grip, hip mobility, press notes from coach

 -----Original Message----- 

On Mar 5, 2014, at 2:42 AM, urbankstrengthteam wrote:  

Do you spend a lot of time sitting at your job?  

From: meg holliday

To: urbankstrengthteam

Sent: Wed, Mar 5, 2014 9:50 am

Subject: Re: Weekly training update 

oh yeah, total desk jockey.  i used to be super good about getting up regularly, stretching, moving, but then as we got crazy busy i got lazy.  after the body work i got done thursday, I've been back on that routine an feel GREAT!  this a.m., i was able to bench arched w/flat feet! 

um, pin press... i could barely do 105#. they're right up there with rack pulls for me.  wtf?! 

To: teeny-wahine

Subject: Re: Weekly training update

From: urbankstrengthteam

Date: Wed, 5 Mar 2014 17:36:36 -0500

How far are you from lock out when you start your pin press?  your elbows should be a little bit above your shoulders in the start position.They can really suck, and take a second or two to get off the pins (just like rack/block pulls) sometimes you just have to be persistent and patient with it. It's also not uncommon to feel like your head will explode. I did 225 several times on pin press and it felt ungodly, but when it came time to press 195 to the chest, it almost felt like a joke. We can mix in a few board presses as well to overload you, but pin presses are the superior exercise of the 2 in my opinion (it takes the eccentric portion of the exercise out, so you have to start from a disadvantageous position with no stretch reflex built up), and you will have to consciously practice a very soft touch on board press. 

Practice a few back bend poses for your arch on bench (bridges, camel pose, etc) they will help keep your abs and hips flexible, this site has a few good ones listed http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/finder/browse_categories/backbends 

When I'm in my heavy bench training I have to do stretches 2-4x a week to maintain my form. Try to practice all your lifts with explosiveness, and try to avoid failure on any reps (drop weight if necessary). 

On Mar 7, 2014, at 3:30 AM, urbankstrengthteam wrote:  

Are you using straps for your rep sets on deadlift (2+ reps)? You can also use them on your rack pulls, until your grip gets a little tougher. It may also be a good idea for you to learn hook grip, not only because it's like having built in straps, but because it sets you up in a more advantageous starting position, and keeps the back more symmetrical. I always try to do my warm ups sets with straps, my working weight with hook grip and at least 1/2 my rack pulls with straps.There is a fine line between training grip and over training grip. You want your hands to stay fairly small and not get too thick, but you also want them to have a very powerful crushing grip for short bursts. 

Rack pulls really are tough at first, when I began training like this I rack pulled less than my floor deadlift. It's not uncommon, but it is a sign of hamstring, glute and low back weakness. After a few months of training like this I added 50# to my deadlift from the floor, and was rack pulling 415 from below the knee. It really isnt exciting to do rack pulls when your exhausted from deadlifts, your back hurts, your hands hurt, everything feels heavy and slow, but it is worth it. During one training cycle, I only did deadlift, bench and ohp, when I squatted again, I hit my 1rm for 5 reps. It was the most sore I'd ever been during that cycle, but it had amazing carry over to my squat. I used to be a very quad dominant squatter when I started lifting (I started oly lifting and switched to powerlifting because of shoulder impingement problems), really working my posterior chain with deadlifts and rack pulls straightened that out (and I can't wait to do it again in 6 months) 

Subject: Re: Weekly training update

From: teeny-wahine

Date: Fri, 7 Mar 2014 04:51:01 -0800

To: urbankstrengthteam

unfortunately, i can't hook grip.  i have freakishly thick finger nails, so i'm unable to grip my thumb with my fingers (i can't even hook grip on a women's oly bar).  i was only using straps for reps of five or more... sounds like i should be using them more often? 

and for pin press, i definitely had the safety bars too low.  i was pressing from barely above my chest!