I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced 1 kick 10,000 times.
Bruce Lee
“Going through the motions” sounds like a bad thing. Where you’re stuck in a rut or merely conducting work in a routine fashion for no apparent endgame, it is. However, there are times when repeating the motions is a good thing, especially if done clinically, with precision and with a goal at the end. I am, of course, talking about Olympic Lifting. After putting aside Oly Lifting (other than within MetCons) for the last 3 months, in favour of the Squat Programme, I have now returned to morning Oly sessions. Given the time of day (0615), I’m not looking to light up the world here. What I am aiming to do is “go through the motions”, repeating the well-worn drills given to me by Mike Burgener (*name drop*) and his son Codi on my CF Weightlifting Trainer course all those moons ago. Repeat, Repeat, Repeat. By the end of Nov, I will be in a position of confidence and mobility to allow me to start pushing the weight in preparation for the CF Open next year.
Having now begun coaching again, I am also looking to take the CF Level 2 course next year. More to follow.
Morning Session
Snatch Drills
- Burgener Warm Up
- 5-Stage Snatch Transition Exercises
3 Rounds of (empty bar):
- Pull to Knee
- Pull to Power Position
- Hang Snatch
- 3 x 3 Snatch @ 40kg (plus 2 x Overhead Squat)
- 3 x 3 Snatch @ 50kg
- 3 x 1 Snatch @ 60kg
- 1 x Snatch @ 65kg
Entirely focusing on form and focus, I never intended going above 60kg but decided to finish on it before stripping the bar.All lifts were solid, although obviously not perfect. I’ll repeat this routine a few times before looking at developing strength.
A typical day in CrossFit Watford
CrossFit Watford 1930 Session
Strength
3 x 5 Back Squat
80/100/110kg
Could have gone heavier, surprised myself with this one although perhaps should have had more faith in myself after the recent Squat Programme.
MetCon
6 Rounds for Time @ 50kg:
- 12 x Power Clean
- 10 x Front Rack Lunge
- 8 x Thruster
Time Cap: 20 mins
Total: 5 rounds + 27 reps. FOR F*%!£ SAKE!!!! I paced it too much and talked myself out of it. For the sake of about 10 seconds, I failed to come in under the time cap. I am really pissed about this one. I appreciate that barbell cycling is not a strength of mine (what barbell work is?) but getting to that barbell 1 second quicker each time would have given me more than enough time to complete it.
Change happens in the dark spaces, the places where you don’t want to go. Change happens when you stress your body and mind. Change does not happen when you take a breath whenever you f’king well feel like it!!!
This is the second time in as many weeks that I’ve thrown a tantrum over a workout. It’s not something I’m used to seeing in myself and I’m not liking it. For what it’s worth, I can only put it down to it being Remembrance, soon to be Dad’s birthday, Christmas (without Dad), etc. I guess it’s weighing on my mind more than a little right now. That’s for me to sort out though – I definitely do not advocate to my athletes getting upset in a workout! It’s for you to enjoy, embrace and grow!
To end on a positive, my form was excellent, I know that. I fought hard in each movement for stability and form throughout.
Links
- Burgener Warmup: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5YFU_iuwJ4
- 5-Stage Snatch Skills Transition Exercises: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4TgzUqleKU
