls of the foot and the heel. Think of pressing out of the arch of the foot.

3. Hip kick or bounce: Once you have reached the jumping position or when the bar hits your pockets, some people kick the bar out and have it "Rainbow" around the body rather than pulling it straight up. Think of pulling the bar up the body and lifting the shirt up!

4. Frontal Lean: Keep the weight loaded in the heels when executing your lift. Avoid any pressure on the toes because it will eventually lead to a missed lift, due to a further pull away from the body.