Hybrid Snatch

Another great workout and a technique revelation. I decided to go with the 22 kg today despite my ego saying I should just jump to the 24kg so I don't get "weak" in the snatch. Well since Tuesdays are now Hi pull days and I get up to the 32 kg easily and Thursdays I will handle the 44 kg or Beast I shouldn't worry about not getting enough heavy stuff in.

My snatch technique needs the work, not my strength and last weeks 20 kg workout lead to some great revelations as well so I decided to stay with the plan.

Smart decision.

Using more of a hi pull style for the snatch, where the focus IS elevation rather than projection of force has really made it easier for me to find better timing and the exact time to exert max force. If  I go too early I am out of phase  or pull too much with my arm

Since my left knee is always bent at least 10 degree the kinematics are much different than with my right side and I have to take that into account.

I've been trying to find the "end range' position of my left arm snatch and it hasn't been working as well as I wanted. But today it did.

I decided to let the weight shift to my quads out of the bottom instead of just trying to drive with the hips and it made a HUGE difference in my timing, the stress on my grip and my shoulder. Felt great on the right side as well.

The above video is from my last set and I didn't decide to play with this technique until the last four sets but the difference was immediate. You can't tell that much from the video as it's very subtle but the reversal out of the back swing is more of a GS technique than a HS. My shins don't translate forward ( as they can't) but that is the intention  and I could feel my quads kicking in as I shifted.

This gives me a half beat longer in the backswing AND a way OUT of the backswing that isn't forced. This is what I've been looking for. Then, it's more HS as I try to accelerate the rest of the way on the ascent. It's easier too as I'm in a better position to jump "up". not forward.

In the RKC we say the swing is 'projection' of force. If we want to 'elevate' we say 'snatch it'. So I am. It's just a slight deviation from the classic HS swing but it makes a big difference.

Here's the third set where I hadn't decided to do this yet but my body was leaning in that direction by itself:


On this technique I am just trying to get a pure hip drive and the timing is just not optimal. It's the same, really, as when I was powerlifting and was trying to do a pure WSB wide stance squat; all hips and back.

The only problem: I am not a big hip guy. So there's not much power there. I would have been way better served by using more quads as well as hips. Same thing here. I need to let go of dogma and go with what is best for my body. I've known this for years but keep trying to fit a square peg in a round hole and I know better.

I have a feeling this is going to make a huge difference in my snatch training.

Snatch
16 kg hi pull 5/5 x 3
16 kg x 5/5
20 kg x 5/5
22 kg x 8/8 x 8 sets
128 reps
6400 lbs

Very solid, calm and strong, More reps than last week with more weight. Nice.

One CB Shield cast
10 lbs x 10/10
          x 15/15
15 x 10/10
     x 12/12
     x 15/15

this was great and very good for the left arm/shoulder. Wasn't able to do this 2 weeks ago. Should is REALLY being stable!

Negative Pushups
4 sets of 10 

the concentric part , from my knees is getting way more solid.Getting to be a pushup from the knees rather than just a "get back to start position" movement. Real pushups and shoulder stability right around the corner!

Body blade/ band laterals supersets
2 sets of 10/10 each

 Great workout!Feeling strong and fit and recovering better all the time. Less myofascial release needed each day. Nice

datsit.
Sisu/

Heavy Power swings.

Longest day of the week today. Power swings were on the menu which made me happy. Less reps and more strength, much easier for me As Brett says," anything over three reps is cardio" and I agree. Power swings are just 2 reps more so I'll live.

And it's so cool that I can do two handers now and that they actually feel GOOD, as opposed to my one arms and snatches which feel much less stable these days than ever. The 32 kg today actually felt like the 24 for the first time (especially on the down sets). Now that's progress.

Two Hand swings
( ballistics)
16 kg x 10
20 kg x 10
24 kg  x 10

Power swings
28 kg x 5
32 kg x 5
36 kg x 5
40 kg x 5
44 kg x 5
40 kg x 5
36 kg x 5
32 kg x 5/5
         x 6/6
         x 7/7
         x 8/8 ( bell starts to slow down,done)
Ballistic 
24 kg x 20

This was a great workout. Every set felt solid and the weights felt light. Power was maintained all the way through to the last set and the 20 rep down set was crisp.

Snatch Holds
16 kg x 30 sec
         x 60 sec
20 kg x 30 sec
24 kg x 30 sec

these are getting better all the time, Really helping strength and lockout position. Left shoulder hasn't felt this stable in almost 2 years. :)) About freakin' time :)) Never should have taken this out.

Negative Pushups
4 sets of 10 

Crawling: 3 laps around the gym forward and back

Band laterals 3 x 10/10

solid day

datsit.
Sisu/

"..and the next step off a peak"

Is always down. No, I didn't fall off and , actually, didn't even step back as I should have but as I have said repeatedly, you WILL cycle your training, even if you just make nature do it for you. I felt great going in to today's hi pull session but when the weights got in my hands there was just no 'zip' .
Not surprising, considering how zippy I was on Saturday( I was hoping it would last longer) but it took a bit more out of my power than expected. Totally ok, it was just a surprise although it shouldn't have been.

Sixth set up the ladder of 5/5-10/10 with the 28 kg:



It went well and I was trying to get my left shoulder back( instead of up) earlier but it only went so well:))

5:30 am
full stretchout focus on legs. Crawling a lot these last days got my hammy pretty tight .lots of stretching to do. calf too.
Shoulder doing VERY well. almost normal.

1 pm
High pulls
16 kg x 5/5/ x 2
20 kg x 5/5
24 kg x 5/5
28 kg x 5/5
         x 6/6
         x7/7
         x8/8
         x9/9
         x10/10
22 kg x 10/10 x 3 sets
150 reps

They weren't as bad as I originally thought and I have to remember than my left side is never going to look, or work exactly like my right. I just have to make it feel right. What is great is that I can do much higher reps with the hi pull than I can with the one arm swings AND get more upper body work at the same time. This is the most natural way for me to pull with one arm.
Pure one arm swings are mostly hips and my hips just ain't that strong ,lol. The two hand swings will now take over that duty :))


here' some video of the 24 kg pulls


the good news is that I could do a very decent amount of volume AND reps per set with a pretty heavy for me weight! The down sets helped a lot and I really got the groove even more settled in.

Belt squats
36 kg x 10
44 kg x 10
         x 12
         x 15

felt good. brought my stance back in, straight feet with foot torque to start and not trying to lock out at top. lots of quads and deloaded the hammies immediately

Negative Pushups( on slight decline)
4 sets of 10

these went better than ever and the shift from the bottom prone position, to knee with toes dorsiflexed and not shifting was solid. closer every day to solid pushups!

datsit.
Sisu/

"...when Grace lays it down in front of you."

You have to be ready to grab it. To be honest, it's been so long since it's happened I truly wondered if it would again, or I was just destined to toil relentlessly with no joy, no pay off, just fighting against a bent frame and the forces of gravity.

Especially today as yesterday DOMS kicked my ass from Thursday's workout. I was even sore all night, with my legs, shoulders and upper back tight and sore. Same this morning but it fell off quickly with my stretchout and for some reason I felt great walking into Stones.



I had decided to start alternating snatch weights each Saturday, since I'm doing high pulls on Tuesdays instead of Snatch Vo2 and I can go super heavy there. Today seemed like a good day to step down and play with the 20 kg intead of the 24. I'll alternate the 20, 22 and 24 kg bells adjusting the rep scheme and the total number of reps done each week accordingly. I can keep track of each weights PR for reps and volume and cycle each as well.

So today was the 20 kg and I was hoping my high pull technique would carry over to the snatch and it did! My shoulder stayed in place and was painless the entire time and the technique was easy and consistent! Yes. Energy was high,strength was good and everything just fell into place.

The Flow. The reason I do this in the first place and what keeps me coming back for more week in and week out. Just remembering this zone exists makes me want to come back looking for it, no matter how few and far between the visits seem to get.

Snatch
High pull warmup: 16 kg x 5/5/ x 3
Snatch
16 kg x 5/5
20 kg x 10/10 x 7 sets
140 reps
6160 lbs

wow this was easy. I could have done more than a few more sets but discretion made it's case and I listened. More volume than last week in total reps and work reps but the ease of the groove was what really got me going. LOVE IT:))

CB Capt America Arm casts
15lb x 20
25 lb 20
35 x 12
     x 14

these felt strong and this version of the arm cast, where I dont have to lead with the left hand makes my left shoulder much happier.


Felt very strong. So nice.

Negative only pushups
4 sets of 10

solid and shoulder was totally ok. More aggressive on the pushup from the knees ( after the eccentric was solid as well. an actual concentric pushup from the knee- full pushups are right around the corner. My pecs , tri's and delts like this.

Bodyblade laterals SS Band laterals

3 sets of 10 each

easy breezy. When you're strong and healthy you can do more work in a session than of late and feel like you did nothing. That's one of my main goals, as well as to wake up not feeling like you have done anything strenuous the day before( still working on that)..

AWESOME DAY.

Datsit.
Sisu/

Some basic work

Nothing too special or hard. Just a bunch of two handed swings with the 32 kg. So nice to be able to even say that now. I worked long and hard and waited  years to be able to do this move and it's as satisfying as I thought it would be.

Pretty sore  though from the high pulls, all in the right places though( upper back, legs and hips) and that looks like it's a keeper.

6 am
Full rifga stretchout and Primal Move free style routine. mostly crawls, getups and turns. lots of foam rolling too.

1 pm
two hand swings
20 kg x 10
24 kg x 10
32 kg x 10 x 12 sets

this went fast as Glenn was feeling spry and it was over before we knew it. I was thinking 15 sets but my legs and hips were getting tired at 10 so I split the difference. they are not used to this work although they are getting there.
The thai squat foot torque technique worked perfectly again and my groove on these is becoming apparent and solid. Took the stance out a bit too and that helped but also why the thighs said hi earlier than expected.

Snatch Holds
16 kg x 30 sec
         x 45 sec
20 kg x 30 sec
         x 45 sec
24 kg x 30 sec

this was tough! triceps tired from the pushups on Tuesday and this didn't help. But the position is feeling solid and the shoulder is as stable as it's been in the last 1.5 years! I also do a slow negative press at the end of each set to keep my press groove strong so that's five reps in the press as well. Enough for now.

Floor KB triceps  extensions ( with pause)
16 kg x 12  x 4 sets

haven't done this in awhile with all the pushups but it was harder than I remembered ,lol.

Bodyblade laterals
3 x 10/10

this is also really helping shoulder stability with the supraspinitus development.

want to get close to 150 snatches on Saturday. have to eat up a bit.

datsit.
Sisu/

The high pull groove

I used to love these but then they proved problematic for my elbow flexors and I haven't done them in ages. they were always a very strong groove for me as I have very long arms and in one arm swings the combined center of gravity is way out there.

Makes it much harder to stay in balance and on the hips. High pulls bring my CCoG in much closer over my base of support and let me use my upper body to help my hips drive the bell. These feel much more stable and strong IF my arms/shoulders let me do them.

Today's workout was a good indication that they will . The clavicle has been very stable of late and  I've had to do less snatch holds to set it of late. Lots of crawling and rifga stretching and my adaptogenic herbs and my recovery and strength have been the best they've been in ages.

It's about time I felt strong again, I almost forgot what it felt like.

Strong feels good.

8 am full stretchout and primal move
the full lower body upper body rifga session with mostly crawling and pushup position for my PM .

1 pm
High pulls
16 kg x 5/5 x 2
20 kg  x 5/5
24 kg x 5/5
28 kg x 5/5 x 2
32 kg  x 5/5 x 3 sets
28 kg x 8/8
24 kg x 10/10 x 2 sets
146 high pulls

not bad at all,especially since I haven't done them in so long. I've always liked these Kind of like the strongest part of the snatch and the swing combined. When the hips are done the upper back can continue the work  for a longer time than in the snatch. No float here. But the weight is in much closer and feels stronger and safer.
Plus I can go heavier and do higher reps easier. If my shoulders and elbows say yes than it will be great.

definitely more of an up and down motion in my swing than a tradtional hinger, which is what I've been looking for. Like my Bottoms up clean and press.

Belt squats/wide
32 kg x 10 x 5 sets

these were ok but I'm not sure the wider stance will work. Just didn't feel like it used to back in my PL days and the belt squat is not a PL squat. back to medium

Eccentric Pushups
4 sets of 10

tired. these are getting gassed. time to switch rep schemes to regenerate the movement. Had ONE rep where I didn't concentrate and the shoulder subluxed! Overhead hold re set it but it just shows me how fragile the positioning is. BUT the pushup groove is definitely coming along and my upper body mass is too.

Nice to have some pecs again. Triceps are growing and, strangely enough, biceps too. :)) All that eccentric loading.

bodyblade laterals
3x10/10

datsit.
Sisu/

Consistent progress

That's the goal. It's not a linear path and ,believe me, I know that, but it's great when the overall trendline is in the right direction and it has been. I was sore as hell yesterday am and midday but it cleared up nicely, right on time for this morning's workout.

The eccentric pushups really nailed my rhomboids showing me just how little work they have been doing. Shoulder was good throughout yesterday and was pretty solid this morning as well. Little bits of progress all the time add up.

I know most powerlifters despise them but I loved the 2.5 lb plates. You never even know they're on the bar but if you keep adding 2.5 on a semi regular basis next thing you know, without really noticing it, is that the extra load is now 25 lbs, not 2.5
Same here, an extra rep here and there, wave loading the total volume and up and down and what was 80 rep workouts are now 150 rep one's and you are that much stronger and fitter.

The daily routine is  key. So many have NO set routine and I can't fathom how they think they are going to make progress in physical training. I can't. I work, eat, train, sleep and rest as much the same everyday as possible.

Is it boring? Not to me. What's boring is getting weaker, of body, mind and will. Of being lazier and fatter and less dependable or useful. That's boring. Not having a schedule that allows me to make the most of myself that I can at the time.
To be as strong as I can at that time.
That's been my life and it's never been boring to me.

But that's just me .
6 am stretchout:
full body 45 minutes  No PM, just  Rifga and foam roll

8 am
one arm swing warmup 16 kg x 5/5/5 x3
Snatch
16 kg x 5/5 x 2
20 kg x 5/5/
22 kg x 5/5

24 kg x 5/5
         x 7/7
         x 9/9
         x 5/5
         x 7/7
         x11/11
         x5/5
         x 6/6
         x 7/7
124 reps
6572 lbs

not that bad at all. want to turn those 11's into 15's.If my shoulder stays calm it will be no problem
Not going to do snatch vo2 for awhile. too hard to concentrate on shoulder stability AND go fast. So it's back to high rep sets for a few on tues.

Belt squat
32 kg x 10
40 kg x 10
48 kg x 10 x 3

easy.opened up the stance a bit and really used the thai squat foot torque on the descent and tried to lock in with VMO on lockout.
I think this day will be narrow and thursday will be wide stance squats.

One Club Shield casts
10 lbs x 10/10
          x 20/20 x 2

these felt great on the left scapula. stay here for awhile.

BB laterals
3 x 10/10

" I don't want it I just need it"
Yup.


datsit.
Sisu/

Two hand swings ,snatch holds

After last weeks venture into heavy two hand swing I thought this week should be light and fast, so chose the 24 kg as the bell.Still working on this form since it is so new to me and it worked out great again this week, as I added in the foot torque technique of Starretts Thai squat and it worked perfectly.

I focused on keep the arch of the foot locked in and pushing the knees out to unlock it on the downswing and after that everything else just dropped into place. LOTS of load on the hip, no load on the lower back and I had plenty of clearance in the body with my elbows straight.

got another full hour of stretch and mobility work in but no PM, I did plenty these last three days and I didn't want to push it. Too much time in flexion is not good for me so 100 ups ( 60 reps today) and high strides instead. Just a few.

2 pm
Two hand swings
16 kg x 10
24 kg x 10
         x 12
         x 14
         x 16
         x 18
         x20 x 2 rounds
         x 10 x 2
200 reps

They kept getting faster and better each set.

Snatch Holds
16 kg  for 45 sec
           for 60 sec
20 kg x 30 sec
24 kg x 30 sec

these went well and are really making a huge difference in my left shoulder stability. I do a few of these throughout the day with a 8 or 10  kg bell just to set the clavicle and it's staying "in" longer an longer.

I played around a bit with hand position and found the position where the bell is parallel to the calluses ( as in pic above) with slight internal rotation of the shoulder much more comfortable. I was getting into much more of a GS external rotation with the bells handle on a diagonal but this seems to agree with the shoulders more now.

Negative pushups
3 sets of 10

these went even better than expected with a pushup from the floor to the prone cobra position with no shoulder instability. Only be a little time now to full reps. this is very encouraging.

BB laterals
2 x 10/10

just tired now. been up since three with only some almonds and green tea. Hungry:))

datsit.
Sisu/

Double Day

Got two solid workouts in today; the first a one hour flex/mobility/primal move session from 6-7 am and then snatch vo2,squats and pushups at  1 pm.

Had a cancellation today so got in early and got to work. Starting my day out hammering out any tension or asymmetries before I get to my job helps get me going where I want to be so much more than creating even more asymmetrical tensions during work and then kbs and THEN trying to bang them out when I'm tired from the full day.

Perhaps  I just need to leave the house a  half hour earlier. Say 5 am? ack.

6-7 am :rock, roll ,stretch, flex, mob.

Back bend over stability ball for front panel hip flexors.
Foam roll: quads, IT bands, glutes, hamstrings, low back, mid back upper back.
Lacrosse ball: deep hip rotators, glute medius
softball: gastroc and soleus on massage table, in conjunction with coffee table stretch.
power rack hangs; three grips
strap hamstring stretch
brettzell
up dog
down dog for 2 min( locking left knee focus)
frog squat stretch
kneeling hip flexor stretch, back foot dorsiflex
seated straddle stretch, 3 sides,
pike stretch toe pull

Standing Gait work
100 ups : 50 reps
High strides 200 yds
Hurdle step with stick, left only; 20 reps

as good and important as the gait work on the floor is ,gait work standing is everybit as important I see now and I've been neglecting it. No more. Just a few reps go a long way.

Primal move freestyle workout:
supine neck rolls
scissor kicks
ankle circles
knee circles
happy ball easy rolls ( hands on knees, not toes)
roll to figure fours
roll to prone cobra
walk to frog and back to cobra
walk to creeping position, rocking drills
crawl forward, sideways back two times repeat with change direction
back to frog
crawl to pushup. walk sideways and back two times
walk back to crawl
switch getup position, three times each side
roll back to crab and over to getup position two times per side.
switch to scorpion and back turn to getup , two times each side.
switch to skydiver, full rolls each directions three times.
pushup to silverback, walk forward, sideways and back, two times
walk back to frog, stand up.

Nice.It was fun to get away from the prescribed sequence and just PLAY with the floor. PM is all about play and flow and I really got into it this morning. Shoulder held together so well and just got better

1 pm
Snatch

Felt as good as I have all day today right up til when it was time to train then my shoulder told me it didn't want to snatch fast. I told it too bad so sad and we went at it. it was a tie but a major distraction when I felt fit and strong and wanted to push a bit. Oh well, the body tells you what to do, not the other way around.:))

the shoulder was just wonky and I spent most of the time on my left side trying to find a groove that didn't feel bad. ack

Snatch Vo2
I go you go with Glenn
16 kg
30 sets of 7
210 reps
7560 lbs

Snatch practice after
spent some time actually reaching DOWN on the back swing instead of back ( which is what I was trying to do in the above video) Felt the best I'm not happy

Barbarian Clubbell squats
25 x10/10
35 x10/10 x 2
25 x 10/10

these were ok and glad to see I can do another variation of the squat but I'm not sure if they're right for this day. belt squats twice a week are old now so I want another squat variation

Negative only pushups
4 sets of 8 reps

NICE! the shoulder felt perfect and the reps were 2 up from tuesdays. Triceps are feeling it too which is perfect.

Bodyblade laterals
3 sets of 10/10

solid workout and workday. very excited about the am workout particularly .

datsit.
Sisu/

Snatch form work

It's great that my left shoulder has been staying stable in the socket this last week and all the accompanying muscle tension in the elbow flexors, levator and traps has disappeared with it. Doing snatch holds regularly both sets the rib in the right place as well as activate the rotator cuff to do it's job.

All around good, but the left arm technique for the snatch is not optimal and today I wanted to spend some time trying to figure it out.that's why I went back to five's. What I discovered is that the technique that works on the left side is not what works on the right.

On the right if I lean forward a bit the hips go back on their own and I can "shock" absorb through my hips very easily. There is a natural end point of the back swing and all feels smooth. On my left I have to actually lean even more and not try to flex my knees at all to get a natural end point of my back swing,

If I try to emulate the right side on the left  I lose hip power and the  groove feels bad. The correct position is the one in the picture above. I just hope my back says it's ok because it feels much better and more fluid.No shorting the back swing trying "create" the right groove.It's right there. But it ain't the same snatch as the right. Hey no one's ever accused me of being symmetrical now, have they?

6:30 am
45 minutes Rifga and Primal Flow warmup

( this is set 6 of 12 BEFORE I figured it out, watch the left side )


snatch
16kg x 5/5x 2
20 kg x 5/5
24 kg x 5/5 x 12 sets
120 reps
6360 lbs

here's what I came up with playing around with technique after with the 16 and 20 kg:



Glenn came up with some revelation of his own after I saw Pavel's technique in this clip from the original RKC challenge DVD


Pavel spoke about just hinging from the hips FIRST to initiate the downswing on the snatch!Not a beginners technique but this one change totally  fixed three or four of Glenn's technique and timing issues. An "Aha" moment for sure. For both of us

I get to play with this again on Tuesday when we bring back Snatch Vo2 training again!

Belt squat
32 kg x 10
36 kg x 10
40 kg x 10
44 kg x 10
48 kg x 15

I forgot to start turning my toes out a bit here but I will remember next time. These felt positively easy for just ten rep sets.

two hand clubbell shield casts
25 x 10/10
     x 10/10
35 x 8/8 ( too heavy today!)
35 x8/8 arm cast. 

the 35 really kicked my ass today. because they tend to irritate my shoulder I haven't been doing these too much and I can tell. have to go back and pay more dues with the 25er and some volume

Pushup (eccentric only)
4 sets of 6 again. Much easier and shoulder totally stable. work these up to 5 x 10 and I bet the concentric will be there too.

BB laterals
3 x 10/10

great workout! still getting stronger and recovering better each week. Now I have some positive momentum going and no travel in site! Yes.


datsit.
Sisu/

It's a freakin' miracle

that I can actually train the two hand swing let alone swing the Beast for sets and reps. I really didn't think I ever would be able to, even though I was totally committed to never stopping trying. I wasn't sure I would.

I mean, after 9 years of trying and failing one might think it would never happen. But never say never  and, as Geoff Neupert says, "Rif, you're one stubborn guy" and that's true. Sisu. Never Quit.

And now I so look forward to these workouts. I'm still finding my groove and I have to say it ain't pretty. Just like my DL wasn't pretty but it was pretty strong. Another thing I'm realizing that  my eccentric speed has a lot to be desired but I've got some tiny hips and glutes and get off balance in this move very quickly.

Ram from the DD forum shows great eccentric speed on his two hand swing with the  40 kg. I'm really a newbie with this version of the swing and I know it'll get better. It already has each week.

And this workout working up to the 48 kg for 3x10 was a good indication that I have work to do but have still progressed tremendously.

Two Hand swings
20 kg x 10
24 kg x 10
28 kg  x10
32 kg  x10
36 kg x 10
40 kg x 10
48 kg x 10 x 3
32 kg x 20
28 kg x 20


this was very interesting! the H2 H workout Tuesday really helped me find my groove in the swing and it immediately transferred over and my groove felt very balanced and strong, if not as powerful as I would hope. that will come. It certainly did with the 32 kg after I swung the beast. THEN it felt light and fast.

Pushups
Eccentric only pushups
5 sets of 6 reps

the shoulder held! Nice!NO clunking or de stabilization.  I WILL get my push pattern back. this was a very good start.Lot of focus on pulling through the scap adductors on the descent. Plus the snatch holds are working and the shoulder was "in" all day. No pain at all. SO weird. When a joint doesn't sit right all kinds of muscles yell at you in spasm. The second the joint is in neutral everything quiets down.  very strange.

Snatch Holds
16 kg x 45 sec
20 kg x 45 sec
24 kg x 30 sec

the first set knocked the rib in and it held. these are getting better every time.

bb laterals
3 x 10/10

datsit.
Sisu/

A swing I haven't used in a while

I used to train the transfer swing quite a lot. Since I could only tolerate one arm swings and snatches my choices that my back would tolerate were small and I found that I could do transfers without problems.

I've always seen this swing as much more of a lower body emphasis since one has to let go of the bell too quickly to "pull" too much ( try to use the arm/ shoulder). As soon as you would need to pull you have to switch and one ends up focusing much more on the lower half that powers the swing than pulling at all.

My shoulder has been feeling much more stable of late since i started incorporating my hang technique from the power rack chin bar with a variety of grip and  heel height( how far I let my heels stay off the ground in the stretch position) and snatch holds. This has really been a big help in re setting the shoulder ( which now I feel is the clavicle /first rib that is the issue).

As it did in the past with my rotator issue.

So I decided to do h2h swings today instead of one arms or max vo2,that is coming back next week. My best in this was 85 consecutive reps with the 32 kg. Long way from that but not too far :))

PLUS I got a full 75 minute stretchout this morning at 6 am and what  gift that was. I had plenty of time and a perfectly quiet gym to do my yoga/ meditation stretch. and I felt much better ALL day.

H2H transfers
 16 kg x 15 x 2
20 kg x 16

24 kg x 16
         x 20 x 5 sets
         x 30 x 2 sets

these went just as I hoped with the shoulder totally fine, the hips and legs feeling it most and it helping me re establish my swing groove

Belt squats
32 kg x 45
         x 35
         x 25

could have gotten 50 but would have had to go above 80% effort and don't need to do that.
the pump and fatigue in the quads was stellar. Also, did reps in the TKE this morning with a purple band. going to start doing that everyday. have to get this damn knee to lockout better.

High reps for quads are definitely the ticket.

floor kb extensions ( no pauses, cont tension)
16 kg x 15
         x 15
          x 12
          x 12


got tired fast here. had planned on bb laterals but hit a nice wall and needed some food. great workout.

My main training goals: to do more than I have of late and feel like I am doing nothing, and to wake up the next morning feeling like I hadn't trained at all the day before.

today was the former. hopefully tomorrow will be the latter.

Strong is Good  and I'm feeling strong again.

datsit.
Sisu/

Snatches, squats and a resignation.

Bizarre day. A solid workout, my granddaughter's third birthday party and the day I resigned as Master Instructor for DragonDoor Publications. Note that I did NOT say from RKC as until that legal distinction is truly decided upon I still will consider myself a Master RKC.

Pavel has resigned. He is going to create a new organization and structure, his "vision" of the RKC. He is MY Master, my Chief and I am going where he goes and teach where he teaches. I have truly enjoyed my 7 years as an RKC, Senior RKC and Master Instructor but now, for many reasons, it is time to move on and while I a bit sad about it all I am just as excited about what the future will bring.

No matter what it brings it will, it has to, center on consistent training,on getting stronger, better, braver, more disciplined and consistent each and every day, to the best that I can. That day. That's all I can ask of myself and that's all I can ask of my students.

Show up, tap in to what your body is telling you it can do that day, and then do your best to do it. It doesn't matter what or where it is as tomorrow will always be another training day. Whether that training is more loading, more stretching, more mobilizing or more napping. What it takes to keep adapting and getting better. To be able to do more than before , or at least as much as you can, as best you can.

And that's what I did today. I continue to feel strong, to recover and to deal with the  minor tweaks and twinges that my body loves to throw at me all the time. Like a cat with a mouse, my body loves to tease me with glimpses of pain free movement and strength only to push the tweak somewhere I haven't felt before. or at least lately .

But I did more than last week and more than the week before and still feel good. that hasn't happened in a while. Next week should be a back off but today was strong. Weird, but strong.

Snatches
16 kg x 5/5 x 2
20 kg x 5/5
24 kg x 6/6
         x 8/8
         x 10/10 x 2
         x 5/5 x 2
116 reps
6148 lbs

my groove felt weird> I felt strong but had trouble really focusing and finding my groove. MY left shoulder didn't feel completely in and that messes up the groove a lot. Have to practice some light snatches and see if I can find a better slot for the left arm. Still , all in all, just fine.

Belt squats
32 kg x 20
36 kg x 20
40 kg x 20 x 2

was going to go up but both partners are still a bit jacked and to be honest I was too lazy to change the weight s:((

Two hand CB arm casts
25 lbs  x10/10
           x12/10
           x 15/15
these were fine but I was getting tired. doesnt read like much work but it sure seemed like a lot at the end.

datsit.
Sisu/