Monday, August 31, 2009

WKC Championships - Chicago August 29, 2009

The World Kettlebell Lifting Championships occurred this past weekend in the Windy City, Chicago, IL. Roughly 50 competitors qualified for this event and many more came to watch. The event was highlighted by Marty Farrell becoming the first American male to be Master of Sport in both the biathlon and long cycle after he pounded out 49 reps of long cycle with the 32kg bells. There were many other great performances amongst both the men and women who competed.

As far as my performance, I was pretty satisfied, although I was unsuccessful in my bid for CMS ranking. During my flight, I was honored to be on the platform with Eric St Onge, Gregor Sobocan, and Andrew Durniat. My jerk set went quite well and I was able to surpass the CMS numbers for the 90kg weight class with a total of 75 reps. I was struggling during the first 3 minutes, but then settled in for the full 10 minute set. The video below shows myself and Eric, who pumped out an impressive 87 reps.




After close to a 2 1/2 hour break, we were back on the platform for our snatch set. Prior to the set, I still had the hope of making my CMS numbers (70 left/70 right). Things felt good at the beginning, but as I made it into the low 40's I could feel my grip beginning to falter. At 48 reps I decided to switch hands instead of gambling with dropping the bell. I was able to complete 45 reps on the right before loosing my grip.



All in all a respectable performance, but I had hoped to put up some better snatch numbers. Eric had a strong outing, hitting 70 reps on his left arm just around the 5 minute mark, but unfortunately his grip gave out around 50 reps on the right side also ending his bid for CMS ranking.

Below are photos of Andrew Durniat and myself and of all of the competitors.


Monday, August 24, 2009

Last Snatches Before Chicago

Today was my last workout before the comp.

Warm Up: Rib Pulls/Arm Sweep
MP(16kg) 10/10
Snatch(16kg) 10/10
Snatch(20kg) 10/10
Snatch(24kg) 10/10
Snatch(28kg) 16 rpm x 5 minutes - 80 reps

Felt good.

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Last Jerks Before Chicago

Short one today. Tapering down before the comp.

Warm Up: Rib Pulls/Arm Sweep
MP(16kg) 10/10
OAJ(16kg) 10/10
OAJ(20kg) 10/10
Jerk(20kg) 10
OAJ(24kg) 10/10
Jerk(24kg) 10
Jerk(28kg) 8 rpm x 5 minutes.

Jerks are ready. Elbow feeling better. Didn't cause any problems jerking.

Friday, August 21, 2009

Snatches at 15 rpm

Tried slowing the rate from 16 rpm to 15 rpm to see if would make a difference.......not really.

Warm Up: Rib pulls/arm sweep
MP(16kg) 10/10
Snatch(16) 10/10
Snatch(20kg) 10/10
Snatch(24kg) 10/10
Snatch(28kg) 15 rpm - 3:45 (55) left and 3:15 (49) right

Only couple more light workouts prior to Chicago. Will take the majority of next week off for rest in hopes of putting up some PRs at the Worlds.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Jerks And a Fall

Getting down to crunch time for Chicago. Only 4 more workouts until I rest for the comp. Today was jerks:

Warm Up: Rib Pulls/Arm Sweep
MP(16kg) 10/10
OAJ(20kg) 10/10
Jerk(20kg) 10
OAJ(24kg) 10/10
Jerk(24kg) 10
Jerk(28kg) 8 minutes - 8,8,8,8,8,6,8,6 - 60
Jerk(28kg) 2 minutes at 8 rpm

Really focused on a quick second dip to get under the weight. Jerks continue to feel strong.
Tonight, was grilling dinner when a large thunderstorm blew in......as I was running in to the house, I slipped on my slate patio and fell hitting my left elbow on a stone wall. I now have a 2 cm laceration on my left elbow.....hoping it will heal enough in one week to not interfere with my competition set.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Snatches Again

Warm Up: Rib Pull/Arm Sweep
MP(16kg) 10/10
Snatch(20kg) 10/10
Snatch(24kg) 10/10
Snatch(28kg) 16 rpm x 7 minutes
Snatch(28kg) 16 rpm x 2 minutes

Beginning to think conditioning is playing a role in my snatch impasse. Decided to start getting more snatch volume. Will begin to do a second set so I can get used to making 140+ snatches with the 28kg. Hopefully, with time, my strength endurance and conditioning will improve and I will easily hit my CMS snatch numbers.

Monday, August 17, 2009

Post Call Jerks

Made it through another long weekend. Jerks were on the schedule today.

Warm Up: Rib Pull/Arm Sweep
MP(16kg) 10/10
OAJ(20kg) 10/10
Jerk(20kg) 10
OAJ(24kg) 10/10
Jerk(24kg) 10
Jerk(28kg) 8 minutes - 8,8,8,8,8,6,8,6 - 60
Jerk(28kg) 8 rpm x 3 minutes - 21

Jerks continue to feel strong. May get an occasional no-count, especially towards the end of a set, when I loose concentration. I tend to push out the last inch or two, instead of finishing my second dip with a strong lockout. Feeling good about making my CMS goals in jerk.
Great post by Mark Reifkind yesterday about the power of visualization in performance atheletes. About a week ago, I had started visualizing my snatch sets in hopes of improving my performance. After reading Rif's post, I will certainly keep at it....

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Snatches

Working this weekend.

WarmUp: Rib Pull/Arm Sweep
MP(16kg) 10/10
Snatch(16kg) 10/10
Snatch(20kg) 10/10
Snatch(24kg) 10/10
Snatch(28kg) 16 rpm x 3:45(60) left/3:00(48) right
Snatch(28kg) 16rpm x 1 minute right
SLDL(24kg) 10/10

Felt great on the left side, probably could have gutted out ten more reps to make 70. However, the right side was a struggle from the beginning. Wasn't launching the ascent with both feet. Returned to the heel lift on the right side for some reason. Also noticed my arm was jerked more on the descent on the right. Had to stop early. Rested about a minute and then did another minute on the right to get the volume.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Jerks

Had a lot of energy today and was looking forward to working out:

Warm Up: Rib Pull/Arm Sweeps
MP(16kg) 10/10
OAJ(20kg) 10/10
Jerk(20kg) 10
OAJ(24kg) 10/10
Jerk(24kg) 10
Jerk(28kg) 8 minutes - 8,8,8,8,8,6,8,6 - 60
Jerk(28kg) 8 rpm x 3 minutes - 21

Jerks continue to feel strong. Only 2 weeks until Chicago......

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

More Snatches

More of the same stuff today. Tried to focus on dumping the bell faster and getting into my finger lock sooner. With the lighter weights this went quite well. Actually went pretty well with the 28 too. Now, I am also beginning to think that conditioning may be playing a role in my snatch plateau.

Warm Up: MP(16kg) 10/10
Snatch(16kg) 10/10
Snatch(20kg) 10/10
Snatch(24kg) 10/10
Snatch(28kg) 16 rpm x 7 minutes - 1 switch

Hit the pool with the kids. Back to work tomorrow.............

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

10 Minutes of 6 RPM Jerks

Slow and steady was the key today. Returned from vacation yesterday evening with two days left to "vacation from my vacation" before actually returning to work. Did some home improvement projects today and fit in a nice workout this evening. I have decided to cut out all assistance work for the last two weeks leading up to the Worlds.

Warm Up: Rib pulls/Arm Sweep
OAJ(16kg) 10/10
OAJ(20kg) 10/10
Jerk(20kg) 10
OAJ(24kg) 10/10
Jerk(24kg) 10
Jerk(28kg) 6 rpm x 10 minutes - 60 reps

It absolutely amazes me how much easier 6 rpms is compared to 8 rpms. I am able to rest in the rack at 6 rpm and I never go into the red zone. My breathing remains nice and relaxed. Someday, I hope the 32s will feel like this!

Sunday, August 9, 2009

Brick Walls

While reading Randy Pausch's book The Last Lecture I came across a very timely quote that applies to my current snatch impasse. I have become discouraged over the past several weeks, since for the first time in my short GS career, I have come to a roadblock. I have become stuck at the 8 minute mark in my snatches and am struggling to get past this sticking point. Randy's quote is very applicable to my situation and has given me new enthusiasm to overcome this problem: "....the brick walls are there to stop the people who don't want it badly enough. They're there to stop the other people."
After reading this passage, I headed out for a strong workout:

Warm Up: Halo/MP (12kg)
OAJ(20kg) 10/10
OAJ(24kg) 10/10
Jerk(28kg) 8 minutes - 8,8,8,8,8,6,8,6 - 60

3 Hour Rest

Halo/MP(12kg)
Snatch(20kg) 10/10
Snatch(24kg) 10/10
Snatch(28kg) 16 rpm - 3:45 Left (60) and 3:30 Right (56) - 116

My jerks felt very strong. Stopped with plenty in the tank. A ten minute set in Chicago should be no problem. My snatches continue to improve. I have now gotten rid of the heel lift and am focusing using both feet to launch the bell upward on the ascent. This is allowing me to pull less with my hand which in turn is helping preserve my grip. I was also to note very little drop off in my snatch performance despite jerking earlier in the day. I think the CMS numbers are still in sight. I will break that brick wall down.

Friday, August 7, 2009

More Snatches

Gave 16 rpm a go today. Tried to focus on my leg pop on the ascent. I think this makes an impressive difference, however, i found that as I fatigued I stopped using my legs and started pulling more with my arm.

Warm Up: Rib Pulls/Arm Sweep
Snatch(20kg) 12/12
Snatch(24kg) 15/15
Snatch(28kg) 16 rpm - 60 left/56 right
OAJ(32kg) 10/10
SLDL(24kg) 10/10

Was originally attempting 8 minutes, but only made 3:45 on the left and 3:30 on the right. Hands were still my reason for stopping.

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Jerk Day

Warm Up: Halos/MP(12kg)
OAJ(20kg) 10/10
OAJ(24kg) 10/10 x 2 sets
Jerk(28kg) 8 rpm x 6 minutes
Jerk(28kg) 8 rpm x 4 minutes
Swing(32kg) 20/20 - 1 hand switch

Played around with my swing technique with various weights today. Really focusing on shifting my weight over the balls of my feet as the bell starts its ascent. This really forces me to use my legs more and less pulling with my arm. The bell really pops up. I am hoping continuing to work on this adjustment will help save my grip on my long snatch sets.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Snatches

Felt good today and was thinking I might perform well.......
However, I continue to be unable to breakthrough my plateau.....

Warm Up: Rib Pull/Arm Sweep
Halos/MP (12kg)
Snatch(20kg) 10/10
Snatch(24kg) 10/10
Snatch(28kg) 14 rpm x 7 minutes
OAJ(32kg) 10/10
SLDL(24kg) 10/10 x 2 sets

For the next couple of weeks I am going to try bumping my rate to 16 rpm to see this helps.

Monday, August 3, 2009

Workouts Past Few Days

July 30th
After 7 hours driving I fit in a short snatch workout in a hotel parking lot shortly after eating dinner and just before sunset - not ideal circumstances:
Snatch(20kg) 10/10
Snatch(24kg) 10/10
Snatch(28kg) 16 rpm x 6 minutes

August 1st
Attempted to jerk and snatch on the same day.
Warm Up: Rib pulls/arm sweep
OAJ(20kg) 10/10
OAJ(24kg) 10/10
Jerk(28kg) 8 minutes - 8,8,8,8,8,6,8,6

2 hour rest

Snatch(20kg) 10/10
Snatch(24kg) 10/10
Snatch(28kg) 14 rpm x 7 minutes

Went pretty well. Could have easily made the 10 minutes of Jerks. Snatches remain a challenge for me. Hoping with a taper prior to the comp that I will be able to PR the snatch to make my numbers.

August 3rd
Warm Up: Halos/MP (12kg)
OAJ(20kg) 10/10
OAJ(24kg) 10/10 x 2 sets
Jerk(28kg) 8 rpm x 7 minutes
Jerk(28kg) 3 minutes - 8,6,8
Swing(32kg) 30/30 x 1