BrotherIron
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I see a lot of people lately getting interested in learning and incorporating the Snatch and Clean & Jerk into their routines. Now, it's great that we have more and more people getting enthusiastic about Olympic Weightlifting but the fact is if you don't have the proper equipment (platform, bumper plates, Olympic weightlifting bar, shoes) and proper coaching you are just setting yourself up for a bad injury. It's only a matter of time. Many of us get injured even with proper equipment, technique, and coaching.
Instead, what I feel is a safer course of action is to incorporate the Olympic weightlifting assisting movements into your program. Science has shown that they are at least 85% as effective as the classical lifts and their variations (muscle, power, and full squat positioning). The risk of injury is far less when performing the assisting lifts and you can even learn most to a degree on your own since Olympic weightlifting coaches are few and far between.
Some of the Olympic assisting lifts include:
-Olympic Back Squat
-Olympic Front Squat
-Snatch Pulls (from floor, hang, scarecrow position, or blocks)
-Clean Pulls (from floor, hang, scarecrow position, or blocks)
-Snatch High Pulls
-Clean High Pulls
-Overhead Squats
-Overhead Lunges
-RDL's (with snatch or clean grip)
-Bradford Press
-Pulls from the floor to knee (snatch or clean grip)
-Good Morning / Squat Combination
-Olympic Back Squat + Snatch Grip Behind Neck Press
and there are many many more
I have seen a lot of lifters get injured lately b/c they didn't have the proper equipment and/or the proper technique. The reality is if you're not going to compete in Olympic weightlifting you are much better off performing the assisting lifts. Most people lack the shoulder, hip, knee, ankle flexibility that is require for proper execution of the classical lifts.
If you're looking for some variation to your training and really want to push yourself try some of these assisting lifts and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised how much carry over they have to other main lifts like bench, shoulder press, squatting, deadlifting, etc.
Instead, what I feel is a safer course of action is to incorporate the Olympic weightlifting assisting movements into your program. Science has shown that they are at least 85% as effective as the classical lifts and their variations (muscle, power, and full squat positioning). The risk of injury is far less when performing the assisting lifts and you can even learn most to a degree on your own since Olympic weightlifting coaches are few and far between.
Some of the Olympic assisting lifts include:
-Olympic Back Squat
-Olympic Front Squat
-Snatch Pulls (from floor, hang, scarecrow position, or blocks)
-Clean Pulls (from floor, hang, scarecrow position, or blocks)
-Snatch High Pulls
-Clean High Pulls
-Overhead Squats
-Overhead Lunges
-RDL's (with snatch or clean grip)
-Bradford Press
-Pulls from the floor to knee (snatch or clean grip)
-Good Morning / Squat Combination
-Olympic Back Squat + Snatch Grip Behind Neck Press
and there are many many more
I have seen a lot of lifters get injured lately b/c they didn't have the proper equipment and/or the proper technique. The reality is if you're not going to compete in Olympic weightlifting you are much better off performing the assisting lifts. Most people lack the shoulder, hip, knee, ankle flexibility that is require for proper execution of the classical lifts.
If you're looking for some variation to your training and really want to push yourself try some of these assisting lifts and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised how much carry over they have to other main lifts like bench, shoulder press, squatting, deadlifting, etc.
