Seminar

Thanks to Nick Horton and Arron Steiner of PDX Weightlifting for coming over and helping us out with our clean form.  We started from the hang, went to the knees and then came all the way down to the floor.  Nick did a fantastic job of putting out information so that everyone who came to class walked away with at least two things to chew on – and I suspect most people came away with way more than that.

I’ll let rip a couple things I took from the class and hopefully other folks will chime in as well in the comment section.  I’d always focused on keeping the bar against my shins on the way up, but today I was told to scrap my thighs as well.  It’s a big “duh” I know, but if I let the bar come off my thighs I might as well bend my torso over at a 90º and try and upright row the bar to my chest.  The second (and more bewildering point) I took away was to get down into the bottom of the squat before doing the lift, with the idea that starting there will help keep the weight in the heels and prevent rolling onto the toes.  That one is going to take me a while to digest.

The video is Arron PRing at his Clean and Jerk.  As one athlete said “that’s the scariest thing I’ve ever seen”.  Scary, yes… yet also, inspiring.

Next Saturday the two of them will be back for the snatch.  Will you be there?

If you like what Nick and Arron do, they have a standing deal for CrossFitters – $50 a month for once a week classes.  Go check them out.  (And come back with some coaching tips!)

If you need your fix, here is yesterday’s whiteboard.