Compete

I train to compete.  You should too.  Competition creates adversity, and it's through adversity that we adapt and grow as individuals and teams.  Whether you're participating in sport (this includes CrossFit!) or training to be healthy, put yourself on the line and COMPETE TO WIN!  Never just go through the motions.

Competing puts yourself out of your comfort zone and into the unknown, and I love that.  The more we do this, the more we learn about ourselves.  So what if you lose from time to time?  Use losing as a learning experience.  You actually learn more from losing than winning.  Losing can be a good way to learn what isn't working for you, which is key.  It also gives us a reason to train and put our bodies through the ringer from time to time.

This past weekend, I competed in my first weightlifting meet.  Four months of training came down to six lifts- three for the snatch and three for the clean & jerk. I put myself on the line and performed well.

I went 4 for 6, finishing with 99kg, a 4kg PR, on the snatch and 112kg, a 2kg PR, on the clean & jerk.  It was a great learning experience on how to warm up and narrow one's focus during times of pressure.  I also learned that I need to continue to train hard and with focus.  As a newbie to weightlifting competition, I know I have a long way to go if I ever want to be competitive, but until then, I'm still going to put myself on the line and compete!!!

I challenge you to do the same!

Here are videos of my best lifts from the weekend:

Vertical Torso in the Jerk

The key to a successful jerk is keeping the torso as vertical as possible while generating as much force onto the bar as possible.  When it comes to jerking, however, there is a tendency to push the weight forward as opposed to straight up off the shoulders.  This results in either a missed or a very unstable lift.  Typically, jerks are pushed out in front due to a slight inclination of the torso.  If this sounds like what you're doing, then you're in luck.  Here are a couple tips for you to take to your next training session:

1) Start with your knees unlocked.  In a recent article on BreakingMuscle.com, Hall of Fame Weightlifting Coach, Bob Takano, breaks down a video he took of a female weightlifter at the 2011 Nationals who starts with her knees locked.  Bob explains that "when the jerk dip is initiate in this way, the first joint to bend is at the hips.  Now the torso is inclined slightly forward and it is difficult to generate a powerful drive with the legs."  Starting with knees unlocked, or "soft", will allow you to initiate the jerk dip with knees, not the hip, and help keep the torso more vertical.

2) Drive the knees out.  I see a lot of beginners push the knees forward.  As the weight gets heavier, dipping with the knees forward doesn't allow you to dip straight down, resulting in a forward inclination of the torso.  There is also a tendency for the heels to leave the ground too early.  If the heels come up and you are on the balls of your feet too soon, you lose the ability to generate maximal force.

Set your stance with soft knees (as we talked about above) and turn your toes ever so slightly out.  When you dip, drive the knees out over the toes and explode up.  The knees out creates a pocket for the hips to dip straight down into, allowing for a more upright torso and optimal force production.

Next time you train and are working on jerks, keep it simple and just remember these two cues: "soft knees" and "knees out".  Easy.

Pay attention to the last 5 sequence shots.  Unlocked knees and knees out on the dip!

Stay Over the Bar!

Whether it's the snatch or the clean, one of the biggest mistakes I see as a coach is that beginner lifters have a tendency to want to open the hips and lift the shoulders too soon.  This creates a couple of big problems:

1) A reliance on pulling with the arms.  Intuitively, since we are lifting weight from the ground to our shoulders or overhead, the first thought is to pull with the arms.  WAAPPPSHH!  That's the sound of me slapping you and telling you to knock it off.  Pulling with the arms forces you to lift your shoulders way too early, which kills your power production.  These lifts are about using your legs, not your arms.  Your legs are much stronger than your wimpy little arms, so use that to your advantage.

The faster you can grasp the concept of driving your legs into the ground as hard as possible, as opposed to "ripping" the bar off the ground, the faster you will become proficient in these lifts.

2)  Receiving the bar too far forward.  Because you open the hips and lift the shoulders too soon, your shoulders are too far behind the bar.  With your shoulders behind the bar, the bar cannot get into the right place (the hips) when it comes time to FINISH.  The result is that you cannot fully extend to generate the power and speed you need at the top of the second pull.  Secondly, the bar typically comes off of the thighs, not hips, and is projected too far forward in front of the body causing you to miss the lift completely or make it a fight to hold the receiving position and stand it up.

So how do you improve on this?  Use more of your legs and STAY OVER THE BAR.

In the most recent edition of The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, there was a study done on exactly this as it relates to the clean.  While the study was done only on the clean, the pulling mechanics of both lifts are very similar, so I would bet money that if a similar study was conducted on the snatch, the findings would be similar, if not the same.  The research concluded:

"Greater relative lift mass appears to be associated with steady trunk position during the first pull, relatively small hip motion during the second-knee bend transition, and rapid hip extension during the second pull."(1)

Essentially, you are keeping your shoulders over the bar until it reaches to about the mid-thigh area followed immediately by a rapid hip extension and explosion of speed and power!  The best way for you to see this is to watch slow motion videos or still shots of lifting progressions of the most elite lifters.

So, next time you lift, cue yourself to a) use your legs, and b) stay over the bar.  If you can video yourself to give yourself immediate feedback after each lift, even better.  Let the improvement begin!

Source: Rob Macklem's Flickr

Source: Rob Macklem's Flickr

1) Kipp, K, Redden, J, Sabick, MB, Harris, C. Weightlifting performance is related to kinematic and kinetic patterns of the hip and the knee joints. J Strength Cond Res 26: 1838-1844, 2012.

Strength vs. Technique

So, what's more important: strength or technique?

While strength is undoubtedly very important, technique wins the day in the long run. Always.  At a certain point, strength can only take you so far.  If your strength is through the roof, but your technique is poor, a "weaker" person with better technique will out lift you any day of the week.

In a previous post, I told you I'd talk about this as it relates to weightlifting.  There is a misconception out there by some that our lifters need to improve on the "strength lifts" in order to get better at the snatch and the c&j.  The problem with this is that it is pretty well known in the weightlifting community that American weightlifters are pretty strong in the "strength lifts".  It is our technique that is lacking at the national and international levels.

At a certain point, "strength" doesn't transfer over to the lifts, or even athletic performance for that matter.  In this article, Sean Waxman provides a great example of when too much strength doesn't transfer over as he discusses the difference between the Olympic (high bar) squat and power (low bar) squat.  If you're too lazy to click on the link and read the article, here's the point:

"It is true the Power Squat will allow you to squat more weight however, more is not always better.  Is a 700lb Back Squat going to help you more than a 500lb Back Squat? In the sport of Powerlifting it most certainly will, but that doesn't necessarily equate to improved performance in other sports.  Sport is not about maximal force development.  It is about maximal rate of force development.  Once my athletes reach a particular squat weight (between 2-3 times bodyweight calculated as a function of body weight and the physical demands of the particular sport), I maintain their strength levels while switching the training focus to generating force quickly.  I use the Olympic lifts to accomplish this because they do it better than any other exercise."

Again, don't get me wrong.  I believe strength is essential, especially if you're a beginner.  What I am saying is that strength can only mask your technique deficiencies for so long.  Solid technique is what will take you to the next level!

Here's another great article that asserts that the problem with USA weightlifting isn't a lack of strength (quite the opposite actually), it is a lack of technique.  This one is definitely worth the read!

So, for all you people out there who are strong as hell, its time to dial in your technique.  You do that, and I'm willing to bet you'll see a big jump in your snatch and c&j.

Lift with efficiency!

I need to get stronger, bro!

Making Heavy Look Easy

I'm out of town right now for a family wedding/reunion, so I'm going to be short and provide an article and 3 videos for your reading and viewing pleasure.

A buddy of mine forwarded this article to me about deadlifting with a rounded back.  The author points out that rounding the back, specifically the upper back, puts you in a position to pull heavier weight off the ground.  In the powerlifting world, this makes perfect sense.  At some point, however, there will be form breakdown when the weight gets heavy enough.  I get that.  But should you train this way?

At the end of the article, one of the recommendations suggested is to always train with an arched back and solid form.  I couldn't agree more!  If you train with good form, the more effortless your maximal lifts will become.

If you don't believe me, check out this Russian beef cake making these HEAVY lifts look EASY:

1) 210kg Snatch
2) 250kg Clean & Jerk
3) 210kg Snatch and 245kg C&J w/ Bar Trajectory

EFFORTLESS!!

Breaking Mental Barriers

Mental barriers suck.  We all have them at some point.  Physically, you very well may be capable of making a certain lift; however, at a certain weight, there's something mentally that is holding you back.

In my opinion, these mental barriers are the result of a lack of confidence.  I touched on this in a previous post, but it can't be discussed enough.  It typically happens when you look at a certain weight (i.e. 400 lb. back squat), and immediately tell yourself that it will take a lifetime, at least, to hit that number.  After months of training, you finally get close, but suddenly you start to stall, even after so much progress.  Why?  You pigeon holed yourself.  You had very early in your mind that whatever number is nearly impossible - and because of that, it is.

But have no fear, I'm hear to help you f-stomp those mental barriers.

Coaching Tip #1:  Change your mental approach from negative to positive...ASAP.  I'm coaching a pretty bad ass athlete on his lifting technique.  He's strong and can throw around some pretty heavy weight, but when it comes to the snatch, something just hasn't been clicking.  Regardless of the incredible progress that has been made, he tends to go "full retard" after a couple missed lifts.  Last week we had a tough and frustrating training session.  When recapping the session, it came out that anytime he snatches, the thought of "oh, f***" immediately enters his mind.

There in lies the problem.  A negative mental approach.  What should be said is, "oh, f*** YES!!!".  Confidence just doesn't start on the bar with making lifts.  It starts way before you even set up on the bar.  Fix your mental approach, fix your confidence.  Simple as that.

Coaching Tip #2:  Push yourself.  Another athlete I've started to work with is VERY technically sound, but she doesn't have big numbers.  It's not because she isn't strong, necessarily, but rather because she has never believed in her ability to put anything significant on the bar.  How can you truly know your ability if you never push your limits?  You can't.

What happens if you push yourself and you fail?  Push your self again, and again, and again.  Having the courage to step up and put yourself on the line can be huge a confidence boost, even if you fail.

At the end of the day, if you're able to successfully increase your confidence, you'll be able to reduce your mental barriers and see some gains in your training.

Breaking Mental Barriers Daily!

Why I Coach

Aside from the fact that I want to develop strong, powerful and proficient athletes and lifters, why do I coach?

I coach because it's fun.  I coach because I get to interact with people on a very real level.  I coach because it fires me up when I see success and improvement.  I coach because there's something special in knowing that I'm possitively impacting someone's life in and out of the gym.  I coach to see the excitement of someone hitting a new PR and sharing in that experience.

There are instances from time to time where I take for granted the satisfaction that coaching gives me.  Sometimes I take for granted the real reason why I enjoy making people stronger and more powerful.  Then, weeks like this one come along, and I am reminded in a big way.

This week at the gym, we completed the Crossfit Total (max back squat, press and deadlift).  The amount of PR's hit this week was incredible - more than I can keep track.  Needless to say, it's been an energizing and inspiring week!  Seeing your athletes break through barriers and achieve success is extremely fulfilling, and for that, I am thankful.

A week like this one also motivates me.  It motivates me to continue to get better as a coach.  If I don't get better as a coach, I can't expect my athletes to get better.  Simple as that.  I need to be able to give my athletes the tools in order to hit those PR's and break through those barriers.

Here's a big THANK YOU for those who let me coach you.  It's inspiring, humbling motivating and energizing!

PR NATION!!!