Arms bending in the pull

[CHS55]

People say I always bend my arms before I finish my pull on snatch, I spent all today trying to stop but they said I keep doing it. Is there a quick fix to this? I have a comp tomorrow. :/

[crackyflipside]

Happens to me too, the tip I get from my O-Lifting coach is to work on doing pulls and not bending arms at all.

[raffiki]

Don't worry about it if you are competing tomorrow. You can't make much of a difference in one day. After that you can work on it. It just takes concentration.

Good luck. Get vids.

[CHS55]

Well everything turned out fine. I went 6 for 6 today and hit 2 new meet PRs (already hit them at school but still. :] ) i hit 75 on snatch and 100 on clean and jerk, but man i really think i coulda gotten 85 on snatch, my first and second attempts were hard but the 3rd was a breeze. oh well. i suppose its decent for my first comp since june at school-age nationals. I'll get videos for you guys when my team posts them up. Thanks for the help!

[DavidJr74]

Do you use a hook grip?

[CHS55]

Do you use a hook grip?

yeah i do, can't hold it any other way now that i got used to it. guess ill hafta ask my coaches to tell me whenever i bend my arms too soon. im guessing it means im not getting a triple extension if im bending my arms too early.

[CHS55]

Here's a pic of my new PR on snatch. Still waiting on the vids, Ill ask the guy about em.

And for the record that is antiperspirant, looks like sweat cuzz it was a stupid gel. :/

[madaozeki]

Good job :) Looking forward to bigger and better things when you get your arm bend straightened out (pun intended).

Early arm bend doesn't necessarily mean you don't get a 'triple extension'. I wouldn't bother worrying about that anyways... too many things to think about during a lift will kill your explosiveness. Some of the world's greatest lifters lift with bent arms, though in general it's something to be avoided. The main negative is that you won't be able to transfer as much power from your hips, thighs and back to the bar if your arms bend early. Also, early bend can cause you to cut your pull short, kick the bar out, leaving it in front, or simply never really have a chance to make the lift.

I sweat like a pig when I lift... I get shirts made of a soft-dri fabric that absorbs sweat and doesn't show pit stains... :D

[CHS55]

well I wanna at least make it to school-age nationals again this year. :/ should I start from scratch and make sure my arms stay straight with light weight until I get it down? It's a miracle I went 6 for 6. Heh I'll try those shirts so there's no confusion.

[madaozeki]

When is school-age nationals?
What is the qualifying total for it?

It's probably not necessary to drill with super-light weight at this stage - rather, work on pulls with medium/heavy weight so you can really get used to straight arms. I'll have to see video before I can comment sensibly, though...

[KillahPriest]

school age nationals is in march i think. fkcing thing is in disney land. lucky bastards

[CHS55]

school age nationals is in march i think. fkcing thing is in disney land. lucky bastards

Haha yeah I know. Can't waitt. :]

Heres a vid of my 100 kg C+J

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGaogDrZ9rQ

and my 70 kg snatch (guess they didnt get the 75)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdtW9hrzBII

Can someone critique my form? Especially on the clean and jerk. I never noticed my form was so hrorible. Think the weight will go up if I fix it?

[raffiki]

C&J:

You are starting with your hips WAY too high, and with a rounded back. Lower your hips in the start and put a tight arch in your back. The jerk drive is good, but you need to move you feet out further in the split. It needs to be longer.

Snatch:

Same as clean. Nice catch!

[madaozeki]

I agree with Raffiki.

Also, in the jerk, it looks like your feet are spreading not only from back to front, but crazily from side to side. Your back foot is WAY too far to the right, and your front foot is WAY too far to the left. A pretty amazing catch position, but something worthwhile to fix.

To follow up on Raffiki's point about your back, get yourself completely set in your start position before breaking the bar off the floor. It'll help develop consistency of position and you'll be more likely to make heavier weights, which you already have the strength for.

Nice lifting! Looking forward to seeing you fix those things and putting up a lot more :)

[CHS55]

Based on my form and the difficulty I had in the videos, how much weight do you guys think I might be able to do on the 16th on my next comp if I fix my form? Heh the day back from the competition I repped 100 kilos on c+j 3 times lmao...

[raffiki]

Based on my form and the difficulty I had in the videos, how much weight do you guys think I might be able to do on the 16th on my next comp if I fix my form? Heh the day back from the competition I repped 100 kilos on c+j 3 times lmao...

The 16th of which month. You should allow at least 2 months between competitions. Competitions are more of a distraction when learning the lifts.

I can usually do 85% for 3 reps in the clean and jerk. So that would be 115-120 max. However i can keep my form with max weights.

[CHS55]

well its really my coaches decision on when we lift or dont lift. :/ i would say something to him but he'll make you feel like u know nothing and he's the master.

oh? well you see i either manage to clean the weight easily or i dont clean it at all. i can rack 110 on my shoulders no problem but because of me going forward after the pull from my back being slouched over i can never squat it up, backs too rounded.

On the jerk, should my back heel be on the ground or should i be on my toes on that foot? I've never known.

[raffiki]

Like this:

[Marc27Default]

Like this:

Thats a really deep split!