[quote]mcl wrote:
So that’s what an Anderson was. I was just thinking today about doing squats starting from pins. Now I’ve got a name for 'em!
GREAT 405, by the way! Nice fart, too![/quote]
That was just for you.
[quote]mathineer wrote:
Nice PRs DCA!
One of the companies for which I used to work developed a surface decontamination system to deal with chemical and biological threats. The system consisted of a chemical soup sprayed onto the surface followed by illumination with a pulsed, UV flashlamp. Perhaps I could hook you up with the UV flashlamp part. It might be safer than being showered by tiny globules of molten metal. Of course, if your people also have inherent iron deficiency, maybe the arc welders are better.[/quote]
Isn’t that for iguanas too? No - we have excess iron in our blood to the point that many of us are killed each year in MRI machines. Blunt force trauma against the sides of the tube as they fire up the magnets,y’see. Luckily, I was anaemic when I went in for mine…
Helped a friend move his old washer and dryer out and some new ones in last night after training and he let me pick a real Rolling Thunder handle and an angled rowing handle out of a pile of stuff he had laying around.
Now I can work that grip and do ghetto t-bar rows at home.
Thanks Erik!
To get some perspective on how big a deal yesterday’s high 405 is to me, look at this from 2-1/2 months ago
345 Max high Anderson Squat
I’ve put 60 lbs on a lift in 2-1/2 months. That’s freakin’ amazing!
I’m going to try behind the neck push presses next session because
- I think they will build lockout strength
- I’m getting stale on standing pin presses
- they scare me - and realizing that makes me mad.
Great work DCA! The 405 squat is yours!
And, yes, the 60# in 2 1/2 months is awesome. And the good news is there is more to come!
Wow! Fantastic job on those squats!
Great job on the andersons!!!
Are you sure your abs isnt sore from the fart?
What is your regular back squat looking like? front squat andersons is what got mine up.
Yours is likely to take off too I am digging the partials that you are using, its working!!
Right after I started doing Andersons,zerchers and front squats from pins I jumped from struggling with 345 to 395 if I remember correctly. I haven’t tested a straightforward squat for a month or more though. I’m pretty sure I’ve got 400 if not 405. I’ll be absolutely certain after I do three Anderson singles @365 from parallel. Andersons are my main indicator for squat and zerchers from the floor run a close second. If those go up I can guess within 10 lbs of what my squat will be.
The front squats have definitely made me feel more secure in the hole, now that I’ve changed my squat style a bit. I’ve taken my stance in a bit, let my knees travel forward more and the teardrop muscle helps pull me back out.
Hm. I don’t know if I’m ready to throw fronts into the mix, but I think I’ll definitely be giving Andersons a go.
Nice Anderson squat, I’ll need a lot more faith before I try that.
My back ached just watching. Great job, looking strong.
So, questions!
Tried Andersons today. Really hosed my shoulders doing them. so:
-
how do you manage to set up without the bar moving around on the pins? I always rely on the downward pressure of the weight on the rack to get the bar where I want it on my back, but from pins, I can’t push against it, and my shoulders aren’t flexible enough to let me pull it down where I want it.
-
how the hell do you manage to get your hands in position without wrenching your shoulders?
I was setting up the way you were. Put hands in position, bend at waist, get bar into position on back, Then position torso/lower body under bar, get tight, and lift.
Somewhere in here, I’m doing something VERY wrong. I’m using the same hand position I use with normal squats. Same palm pressure on the bar, same overhand (incl. thumb) grip, same width, everything. But what is just fine for me on normal squats seems horribly, horribly wrong and painful with Andersons.
[quote]mcl wrote:
So, questions!
Tried Andersons today. Really hosed my shoulders doing them. so:
-
how do you manage to set up without the bar moving around on the pins? I always rely on the downward pressure of the weight on the rack to get the bar where I want it on my back, but from pins, I can’t push against it, and my shoulders aren’t flexible enough to let me pull it down where I want it.
-
how the hell do you manage to get your hands in position without wrenching your shoulders?
I was setting up the way you were. Put hands in position, bend at waist, get bar into position on back, Then position torso/lower body under bar, get tight, and lift.
Somewhere in here, I’m doing something VERY wrong. I’m using the same hand position I use with normal squats. Same palm pressure on the bar, same overhand (incl. thumb) grip, same width, everything. But what is just fine for me on normal squats seems horribly, horribly wrong and painful with Andersons.
[/quote]
I tend to grip wider setting for andersons than I do for reg squats, doesn’t rank on my chest as badly. 9/10s of the battle is getting your feet in the right place. You basically have to balance yourself under the bar. Get it wrong and the weight starts out in front of you or - which gets interesting - behind you. The only thing that makes it better is experience. My initial attampts at Andersons were true clusterf**ks, with me either doing a good morning or simply falling backwards in the rack. I didn’t have a camera then or else there’d be a great bloopers reel…
I like to set my shoulders set my feet and then rotate my hips under the bar. In the vid you might notice when I set my feet I’m actually placing them pretty carefully to get them exactly under the bar. I’m also actually pulling the bar to me as I rotate under. I never push on it until I’m actually under it. I do final adjustments to the bar position once my hips are under. But it’s always painful. The bar can wander on the shelf as you begin to go up until it finds out where it wants to be. You also have to make sure to squeeze the shoulder blades and traps before any weight ends up on them. That can be hard to figure out without the actual physical cue of the weight being on them per the regular squat.
Wish I had some fixes for you, but the upshot is that they are just flat weird. They feel wrong, have a different groove and prep and they HURT at the bottom because you don’t get to use the mechanical stretch of the muscles to help you. That’s why few do them. They aren’t sexy, they are hard and they hurt.
Out of curiosity, what would be the difference if you just squatted down until the bar was resting on the pins, paused for a couple of seconds to eliminate the stretch reflex, and then stood up? It would seem that would eliminate the setup difficulties, but otherwise keep the exercise the same.
[quote]mathineer wrote:
Out of curiosity, what would be the difference if you just squatted down until the bar was resting on the pins, paused for a couple of seconds to eliminate the stretch reflex, and then stood up? It would seem that would eliminate the setup difficulties, but otherwise keep the exercise the same.[/quote]
Almost none. There is some residual stored energy in the muscles but if you wait about 3-4 seconds at the bottom there’s effectively no difference. That’s exactly what I do for bottom’s up bench so I don’t screw up my bar path.
Nice PRs there Charming! you are just path-finding too many cool things for me to try out as time goes on. I don’t think I can remember all of the cool stuff I want to try that you’ve demonstrated.
[quote]soldog wrote:
Nice PRs there Charming! you are just path-finding too many cool things for me to try out as time goes on. I don’t think I can remember all of the cool stuff I want to try that you’ve demonstrated.[/quote]
Most the stuff I do is old-old-school. Nothing new going on here…
[quote]DaCharmingAlbino wrote:
soldog wrote:
Nice PRs there Charming! you are just path-finding too many cool things for me to try out as time goes on. I don’t think I can remember all of the cool stuff I want to try that you’ve demonstrated.
Most the stuff I do is old-old-school. Nothing new going on here…[/quote]
Ya - but I don’t see anyone else demonstrating it…
[quote]mathineer wrote:
Out of curiosity, what would be the difference if you just squatted down until the bar was resting on the pins, paused for a couple of seconds to eliminate the stretch reflex, and then stood up? It would seem that would eliminate the setup difficulties, but otherwise keep the exercise the same.[/quote]
I was thinking the same thing Mathineer.
Great lifting Skid.