This week in Training and My Thoughts on Olympic-Style Lifitng

I've been really switching up my training to help ready myself for the Highland Games season coming up. I hope to compete in at least six games this year. I already have five planned out and need to find which one I want to be the sixth.

Everything has been geared toward explosion, so I've added Dynamic Effort-style Box Squats, Power Snatches, Power Cleans, Box Jumps and the like. I feel really strong even though I'm about 10lbs lighter than when I threw the last time. I just need to get quicker and more flexible in my midsection. As a result of my accident my body freaked out trying to protect my lower back, so my Internal and External Obliques as well as my Quadrator Lumborum are all basically locked in place. Now, this is great for my Deadlift and my Squat, but not good for powerful rotational movements, like those in the Highland Games.

I've also started throwing again. I've thrown a few practice PRs in the 28 Weight for Distance and hit a 5 foot practice PR on the Hammer and that is without the spikes. I've really been concentrating on the footwork for the Weights For Distance as I feel I leave a TON of power out of my throws. I probably just need a coach to pick apart my throws.

MY THOUGHTS ON OLYMPIC-STYLE LIFTS
I believe that the Olympic Lifts should be a part of most people's strength training regimen. DO NOT read this as me saying I think everyone should do barbell Snatches. Quite the opposite. Quick, powerful movements are integral in overall development. I think a lot of trainers are afraid to give a lot of their clients any powerful movements because of the risk of injury or lack of exercise experience.

Why not think outside of the box. Have them do single arm work starting off with dumbbells. Teach a proper single arm Deadlift, then progress to single arm High Pulls, then Cleans, then Clean and Press, then Clean and Jerk, then Snatch. Once they have become proficient at that then switch implements on them. Move onto a Kettlebell or a Barbell from there.

Now when it comes to learning the moves you do not have to be a stickler for perfect form. Remember that there are athletes out there that train there entire life to attempt to perfect the form on the the Clean and Jerk or the Snatch. I'm not saying let them round their back and protract their cervical spine, but don't worry so much about hitting that ass to grass Overhead Squat after the pulling motion of the Snatch. I would much rather be able to Power Clean 225 lbs with no drop phase of the lift than Clean 315 with Olympic form.

WHY??? If you want to be an Olympic Lifter then practice the form and get good at it. If your goal it to create bone crushing power, don't worry so much about creating a two phase curvilinear pull on your Snatch. Just grab the bar keep your spine neutral and pull the sonofabitch over your head. That will help you generate more power.

Sticking With a Program

I see, over and over again, people switching their programming up way too soon. Everyone wants to gain as much as they can as far as size, weights, etc... but no one wants to stick with a program for longer than a month. We live in a society where everything is instant and when we don't get instant results in the gym we throw a hissy fit and switch it up because, "Its a problem with the program". I say bollocks, you being a gigantic weenie is the reason you are not getting results.

For the past year I adhered to the Conjugate Method of training(Notice I didn't say Westside here). You read that right, I followed the same exact protocol for an entire year and saw continuous results. Traditional/Linear Periodization says that you have to switch up training styles every 4-6 weeks to see results and I'm calling shenanigans. Now here is where people who hold the certifying bodies up as the gold standard are going to get butt hurt.

Let me ask you one question, "If your goal is to gain strength, what happens to your strength when you switch back to an "Endurance" phase or even a "Hypertrophy" phase?" It is going to go to crap. Stick with your programming longer. Now I'm not saying stick with a 5x5 for the rest of your life. Give your programming some time, seek the advice of people that are bigger, faster, and stronger than you. Success leaves trails, so follow them. Which leads me to my next point...

When seeking the advice of someone that has written programming for you, take it as it is. I see people trying to change up protocols that are tried and true all the time. If you write your own programming, by all means change it up. Let us take Jim Wendler's 5/3/1 into account here. Jim gets bombarded every friggin' day about questions about changing up his programming. He has written the program a certain way for a reason, he knows what he is talking about. If you think you're such a training guru write your own damned program and sell it. Give the programming a chance, wait three months, then if you feel as if the programming is inadequate, or there is something you want to change about it, do it! Wait another three months and compare the results to the previous training cycle's. If they are not as good as before, then you know where you went wrong.

Find what works for you. There is no golden standard when it comes to one method being vastly superior to another. Some people get better results from the Westside Template, others do better on 5/3/1. Hell, Doug Hepburn used his Program A/Program B protocol for years before he switched it up. Every person is different. If you are built to be explosive, using the Conjugate Method might not do you all that much good, but if you are slow but strong, the Dynamic Effort Day will do you some good.

All in all, JUST BE PATIENT. It took Andy Bolton almost three years to put 5 lbs on his deadlift when going from 1003 to 1008. You keep that in mind and you'll do fine.