you best get unda that bar nukka!

Oh herow.. today I would like to talk to you about one of the most difficult concepts of the olympic movements: pulling yourself under the bar.  

Generally what happens is we tend to get a great shrug and we reach full extension, and then from there, we disconnect ourselves from the bar and we try to "drop" to get under it. If you think that you may be doing this, stop IMMEDIATELY or you may as well put yourself on Santa's naughty list and expect zero Christmas presents this year. (Except maybe from your aunt Tibby who will always love you no matter what you do in your lifetime.)

So in the picture above, you see me in the "elbows high and outside" position that we teach you in the Burgener Warm-up.  Keep in mind that we are teaching you that movement to drill into your brain that you are keeping the bar close. you are actually never in that position in an actual snatch and clean and jerk. 

Let's play a little game for those of you who learn better by actually doing rather than just reading.  Stand up for me, get up on your toes, shrug,raise your elbows high and outside.  That is the position we put you in for the Burgener Warm up. Now, get up on your toes, shrug, raise your elbows high and outside, and now bend your knees.  That is the actual position that you will be in when snatching or cleaning (after you have fully extended with that shrug) because this signifies that you are pulling your body underneath the weight.  

You just never want to shrug and then feel like "omg i have no idea where that bar is in space right now so I'm just gonna 'drop it like its hot' and try to get underneath it as quickly as possible".  If you get in the habit of doing this with light weight, when you get to heavy weight (lets say 200 kg because that is what you all are capable of doing), the bar WILL beat you down EVERYTIME.  Lets face it, gravity/reality sucks..

So, in conclusion, you are pulling that bar off the ground and then you start your VICIOUS shrug and that bar is traveling upwards weightlessly with TONS of momentum on it. Now, you ask yourself, "Am I going to just drop under this mofo? or am I gonna remember what Sassy Sage's  blog said and start pulling myself down (with those elbows high and outside because we dont want it to be out in front of us) and finish with a GREAT turnover?".........make the right choice.. we all have to live with the consequences of our actions..

Before you leave, go ahead and look at that video of my brother Beau.  For me, I would have liked to see him shrug a little harder at the top, but, nevertheless, his pull under and turnover were so aggressive that it made up for his lack of shrug.  (the only reason it did was because that was light weight for him.  If he puts more weight on, he could NOT get away with a shrug like that).  

Remember, its ok to ask questions.  I dont expect ya'll to get this stuff by just reading it.

ps... just went to Lady Gaga's concert and magically became a better person. She's THAT good

keep it sassy