Steven Shrago

As some of our members are now sufficiently advanced to start seriously think about their Olympic lifting

So, here are some targets. Getting to 50% body weight is the 1^st good target

80% is your next target.

To go from 80 to 100% of your body weight is the real trick

Apart from strength, you need great technique.

So lets start fro the floor with the set up position by comparing the  published views of Tommy Kono  and Greg Everett. What follows are notes from their work: Ive left these in note form as ill be covering the olympic lifts in depth on Wednesdays, and it will be useful to have access to the stages and ideas.  Each session will probably have  30 minute snatch/then wod component

According to Everett:

1) Feet flat, knees flared out

2) Correct starting position is essential  as there is little correction time.

3) Different from the deadlift, (and less heavy).  The function is Simply to lift it to an optimal position for the 2^nd pull.

4) Optimization = back angle, foot balance, bar speed  and muscular preparation

5) Upright as possible as it minimizes hip and lumbar torque( and reduces spinal erector fatigue), Allows greater hip extension speed in the 3^rd pulls helps keep in balance  and its more comfortable upright

6) No more upright than the arms directly vertical above the bar ( implies that shoulders ”just over the bar”)

7) Goal is to minimize the shift in torso angle (only what is needed to clear the knees).

8)A full breath should be taken

9) Feet under the hip and rotated out slightly. Knees flared to the sides beyond the rotation  of the feet to minimize the depth between the bar and the hips = upright back position

10) whether the bar is  against shins depends on  athlete. For the Longer legged , s small gap could be good.  Bar should never be forward of the base of the toes.

11) Athletes weight centered in front of the heel; but at the moment of separation from the floor the centre of pressure will be nearer the balls of the foot. 1^st job is to bring the weight back to the point in front of the heels some say “ sweep the bar and body  back”

12) Back set in extension .

According to Kono

The bar must stay between middle of the heel bone and the ball of the foot/joint of big toes and he Offers this guidance, in the initial pull:

If bar moves towards you, ok

If it goes straight up, you are using the back, not the legs

If the bar bubbles away you are employing your back immediately

Arms long elbows face away from the body

a)stay over the bar”

b) the balance moves towards the heels,

c) push the platform down while

d) maintain a fixed back angle with the floor

FIGHT………

If there is a bit point of issue, it’s the arm position. Kono has the body further over the bar in the start position. Everett is more upright. Try both!

On Wednesday 16th May 2012 this picture was posted on Crossfit.com main site.

I received a text from Bella Clayton, no doubt very excited, to let me know.  My first thoughts were when I saw the picture were “wow” and that takes some courage to do that.  But that’s typical of Bella she has a lot of bottle as we say in south London.  The picture was sent to Crossfit some months ago it was attached to an email which praised Crossfit and all that it has done for her.

Bella’s success story is not the typical one you here about. Over weight, unhealthy and depressed, found happiness through physical activity etc…  When I first met Bella she was already an accomplished athlete competing on track and a successful amateur boxer and even appeared in the new Gladiators TV show.

This success story is about how Crossfit has been able to enhance an already talented athlete.  I have coached Bella and she is a very gifted and natural athlete but Crossfit was able to challenge her in all those usual ways that raw beginners experience.  Core conditioning and training in the anaerobic zone in particular.  I feel the inspiration to take from this is to see a successful woman not being happy to cruise but instead to seek out new training methods and experiences. It has been a pleasure coaching Bella and seeing her success and we at Crossfit London UK can claim to have a small part in this.

I will sign off with this quote from Bella.

 ”That photo, I am proud of my body and I know in years to come I will look back at all the hard work, but mostly all the FUN I had training. It definitely is not a chore to train, with Crossfit its exciting to push yourself and to do something different all the time.”

A quick post to try and obtain some opinions on future programming.  Those who are Saturday regulars will know we used to run two classes on a Saturday these were regularly over subscribed and so after listening to you all we brought in a third class.  This was mostly successful until a few months ago when the numbers dropped off.  Quite rightly Andrew pointed out we cannot justify opening a class up for 8 to 10 clients for only 1 or 2 to attend.  Its simply not cost affective.

We made the decision to cut a class. Guess what? Yes, now I am getting up to 15 booked into a class. Now I recognise I add you in from the waiting list, factoring in “Friday Night Syndrome” I anticipate you won’t all make it.  However I have been getting consistent numbers of over 10 (my maximum).  Not a massive deal it can all be managed. But it reduces the available program and constricts program flexibility.

So after a bit of a ramble would you be interested in a third class coming back?

If yes, would you prefer a 0930 0r 1230 class?

Answers on a postcard or if you prefer post below.

Looking forward to your replies.

Saturday afternoon saw a new high-water mark for Crossfit London. We kicked out the smelly boys, shut the doors, and then fifteen women and 4 trainers had a fantastic girl party of strength and fun.

WonderBar! is all about skills: squatting, deadlifting, pressing and pulling up, and top it all off with a good few rounds of “Cindy”.(That’s an AMRAP of 5 pullups, 10 pushups and 15 squats)

Oh, and because we are still ladies, we learned to curtsey properly. Hey, you don’t get etiquette drills down Fitness First!

All the ladies were new to Crossfit, and it was great to see slightly nervous smiles at the beginning transform into broad grins of achievement (and a fair amount of shrieking during the workout) This is the kind of training that really empowers women: the sort that gets you sweaty, covered in chalk, makes you strain and gasp and eventually, cheer.

A huge thanks to trainers Sally Dixey, Sally Moss and first-time helper Adrienne Gin for some wonderful coaching, patience and skill on the day (and for a lot of pre-preparation) Well done everyone!

Due to the roaring success (and over-subscription) of this event, look out for another WonderBar! pretty soon!

Check out the pictures on facebook here

Saturday 19th May 2012

The classes have been heaving lately so I must be doing something right. Right?

Feed back is always welcome good and bad. So don’t be shy.

Free strength and skill choice. This has been so rewarding seeing you guys hit PB’s and improving your skills.

WOD
5 minutes of Press Ups

4 minutes of Pull Ups

3 minutes of Ring Dips

2 minutes of Knees to Elbows

1 minute of Burpees

It’s a nasty collection of upper body push pull.

Brutal but beautiful

Look out for a post this weekend about a Crossfit student of mine an inspiring success story.

The sloth is an undervalued and much maligned creature. Everyone thinks its lazy, but, it hamgs way more than most crossfitters, so we though we would  rename our pull up regime, the “sloth complex”

so hang from a bar  with a wide snatch grip, pull up behind your neck ( like will smith in I am legend)

then a wide grip “normal” pull up.( by which i mean chin over the bar)

while still hanging brimg your arms in to normal pull up width, do a pull up

mix grip( position  1)

mix grip(n position 2..er, the other way round)

1 chin up

Once you go through as 1′s you then do 2 reps each exercise, aiming for 3/4.

Then it was back on to what Crossfit London does best, evaluating the olympic lifts. Tonight we looked at the “drop” in the clean, deciding that commitment and “fast elbows” were the key. get down fast ,weight on your heels, spin your elbows..er..fast.

After some useful drills, we moved onto strength, suggesting the deadlift for those naughty people who had no deadlifting that week, but leaving a free floor for those that had.

On to the wod which was a delicious 19,14,12 turkish get up and burpees:

Have a lovely weekend

A brutal Friday morning.

Barbell work

Push jerk & split jerk (one of each) working up to a heavy set of two.

“Something horrible”

Three, five minute rounds consisting of 1 minute for max reps at each station (1mins rest between rounds):

• Rope climb
• Box step up (20″ box, 2x 24kg kettlebells)
• Fake prowler push (50kg)
• Kettlebell thrusters (2x 16kg)
• Ring push ups

Particularly nasty.

With Steven’s help we have got through deadlift drills and worked upto one heavy set of 5 deadlifts.

WOD: tough one today 20min cap
21-15-9
hang power snatches (40/30kg)
pull ups
1 min rest
10-9-8-7-…-1
thrusters (40/30kg)
knees to elbows

Yes Alex elbow is that bendy part of your arm… That’s what the 3 years of Sport Science had taught me.

Results:

Well done everybody and I will see you all next Friday. Yes Friday and I will be in the best mood ever.

in  a packed agenda tonight, and building on Toms hip extension work, we threw out 3 x 3 Snatches, then 3 x 3 clean high pulls to make sure everyone got their hips in, followed by 3 x 5 Front sqats for our dedicated strength fans.

This was followed by 15  x 40kg front squats then max pull ps. amrap 12 minutes ( although the 5.30 got a 14 minute dose: sorry) p;ost rounds completed and max pull ups in comments.