Force Production: The Clean

We introduce the Clean by preaching the benefits of developing power & how it directly applies to the field for our Athletes. Football is a fast & violent sport that is won by the TEAM that is faster & more powerful. Simply presenting the benefits of the Clean is the easy part. Getting the Athletes to "buy in" & actually perform the desired technique of the Clean is where the work really begins. We feel that the best way for us to progress the Clean is by drilling and teaching our Athletes the positions they will be in throughout the entire movement. It is a mistake to attempt to teach the full movement prior to 1st learning how to:

Initial Set‑Up

‑ Foot placement should be hip width to slightly outside, toes slightly turned out.

‑ Grip placement on the barbell should be thumbs width from the hip & firmly secured with the thumb around the barbell. The hook grip can also be used where the thumb is wrapped around the bar and squeezed by the index & middle fingers. This grip is more advanced and used primarily with Olympic Weightlifters.

Starting position

‑ As you pull yourself down into position, take in a breath & hold it as you would to brace your abdominals.  Your back should be flat w/ shoulder blades pulled down & back, chest covering the bar & shoulders slightly ahead of the barbell. Your weight should be evenly distributed in your foot w/ slightly more pressure in the heel.

1st Pull

‑ During the initial pull in the Clean, your hips & shoulders should be rising together as you are actively "sweeping" the barbell into your body, pushing your knees back slightly as the bar continues its upward path & passes the knee. The 1st Pull should be controlled & patient. A fast or uncontrolled 1st pull will tend to get the Athlete leaning forward which alters the optimal transfer of weight as we transition into the 2nd Pull.

(Drills: Lift to the knee, pause & lower back into starting position on Coaches command)

Transition

‑ All the stored elastic energy developed throughout the 1st Pull & Transition in the hamstrings and glutes is about to be unleashed! The Transition or Scoop phase of the Clean involves the involuntary reflex or double knee bend where the hamstrings and glutes contract & help to extend the hip. This is something that happens naturally and we do not attempt to coach.

2nd Pull

‑ This is the "meat" of the entire Clean. All of the preceding steps in the Clean have lead you to this Power or Jump position where it all goes down. As the hamstrings and glutes have violently contracted to help extend the hip, you are forcefully driving your feet through the platform or as we say, "Push The Ground!" You are pushing the ground away from you in order to accelerate the barbell.

 

(Drills: High Hang pulls or jumps with PVC or barbell, Rack or Block pulls)

The Catch or 3rd Pull

‑ The continued momentum & shrug that accompanies the 2nd pull is what allows you to "pull" yourself underneath the bar & finish the Clean. After the 2nd pull, the barbell ceases to accelerate and you must accelerate your body underneath the barbell by actively pulling into the receiving or Front Squat position.

 (Drills: Front Squat to familiarize with position, Muscle Cleans for quicker turnover)

 

This is just a brief description of the intricacies and mechanics of the Clean. You can go much further in depth in explaining the bio mechanics of the movement and further breaking down drills to improve technique. There are many great resources that we continue to seek out and learn from on a daily basis. The Clean is an extremely complex but beautiful expression of strength and power that is a vital component or cornerstone to any strength program.

 

Check out these resources for further explanation & drills for the Clean as well as other Olympic lifts: Catalyst Athletics, Mike Burgener, & USA Weightlifting

 

 

Keep Pushing...PTG!

Forging Mental Toughness: Military Elite

Training elite Athletes physically and mentally is the business we are in as Strength & Conditioning professionals. To be successful in College Football you must push your players to the point where they are the most hardened and sharpened Athletes that step on the field Saturday afternoons. It is not enough to just assume that as you get them “Bigger, Faster & Stronger”, you will experience immediate success on the field. There is another component that must be trained, the mental component.

Our elite Military personnel are not the elite because they are the most physically gifted and talented individuals. They are elite because they choose to hold themselves to a different standard. They are elite because they subject themselves to training that the “regular” guy would not even dream of experiencing. They train for life and death situations in order to protect what, we as Americans, take for granted. On a daily basis, they protect and ensure our daily way of life here in the United States.

How does this draw any parallels to Sports and training Athletes?

We are doing our Athletes a disservice if we are only training them physically. Our job is to create situations in our training that simulate the hardship and struggle that will surely arise in the heat of competition. Through these trials that we lay in front of our Athletes, the goal is to help forge their character and will to succeed and overcome adversity. Our aim is to forge a brotherhood during the Winter & Summer phases of our training.

The U.S. Navy SEALs have a motto on their website, “Alone I am LETHAL. As a TEAM we DOMINATE.” Individually & collectively, they epitomize what it means to be elite. They are a brotherhood that fights for the man standing beside them, no matter the situation. They reach this point through the shared trials and situations they are drilled in, over and over, each and every day. They embrace any challenge that is set before them and take it head on without reservation.

That is what we want out of our TEAM. In the course of events in a Football game, just as in life, there will be numerable moments where things do not go as planned. There will be things that go horribly wrong and setbacks, which may be unfair or unwarranted, without action will cause you to lose or fail. Having a steel resolve and focus when confronted with these type situations is what helps you overcome. It is what makes the seemingly impossible or insurmountable obstacles in your path attainable.

Keep pushing...PTG!

Training Injured Athletes

Throughout the course of the Football season, we are encountered with various injuries that force us to make alterations to an Athletes lifting program. Hands and wrists are a common issue for all of our Football players and although they are limited, they still must continue to train. The Pendulum series of machines from Rogers Athletic allow us to safely train our injured Athletes throughout the season. There are no drops in strength due to the ability to load our Athletes and strength train them effectively. Check out these 3 machines and other great products at Rogers Athletic.

Darl & Chad training on our new Power Squat Pro.

• Power Squat Pro

This machine allows us to laod an Athlete as close as we can to a regular Squat, taking in consideration any wrist or hand issue they might be experiencing. If the Athlete is experiencing any shoulder, low back or lower extremity issues, this is not the machine we would use. We instead would use either the Pendulum Hip Press or Seated Squat Pro to achieve the training results we were looking for.

• Squat Pro

The seated version of the Squat Pro gives us a machine where we can train both bi-laterally and uni-laterally. Some lower body injuries are not trainable unless you have a machine where you can isolate the healthy leg. This machine is also a great strengthening tool when re-habbing Athletes that are coming off surgery and a great way to progress their strength levels in the attempt to re-integrate them back into the general training population.

• Hip Press

The Hip Press is a machine that we use not only for injured Athletes but also for our lineman. In-season, maintaining strength levels is important especially when the play up front on both sides of the ball dictates the tone and outcome of every game. The Hip Press allows us to load our lineman with heavier load while taking the some of the load off of their spine. Low back pain or tightness are common in-season and we want to avoid contributing to that as much as we can but still get good strength training in.

Keep pushing...PTG!

Snatch for Football: In-Season

As we transition into training Football in-season, there have to be special consideratioons made in regards to continued training and application of the Snatch. Keeping our Athletes healthy and explosive is our primary concern so we still want to train for power/force production and use Olympic movements. Training the Snatch in-season can be done but we prefer to use pull variations to avoid putting our Athletes in that overhead position considering all the wear and tear they are getting on the field. Shoulder and wrist/hand issues are common throughout the season so we want to avoid adding stress to those structures when we can. Here are some of the variations we use that help us remain fast and explosive in-season.

• Snatch Pull

• Snatch Pull (from blocks)

Another alternative exercise that we use along with the Snatch in-season is the Vertimax. If an Athlete has a hand issue where he can no longer grab and hold onto a barbell, the Vertimax is a good tool to use. It is important to coach a solid landing position and control the volume of reps being done.

Let us know if you use these or any other variants of the Snatch.
Keep pushing...PTG!

Acceleration Angle?

One word....BOLT!!!

London 2012 Gold Medal Shoes

The two heavyweights when it comes to athletic footwear are Nike and Adidas. Both companies make a great shoe but are no doubt in competition to gain a stranglehold on Weightlifting shoes. With Weightlifting growing in popularity due to better access of coverage in London and increased interest in the sport due to CrossFit, this is a market with room for growth in the United States.

In what were hotly contested battles on the platform in London, Adidas edged out Nike in the amount of Gold medals won in Weightlifting competition. There were 5 new WR's set by Athletes sporting the Nike Romaleos to 1 WR set while wearing Adidas. Here are the results for both.

Adidas: 6 Gold Medals

Womens

• 53kg - Zulfiya CHINSHANLO - Kazakstahn (WR C&J 131kg / OR Total 226kg)
• 63kg - Maiya MANEZA - Kazakstahn (OR Total 245kg)
• 75kg - Svetlana PODOBEDOVA - Kazakstahn (OR C&J 161kg / OR Total 291kg)

Mens

• 85kg - Adrian ZIELINSKI - Poland
• 105kg - Oleksiy TOROKHITY - Ukraine
• +105kg - Behdad SALIMIKORDASIABI - Iran

Nike: 5 Gold Medals

Womens

• 58kg - LI Xueying - China (OR Snatch 108kg / OR Total 246kg)
• +75kg - ZHOU Lulu - China (OR C&J 187 kg / WR Total 333kg)

Mens

• 69kg - LIN Qingfeng - China
• 77kg - LU Xiaojun - China (WR Snatch 175kg / WR Total 379kg)
• 94kg - Ilya ILYIN - Kazakstahn (WR C&J 233 / WR Total 418kg)

Snatch for Football

  The Snatch is a violent & explosive lift that is extremely beneficial in a Football strength program. We have some form of Olympic lift in every workout and we implement the Snatch into our workouts with emphasis placed on speed of the bar. We are never going to 1 rep max in the Snatch like we would in a Clean, so we look for good technique and speed of the movement.

Where to Start?

• It all starts at developing a base to have the ability to complete the lift. Without the strength or technique to hold the bar in the overhead position, you should not even approach attempting the Snatch with an Athlete. We fully progress and integrate the Overhead Squat with all of our incomming Freshmen and at the beginning of each off-season training period to prepare them to recieve the bar in a Snatch.
• Check out "Overhead Squat Part 1: Purpose"

Snatch Grip & Set-Up

• The hook grip is the most beneficial and effective way for serious and aspiring Olympic lifters to hold the barbell. We on the other hand do not teach or use the hook grip with our players. Most of our Athletes have a tough enough time staying focused and tuned into the their technique and the intent to move weight when standing over the barbell in the first place. Not having to worry about them figuring out the hook grip allows us more time to focus on getting in good position and being violent within the movement. It also provides us with another opportunity to train grip strength within the workout since that is such an important aspect of Football. We would only imploy the use of straps if and Athlete has some form of injury where they have trouble holding onto the barbell.
• Once the grip is set, we want our Athletes feet set at hip width or slightly outside with knees out in a strong bottom position. We always focus on keeping a big chest and flat back to ensure the best starting position possible. This can be challenging due to the size and mobility limitations that some of our larger Athletes have so we pay special attention and drill home the importance of a great starting position.

Technique Concerns with Athletes

• As coaches that work with Football, we deal with Athletes who are not Olympic lifters and most times do not care about learning the intricacies of great technique on the platform. Some only understand how to get the weight up but do not care how it gets there. Due to time constraints and a larger numbers of Athletes in a team setting, we have to simplify our teaching progressionsin & the way we progress the lifts in order to be more successful with our time on the platform.
• Our goal is to make them as proficient in the lifts as possible, understanding that most will never achieve what we would call perfect technique. An Olympic lifting purist might not agree with how we progress or teach the Snatch, but we use a system that works for our program and our players.

Conclusion

• Teaching the Snatch to Football players can be very time consuming and frustrating. Many in the profession that oppose the Olympic lifts use this as one of their main reasons why they do not put them into their programs. We believe that although that is a valid argument, they are 100% worth the time that goes into teaching them to our Athletes.
• You can progress your Athletes in Box Jumps or Plyometrics but there is a ceiling to which you can safely increase the load and intensity. There is no other way in our opinion to rapidly increase force production and power like getting over a barbell and being violent in an exercise like the Snatch.
• We encourage you to seek further references or information regarding the Snatch and how to implement it and other Olympic lifts into your programs. USA Weightlifting has a good certification and there are many great rescources like Coach Burgener that will help you learn and teach the best ways to progress these lifts. Never stop trying to sharpen yourself as a Strength Professional. There is always something more you can learn or get better at as a Strength Coach. Keep Pushing...PTG!

Teaching the Snatch: Mike Burgener

When it comes to teaching Olympic lifts, there are not many resources better than Coach Mike Burgener. Coach Burgener's approach is straight forward and extremely effective regardless of your training objective or population you are training (CrossFit, High School, College, Olympic hopeful, etc...). We try to use his coaching cues and progressions with our Athletes. One of the most important things as a coach, continue learning and seeking out people who are at the top in your field. Check out this video & add the Burgener warm-up to your Snatch progression. PTG!

Check out more Burgener content here at Mike's Gym - www.mikesgym.org

Forging Mental Toughness: "The Hill"

     In sports, we judge the conditioning and mental toughness of our Athletes by how we finish in the 4th quarter. Everyone is going to be tired at the end of the game. Everyone is going to be mentally fatigued. It is the Team and individuals who can handle this discomfort and rise above the competition and finish. They draw upon the training they have been through. The heat of Summer conditioning and Coaches screaming and challenging them on every level. The Athletes that can get over the pain & discomfort and embrace & overcome the suck, will reap the benefits when it comes to closing people out late in competition.

     In order to ready our Athletes to close in competition we must challenge them mentally. We must step outside of the box and put them through something that will test the mind and question their heart. It needs to be attainable but taxing and miserable at the same time. This is the methodology behind why we run "The Hill." Plain and simple, it sucks! There is not a better way to explain it. Your body is confused as to which pain it needs to process:
a) The pain in your legs as the burning mounts with every rep
b) The pain in your lungs as the demand for oxygen grows
c) The management of the nausea you are experiencing


     All the while knowing how easy it would be to quit, they have to dig deep and find a way to finish. The sense of accomplishment of having completed "The Hill" with your teammates is a bonding experience. Suffering alongside the Men you are going to count on to grind out & win tough games during the season is vitally important in Football. The fire of competition in a Football game is unrivaled in any other sport. Our goal is to simulate & create situations where it is similarly intense and miserable so they can draw from those experiences and conquer the competition when it gets tough.

     In order to forge your Athletes, the fire has to be extremely hot. Find an obstacle for your Athletes to undertake. Something extremely challenging that will be a menacing task to complete & turn up the heat. It's gonna be a tough sell and there will be some confrontation and dissension among the ranks at times but in times like these the hope is that the leaders within your team would emerge. Just stay the course, hold your ground, hold all your Athletes to the same standard & I guarantee you will see results when it comes time for competition.

Keep pushing...PTG!

Reebok Olympic Lifting Shoes

We have posted before on Olympic Lifting Shoes and their benefits to create a solid platform for force production. We wanted to see what people think about these new Olympic shoes from Reebok. CrossFit has continued to explode and Reebok has capitalized by jumping on board to support the their top Athletes. More and more money has been poured into advertising to further promote CrossFit and more importantly try to give Reebok a boost in the fitness footwear market. A cool feature to these shoes is the U-Form technology where you can customize the fit of the shoe to your foot. I'd be interested to see how well this works and feels. Check out these and other versions of Olympic Lifting shoes on Rogue Fitness or go to Reebok Shop. Let us know what you think about these shoes and how they compare to the Adidas, Do-Win & Nike versions. Keep Pushing!