More On the Transition

Following up on yesterday's post, here is a video of Rachel Crass snatching. Rachel is an outstanding lifter and we have enjoyed her occasional visits to train with us at Flatirons Crossfit over the last few months.

Again, notice when the bar is above the knees at the lower thigh how quickly she moves to get to the good power position and how explosive she is on that final pull.

A lot of Olympic Weightlifting is based on reactive strength and good old action/reaction physical forces. This video offers a good example of every action has an equal and opposite reaction: if you want to explode under the bar to catch it, you have to explode at the finish of the pull.

All About Position

We've been working a lot lately on the transition between the bar above the knee to the "high block" or "power position". This is a difficult spot in the lift and almost everyone has trouble with it at first.

Study these pics of Olympian Melanie Roach of what the transition phase looks like in the snatch. Chest is up and well ahead of the bar, back is tight and arched and the bar is kept close . Notice Melanie's toes have come up off the floor because her weight is back on her heels; weight on the heels is good, toes up not so good. Keep the feet flat on the floor. Check out how far above the knees the bar has traveled on the first pull from the floor. Don't be in a rush...be patient and finish the first pull well above the knees.

Now, notice what has happened in the second photo. Knees have been driven under the bar, the torso has been raised vertically and the bar is in contact very high on the thigh at the hip crease. The chest and shoulders are still well ahead of the bar. From here the explosive jump and shrug occurs. Melanie has gotten a little forward on her toes here, but remember the idea is to stay flat footed as long as possible from this point through the jump/shrug. 

The transition from above knee to the hips (as in these two photos) occurs in the wink of an eye. There should be no pause, no hitch, no resetting...the bar moves upwards continuously. Learning to execute this phase of the lift explosively while consistently arriving at the optimum power position is key to successful lifting, so practice!

WOD

PSn (Bkn) 50/4 65/3 75/3x3
Sn Bal 60/3 70/3 75/3x3
Sn Pull (pause @ Kn) 80/5x4
SQ 50/10 60/6 70/5x4
RDL 50/10 60/6 70/5x4
ABS 60 reps

WOD

PSn (HB) 50/3 60/3 70/3 75/3 80/3x2
OHSQ 50/5 60/4 70/3 75/3 70/3x2
Sn Starts (% of Sn) 80/6 90/5x4
Sn PP 50/6 60/5 70/5x4

WOD

Cl (HB) 50/4 65/3 75/2 80/2 85/2 90/2x2
J Bal 50/4 65/3 75/2 80/2 85/2x3
Cl Pull 70/5 90/4 100/3 105/3 110/3x2
F.Sq 60/8 70/5 75/3 80/3 85/3 90/3 95/2

WOD

PSn+OHSQ 50/3+2 65/2+2 75/1+2, 2+1 80/1+2
Sn Bal 65/4 75/3 80/2 85/2 90/2 100/2
SQ 60/8 70/5 75/3 80/3 85/3 90/3 95/2
Sn Pull (Fl/Bkn) 70/5 90/4 100/3x3
ABS 80 reps

WOD

Cl/J 50/3+3 65/2+2 75/1+1 80/1+1 75/1+1 80/1+1
F.Sq+J (% of Cl/J) 50/3+3 65/2+2 75/2+1 80/(2+1)x2
Bench 60/8 70/4 80/3x3
P.Split medium /4, 5, 5
ABS 100 reps

WOD

PSn 50/4 65/3 75/2 80/2
Sn Bal 60/4 70/2 75/2 80/2x2
PCl+PJ 50/3+3 65/2+2 75/1+1 80/1+1 75/1+1
Sn PJ 60/4 70/3 75/2 80/2x3
Sn RDL 70/5 80/4 90/3x2

WOD

Cl (HB) 50/4 65/2 75/2 80/2 75/2 80/2
J Bal 50/4 65/3 75/2 80/2x3
Cl Pull 80/5 90/3x4
F.Sq 60/6 70/4 75/3 80/3x2
ABS 75 reps

WOD

PSn (Bkn) 50/4 65/3 75/2 80/2 75/2 80/2
OHSQ 50/4 70/3 80/2x3
SQ 60/8 70/4 75/3 80/3x2
Cl Start 80/5 90/3 100/3x3
Sn PP 60/5 70/3 80/3x2