Forum : Weightlifting

Welcome

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 21:36:50 GMT

0 Replies, 429 Views
Started by Christina
Last Posted to on Monday, April 23, 2012 5:36:50 PM by Douglas Berninger, CSCS,*D, RSCC 9/10/2012 1:36:15

Josh - I apologize for the late response. I generally will teach the clean first. This is only because field/court athletes will generally use the clean (and it's variations) more often than the snatch when moving through their training career. If I'm training a weightlifter, I will teach portions of both movements simultaneously. I use the top-down method for both lifts.

Clean = Front squat -> Pull (from power position) -> Pull (from mid-thigh) -> Pull (from top of knee) -> Pull (from below knee) -> Pull (from floor) -> Power Clean -> Squat clean

Snatch = Overhead squat -> Snatch Press -> Snatch Push Press -> Heaving Snatch Balance -> Snatch Balance -> Pull (from power position) -> Pull (from mid-thigh) -> Pull (from top of knee) -> Pull (from below knee) -> Pull (from floor) -> Power Snatch -> Squat Snatch

Remember, these are just the progressions that I use. Other coaches might have a completely different system based on their beliefs and the set-up they have in their gym (available equipment, number of athletes, etc.). You have to find what works for your specific situation.

Julian - I would say that the jerk position is one of preference in a lot of ways. more so than the Snatch or Clean. However, there are a few positions that must remain similar from lifter to lifter. This is position of the bar relative to center of gravity; weight distribution between front and back leg in the split; and head position.

Generally, if all of these positions are met, it will not matter about hand position. Although, having relaxed hands tends to be better for meeting those positions when the lift is completed. Namely this is because there is no extra tension in the forearms and through the shoulders caused by irradiation (basically waves of muscle tension). If the hands are relaxed, the arms are relaxed and the lift is completed in a smoother manner. This is also a more effective way to allow the force generated from the legs to be transferred through the body to the bar.

Should the hands be wide or narrow? This will depend on comfort of the lifter and, ultimately, shoulder/thoracic mobility (limiting factor) and lat tightness (can they effectively rack the bar?). An example would be looking at some lifters who perform the squat jerk (i.e., Kendrick Farris). They have the thoracic spine and shoulder mobility to be able to do this. Someone with an immobile spine/shouders will not be able to reach this position overhead, while in a squat.

The efficacy of having the hands wider is that the bar travels less distance overhead. This would seem like an obvious advantage, however, as the hands become wider, the lifter sacrifices stability for the distance less-traveled. I can elaborate further if needed.

I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any more questions!

Isometric training effects on speed

Thu, 09 May 2013 05:29:33 GMT

1 Replies, 1754 Views
Started by Ty R. Nordic, CSCS 6/8/2012 4:45:01 PM
Last Posted to on Thursday, May 09, 2013 1:29:33 AM by Mr Esteban Perez 2/24/2013 2:33:13 PM
that sounds interesting, but i heard that weightlifters (from Russia) use 10% of their training using Isometrics. I dont think they would use isometrics if it would reduce their speed/explosiveness. Gymnasts also use isometrics for 2 minutes plus and theyre also very explosive, my thoughts are that speed and explosiveness would not suffer, but then again it depends on the specific position of the isometric lift, in your case a squat position. Now im pretty sure the transfer of training would benefit your football players (in their squat, plus you can see it as a hypertrophy stimulus without too much mechanical work)

"Powerlifting" Movements?

Tue, 19 Mar 2013 15:52:39 GMT

3 Replies, 3367 Views
Started by Douglas Berninger, CSCS,*D, RSCC 9/10/2012 1:36:15
Last Posted to on Tuesday, March 19, 2013 11:52:39 AM by John Stack, CSCS 6/3/2012 6:20:57 PM

First of all, I've only just discovered these podcasts so I can't comment on what is said in them, but here's my two cents on the topic anyway.

Surely, it's more about 'how' the exercises are performed rather than the choices of exercises. I think that there is a place for all of the big exercises in a good, well-rounded training programme.

Since most sports require high levels of speed, power and velocity, surely a large part of training should involve developing these attributes - and all of the big exercises can be performed to achieve this. So, in my mind, performing the snatch would develop these attributes more than performing near 1RM deadlifts. Of course, performing a deadlift using an RM that allows velocity to be optimised would also be acceptable - i.e. performing these exercises at that point on the force-velocity curve that optimises performance, which effectively involves finding a balance between the amount of weight lifted and the rate at which the trainee can move it.

I'm always going to say that the deep squat is superior to a partial ROM squat of course. As for the bench press, I'd tend to use incline more for athletes, or incline with dumbbells and the arms/hands turned to 45 degrees. For me, the bottom line is to look at an individual and determine what exercises he/she needs to improve performance or correct imbalances. If the trainee presents with the hunched-over shoulder posture of somebody who benches more than anything else, then he won't be benching much until these imbalances are resolved.

Finally, I've always loved Dr. Fred Hatfield's statement - do as much work standing on your two feet as possible.

I just read a paper today which discusses this very topic (Weightlifting v Powerlifting) in the context of volleyball. It's called 'Weightlifting to Improve Volleyball Performance' by Patrick Holmberg.

Now, I'm going to listen to all of those podcasts which I'd not heard of until I saw this thread. I'm looking forward to hearing what they have to say.