Week 4 of 16 Olympic Lifting and Russian Squats
COACHES COMMENT:
Movement is a skill. What is a skill? A skill is a learned movement, produced by the motor cortex of the brain. Anything you learn in life is a skill such as: writing, eating, tying your shoe, running, jumping, throwing or lifting weights in the gym. Anything “athletic” is a skill and must be learned. This may surprise you (sarcasm), but nobody “instantly” becomes a master of a skill. Not only this, but the more complex the skill, the longer it takes to master it! We are typically not talking a matter of weeks when it comes to a skill, but a matter of years. Simply performing countless number of repetitions will not always deliver the desired result, as a skill is only mastered with mindful actions.
Lets take jumping for example. Multiple research studies on vertical jumping ability will tell you that the major factor in how high a person can jump is actually more related to their technique than their power. To optimally develop any movement, many thousands of “high quality” repetitions are required. Most people aspiring to jump higher fall far short of the number of “high quality” repetitions needed to perfect that skill, and instead start looking for other exercises to “fix themselves”. In reality, they simply need more dedicated and mindful practice to jumping itself.
The best way to improve a skill (not just jumping) is to practice that skill consistently and with a high level of focus. If someone hasn’t practiced at least several thousand jumps in their athletic career, they still have significant room to improve somewhere in the way their body propels itself off the ground. In the vast majority of cases, attempting to skip steps, or ignoring the need for strength and mobility, will eventually lead to unnecessary injuries. And nothing kills progress faster than having your training continually interupted due to impatience and the subsequent injuries that go along with it. Used wisely, time is the most potent of training supplements. So do yourself a favor, check your ego at the door and follow the progressions as written.
Olympic lifting in a very complex sport and the both the snatch and the clean and jerk take years to master. There are many different exercises and drills that can be used to help teach Olympic Lifting, and each of these have their purpose. The warm-up series of exercises in the current phase are designed to help everyone become more mindful of the technique and positions needed to perform the Olympic lifts. To be honest, the warm-up series are the most important part of the entire class and not something to be raced through with little focus or awareness.
By now you should have noticed that the CrossFit Hackney programming follows a certain structure for an extended period of time. The current 16week phase is designed to help our members improve their Olympic lifting skills, continue to make strength gainz (Russian squat programme), and practice body weight movements (Thursdays gymnastics and Sundays movement classes). All of us have our strengths and our weaknesses, and the only way to improve on your weaknesses is to face them head on and start practicing them mindfully.
In the short term it might be a little frustrating and humbling, but in the long term it will get you right where you want to go.
RECOMMENDED WEEKLY READING:
Article of the week: Athletic Lab: If Sleep is Credit, We Are All In Debt by Houston Deck – How many hours of sleep have you charged to your bodies credit card? Don’t get caught in sleep debt.
Strength Sensei: 21 Reasons Why You Need A Good Magnesium Supplement – Magnesium is a co-factor in over 350 enzymatic reactions in the body. It is necessary for the transmission of nerve impulses, muscular activity, heart function, temperature regulation, detoxification reactions, formation of healthy bones and improving insulin sensitivity.
Mercola: New Studies Confirm Soda-Diabetes Link – Soda and other sweetened beverages have no redeeming nutritional value, and ditching them from your diet can go a long way toward improving your health. One 20-ounce bottle of cola contains the equivalent of about 16 teaspoons of sugar in the form of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which will cause your insulin to spike within 20 minutes of drinking it.
Eric Cressey: 5 Reasons You Have Tight Hamstrings – Why are your hamstring tight? Anterior pelvic tilt, neural tension, tight hamstrings, previous hamstring strain, Acute Hamstrings Strain or Tendinosis?
Catalyst Athletics: Getting Under The Split Jerk Properly – There are two kinds of people in the world: those who are good at the jerk, and those who are not. For the latter group, there are so many things that can go wrong or be misunderstood that it can be very daunting to correct the movement. One of the big problems is moving into the split posiiton properly.
CrossFit Hackney Levels Spreadsheet
CrossFit HackneyRussian Squat Programme
(more…)