Swagger on! Olympic lifting update

Learning the Olympic lifts has been going exceedingly well.  I have overcome the initial awkwardness of practicing my explosive lifts in the gym.   Even better, I am LOVING dumbbell snatches!  Now the more people looking at me funny, the better.   I know what I'm doing, and I know it.

Training for explosiveness is really training the neurological system. It is about your body learning how to fire the right motor units at the right intensity in the right order for maximal power output.

This may sound strange, but I can feel that my body is working on this motor skills puzzle even when I'm not in the gym. I find myself daydreaming about accelerating from a stopped position.  I spontaneously sprint up staircases 2 steps at a time just to feel that sweet triple extension feeling.  And I wake up from sleep with fuzzy recollections of skying grabs, full horizontal layouts, and warp speed sprinting.  This Olympic lifting stuff is no joke!

I am doing full body power emphasis training on Monday and Saturdays.

Outdoor Workout

If it happens to be warm(er) and sunny, I'll go outside with my new friend Rusty and we'll do high pulls, power cleans, snatches, and front squats together.  I'll also do some full body medicine ball throws standing on one leg for a complete workout.

Indoor Workout

More often, it is cold out and I'm stuck in the gym.

I am now comfortable enough to start adding some weight.   Not a lot.  But enough to make me have to pay attention. When training for power, it is of primary importance that you don't add too much weight and slow the velocity of your movements.  Otherwise, you'll be defeating the purpose or power training.

I'll do the following exercises in 3 sets of 6.

here is the power portion of the workout:

• high pulls: 75 lbs(with a Smith machine)
• dumb bell snatches: 35 lbs
• clap pushups
• power jerks with an E/Z curl bar: 35 lbs (I'm being timid with the weight because I'm not sure how my shoulders feel about them yet.)

Then I'll do these exercises which are meant to help my form on the O-lifts:

• Overhead squats: 35 lbs with the E/Z bar (works on balance and shoulder position)
• Front squats with clean grip: 95 lbs (works on catching position.)

Relevant Posts

• Strength Training:  Getting Started and Getting Help
• Learning Olympic Lifts:  Modifications and General Awkwardness
• Olympic Lifts and Lucky Finds!