Alexus! Look at you busting out BEAUTIFUL chinups. You own those sets of 2. Very nice. Working with Harry is going to be great for you. I’m so glad you’re working with him.
Awesome chin-ups. Do you have access to a bar with a neutral grip?
And whats with the waiter walks? Is that for shoulder stability?
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thanks nadia! harry says i need to hold my lower body a bit tighter. plantarflex the feet and flex the quads as well as the glutes and hammies. also to pull the back down before bending the elbows. the doubles are still feeling a bit dubious to me (an element of 'pull yourself up god dammit even if you gotta lean forwards and use your biceps) but i can certainly practice the technique with the singles which i know i’m good for.
i really do seem to make better progress with someone telling me what to do. if i was left to my own devices i’m pretty sure i’d be thinking that i could maybe possibly do a double on a good day… but the program told me to do 3 doubles and then 4 and i’ve managed to do them okay 
bird - i think there might be a bar with a neutral grip. i’m going to work on this grip, though. will maybe try the others some time out of curiosity about the carry-over / difference but making steady progress with the chins now. trying my best to use my back and minimize bicep involvement, too. would like to switch to pull-ups at some point.
TRAINING
back has still been dodgey. coach has mostly been leaving me alone and i’ve been kind of dinking around, really. i think the injury is a combination of getting slack with my soft tissue work / mobility stuff and seriously increasing the weight on the oly lifts. i’ve always had trouble with glute activation standing up snatches… then that progressed to bottoming them out… then that progressed to back injury. it is only sorta-kinda injured. got some work to do on my hip flexors and glute activation, though (story of my life).
so…
i’m thinking i need to seek more of a middle way between just doing what i’m told and lifting some weight already… and paying attention to the things i have a habit of fussing about. e.g., i knew i’d started bottoming out my snatches and that it wasn’t good. should have made more of an issue of that at the time and done something about it.
i do trust my coach… kinda… sorta… tis hard… he is big on pulls… and says i should do powercleans and powerjerks (rather than squatting under either of them) because i’m stronger that way… but my strategy was to get the technique right on getting my ass under and put the weight up as slowly as needed to keep good form. even though i know i’ll be really very weak at both of those for a while…
a lot of the guys power everything and he doesn’t seem to worry about that. doesn’t believe in drop snatches or overhead squats or stuff like that… i think i might be a bit fussier about technique than him… one of the guys dips very low for his jerk so i asked the coach (when nobody else was around) whether he might get more power from a short and snappy dip. he didn’t quite seem to get what i meant… then told him to dip shorter for a couple… then was happy when the guy got a PR for the day even though he reverted to long dip, pause, drive. so i dunno…
i think he cares more about short term who lifts the most weight rather than the longer term strategy. but then i know i’m the other extreme with my whole ‘if you can lift the stick perfectly you can lift anything at all’.
hrm.
maybe my priorities are different.
2 things i want for myself:
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To have a balanced hindu squat (i know these will never be as stable as a heels on the ground squat). this will help me in my daily life when i need to pick things up from the ground etc. want to be able to balance these good without relying on needing to touch the ground / grab things to help balance me.
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To get better at standing on one leg. because you know, it would be kinda cool if i could put my jeans on without needing to lean up against a wall or hold a rail or something.
bird - the barbell waiters walks are for:
- core strength (feel it in the abs to hold something overhead with one hand)
- grip strength (gotta squeeze it real hard for the turns since the bar gains momentum and tries to rip your hand off)
and mostly 'cause i think they are kinda cool and i had the space to do them. it is gonna look bad ass when i’ve got the bumpers on
alexus! your chins are so pretty!!! arg! in reflection my pull ups are so greasy!!ahh!
nice job!
What’s a Hindu Squat? I don’t think I’ve heard of those and the interwebs is giving me push up like things.
The waiter walks with the bar do look totally badass.
[quote]Patch2 wrote:
What’s a Hindu Squat? I don’t think I’ve heard of those and the interwebs is giving me push up like things.
The waiter walks with the bar do look totally badass. [/quote]
it’s like a squat on the balls of your feet, and you swing your arms back and forth, just like they do in Hinduism (lolface)
[quote]PB Andy wrote:
[quote]Patch2 wrote:
What’s a Hindu Squat? I don’t think I’ve heard of those and the interwebs is giving me push up like things.
The waiter walks with the bar do look totally badass. [/quote]
it’s like a squat on the balls of your feet, and you swing your arms back and forth, just like they do in Hinduism (lolface)[/quote]
Are your knees close together or apart? Like what’s the stance? Do you just swing at the bottom of swing while you squat?
In all the temple activities I’ve been never once have I seen anyone squat and wave their arms back and forth.
Lex, its been so long since we’ve seen a vid that I’ve forgotten what a gorgeous creature you are! Seriously, I love your lithe build - its so elegant.
Creepiness aside, those chins are fantastic! You really do have some great form on those, and you look super diesel. You were knocking those suckers out like they were candy! Did Harry tell you to keep your legs straight down like that? I always crossed my legs behind me, but then I saw Nadia do them straight and now you…I wonder if this is “proper technique”?
Sorry about that back injury! Is it in the muscle or the spine? For me back issues are always a result of losing tightness in my core, particularly when I’m backsquatting. If this is the case for you too, those waiters walks could probably help for that - you definitely have to keep your core engaged with those. I love how easily you 1 arm snatched it btw. Awesome!
I just looked up Hindu squat - yeah, i’d like to be able to do that too…lol!
I just came back because I remembered something I wanted to add - I think you should definitely look to find a happy medium b/w what your coach wants for you and what you want for yourself.
Coaches I think can be particularly narrow-minded in their vision re: an athlete and their abilities, and can sometimes forsake the desires of the athlete in favor of their own views. And for the most part this is good, since they are the pros and are more informed. But I think that’s no reason to put aside the training goals you have for yourself, which I think are perfectly valid. Perfecting the snatch and the C&J is an art! You shouldn’t compromise that just for power and lifting heavy. Don’t lose sight of your joy
And anyways, you do need to be pushed a little in terms of just effing it and putting some weight on the bar. If your coach does that, and you keep working technique on your own, adding weight as you normally would, who knows, It could be the perfect marriage!
[quote]Mascherano wrote:
I just came back because I remembered something I wanted to add - I think you should definitely look to find a happy medium b/w what your coach wants for you and what you want for yourself.
Coaches I think can be particularly narrow-minded in their vision re: an athlete and their abilities, and can sometimes forsake the desires of the athlete in favor of their own views. And for the most part this is good, since they are the pros and are more informed. But I think that’s no reason to put aside the training goals you have for yourself, which I think are perfectly valid. [/quote]
So true. When I started with my coach, I followed him to the letter. Now, I am much more strong-willed about what I want. Your coach will either respect that and hang with you or not.
I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks the same about my coach. He’s so old school at times. You know your own body best. And dammit, that’s why we do this right, to enjoy our bodies. No one is paying us to lift.
2nd on the “lithe build - its so elegant”
hmm. i wasn’t such a fan of the dorky arm movements… just want to be able to mess with stuff in my bag, talk to kids at their height, and pick up pens and stuff without hurting my back. knees together seems harder but i might want to wear a skirt one day. mostly just practicing an ‘athletic stance’ that seems a fairly natural width. i really have no hope of getting my heels flat on the ground. still working on balance. hoping arm position will be irrelevant one day.
took a vid of me messing around with a 4kg med ball, too. waiting for it to upload… aka clumsy old me. at least it will be clear to people how i can train for a couple hours without overtraining lolz.
aw, thanks for the compliments, people
upper back is still recovering from those chins. glad now that i only do them once a week.
i did some deadlifts today. worked up to getting 2 singles @80kg (= PR). missed the third rep - legs were wobbling a lot and afraid my back was caving too badly. wasn’t the most beautiful form but it has been a while so i was getting that happy NOS high type feeling from them. did some GHR’s and barbell hip thrusts (up to sets of 8@65kg).
YES on those chins, I see a set of 5 w/o a doubt soon!
[quote]alexus wrote:
[/quote]
:-p
I just tried the hindu squats at home and funnily enough, I don’t find them so hard. I find it far, far harder to squat with my feet flat on the ground. But holy crap, the sounds coming from my knees… Crepitus much?
reminds me of my wall squat training period. just keep at it Alex - practice everyday for 20 minutes.
[quote]Cal Jones wrote:
I just tried the hindu squats at home and funnily enough, I don’t find them so hard. I find it far, far harder to squat with my feet flat on the ground. But holy crap, the sounds coming from my knees… Crepitus much?
[/quote]
just another proof we probably have some mingling DNA somewhere… same for me on all levels including the nasty sound effects.
Lol on the cracking sounds.I usually have my music on for warm up , but one day training with my son
I took them off to ask why he was making fdaces at me? “Mom you sound like your are going to brake, what is that noise”? hahaha
Lexi great job, dang those are tuff. I noticed after the 4th set your feet came out wider, does it even matter where the legs/feet hang as long as they are down? ----> also not critiquing since i have no clue the “proper” technique. Just trying to be a little more observant like YOU.
I love your attitude and the way you think about training, this is your niche.