Here’s a question from the other day by domjo54:
I feel like this is a dumb question, but going back to Justin’s other post about good vs bad barbells, why are wrist injuries common on the olympic lifts when using shit BBs?
domjo54 is referencing the post I did about York Barbell products, and I commented how I power cleaned with a shitty bar at a fitness facility and “almost broke my wrists”. Bars are like beer: you can have some bars that are elegant and satisfying while using others is analogous to drinking fermented deer piss. Cheaper bars are made from a shittier cut of steel, and that’s why you’ll usually find thicker bars in a fitness facility. If the crappy piece of steel is going to have similar tensile and yield strengths to a good piece of steel, it will have to be thicker to account for its inherent weakness. Thus, bars in fitness facilities are thicker bars at 30mm and sometimes up to 32mm. It’s like Burt Reynolds wearing a giant cowboy hat: ridiculous.
Bars are also put together differently. Better bars have some spin so that the rotation of the plates doesn’t torque the shaft on your back or in your hands (even powerlifting bars spin for this purpose). When an experienced lifter talks about training with good or bad bars, they are usually referring to the steel’s properties and the spin. The bar I was using to power clean with was a bit thick (probably 30mm) and it barely spun. When my wrists would turn over during as I power cleaned, there was resistance to the natural wrist flexion and then extension. The resistance irritated the ligaments on the back of the wrist. The pain didn’t limit me, but it was just irritating because I can’t use my good bar that is sitting in the garage.
There can be other wrist injuries associated with Olympic lifting, but they are often the lifter or coach’s fault (racking a clean or snatch, jerk position, rack position in the jerk, etc.) and aren’t caused by how shitty the bar is. I had pain just from doing some easy power cleans, so I decided not to even attempt snatching since the snatch has a much faster turnover at the wrists with a greater distance traveled. There is more potential for stress on the wrists during a snatch even though less weight is used. Wrist irritation or injuries during the turnover phase of a snatch or a clean can occur from a bar that doesn’t spin well, and this is why Olympic lifters are particular about the quality of their bar.
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Edit:Kendrick Farris (85kg) will be competing tomorrow. Good luck, Kendrick.
The 2010 Olympic weightlifting World Championships are pumping out videos. I am very impressed with this video of Liao Hui (69kg) who attempted a world record in the snatch (missed it), and had a world record in the clean and jerk and the total.
Snatch 154, 160, 166x WR attempt
CJ 184, 198 WR, –
Total 358kg WR
PR Friday
Every Friday we post our personal records in lifting, eating, busting through clothes, or my speedo pictures. This is done so we can show support for one another, but I like it because it keeps me updated on the regular posters of the site. If you haven’t had any PR’s of late, then you can just give an update of your training. I like that.
What happened to Kendrick? Looks like he didn’t register any lifts? Injured in the warm up?
Hey Justin, the BFA consists of max pushups in 2min, situps (feet anchored, arms outstretched, wrists have to pass knees, reps to a cadence) and a 2.4km(1.5mi) run. Req reps and run time dependant on age.
Needless to say, at 25 there is absolutely no excuse for not passing. Pretty embarrassing, to be honest. I just want to pass it as soon as I can, then I want to start following CFFB programming. I should be fucking destroying this.
PS. I’m currently in the army reserves – not full time yet, but I am trying to transfer.
Hey Justin, thanks a ton for answering my question…I feel special, haha.
Lifting PRs:
Front Squat 225 x 3 for an easy PR (definitely could have thrown more weight on)
Bench 200 x 3 (last rep was very tough).
BW PR:
Sitting around 181 upon waking up right now.
Injury-Recovery PR:
This was actually on Saturday (the 18th), but I didn’t think to post it last week. Was able to do one rep of back squat (yes, ONE) for the first time since November 7th of last year. Fucked up RC and trapezius SUCK to recover from, did NOT plan on waiting 10 fucking months. Hopefully, I can start back squatting with relative frequency in the coming weeks. YES!
Squatted 230×10 for a new PR.
finally broke 300 on squat 3×5. Still have some upside on linear progression program but gains are slowing.
Philip C,
If it is pain near the elbow you’ve irritated a tendon. I have chronic pain in my left arm tendon near the elbow. I use a tendinitis wrap around the forearm close to the elbow and take a wider grip on the bar. That seems to keep the pain manageable. I also hold the bar with both hands palm back on all warm up dead lifts and only go to alternate hand grip for the heaviest work set. This also takes pressure off the tendon.
Started putting some of the weight I lost in fire academy back on, plus a pound or two and had a few lifting pr also.
Bench 215 for 3 doubles
DL 410
and back squat 20 repped 210
BW should be right at 180 tomorrow morning.
PR 1, Debut:
First PR Friday Post.
PR 2, Lifting:
Deadlift: 325 for a triple
Press: got 110 lbs for 2 triples
PR 3, Neglect PR:
AC needs to give me that song already.
6’2” 176 lbs.
I like Five Guys burgers too. There are a couple of decent non-chain burger places in the area, but I’d eat there pretty often otherwise. They take their fries seriously.
PRs: 250 squat, 300 deadlift; not too hard. Sadly, failed to get the 125 press I was hoping for today.
“Five Guys” is fucking excellent. They know how to grill a goddamn burger. Besides, it’s a known fact that unlimited free peanuts solve most of life’s problems.
No lifting pr’s this week. They should be starting to come in next week. I’ve almost caught up to where I was before I reset and starting doing CFFB. Needed to get the conditioning back up for soccer.
Age PR: last week I turned 30 and am only getting bigger faster stronger.
Sport PR: First time playing goalkeeper in 5 yrs. last week and recorded a shutout in 95 degree weather plus humidity. (central Florida is brutal)
Clothes PR: Received a free GOT YOKE? shirt from Elite FTS.
Can’t wait to start PR’ing again next week. Gonna be pressing 135x3x5. That was my 1RM earlier this year.
No PRs this week. I spent some time being amused that people for some reason give a fuck about my training and somehow think that the CrossFit universe will implode if I don’t go back to WODs. I did do one “WOD” this week that included swinging the 53 lb KB for 75 total reps in between running for the first time in over 2 months. The first round of 25 swings were consecutive, so I guess that was kind of a PR seeing as I’ve never swung the 53 lb KB for more than 5 reps total. That just reinforced my belief that being stronger is better (duh) and also my thought that I can (if I decide that I care) be relatively good at CrossFit without actually training CrossFit. This seems to piss people off. They can kiss my ass.
F/35/5’8/140 lbs
Comment PR: I was leaving a bar last night at closing time and the bouncer was trying to get everyone to leave. He asked myself and a friend to leave the table where I was sitting at, and then he said that “I looked pretty stout” and then asked how much I could bench. After I told him, he said he didn’t want to mess with me.
80% of 1RM Squat x20
If you have never tried it, do it.
Started drinking milk today for first time in 20 years.
Oinktoberfest BBQ cookoff today…going for rib consumption PR.
@Yosh
Awesome. Compliments from a bouncer = win. How much did you tell him?
PR Press at 190#.
PR weight (going down) at 211.2 on wakeup this morning. 94kg won’t be too difficult to make.
Alright, I am gonna start being a regular, been lurking since this site was started.
5th week of Texas Method and happy with the PRs.
BW- 132
Power Snatch- 135, no PR
High Bar Back Squat-220 x 5 easy PR
Press- 110 x 4, PR
Rack Shrug- 315 x 3, loved this PR
Used to do low bar, but been doing high for oly lifting. I am waiting on Justin to post about this…(hint hint)
Awesome site btw, goal for next year is to get to an adolescent bodyweight of 185 at the tall height of 5’4″ haha. This site is gonna keep me truckin to that goal.
Squat: 415 x 1 (+5 lbs)
Power Shurgs: 545 x 3
Justin, do you do like..a free consultation or something? im 180 lbs and squat 210..feel like i should be doing a lot more. im 6’2”, if thats important..
Snatch – 55kg (2kg PR)
Front Squat 92kg (5kg PR)
@domjo54
I said around 290 for the bench press. The bouncers at the bar I was at didn’t look like they were in shape at all. They were just big and fat.
My little brother flew out to visit for the weekend, had planned on going for a squat PR and got it at 405×1.
Also got a bench PR at just 290, but felt good.
Last weekend had a construction PR: built a lifting platform in my garage.
CoolStoryBro,
I have a pretty good idea what might be the problem. You’re 6’2″ and 180. Another 40 lbs atleast and that 6’2″ frame will work a lot better.
PR: 2nd place in the Men’s Heavyweight division at the arm wrestling tournament at the Tri State Fair in Amarillo, Texas. First time arm wrestling. Lotta fun!
Ryan,
that is actually what im considering on doing. Getting upto 200 lbs and seeing how strong i am there..Im not doing SS, but more a bastardized version of 5/3/1.
CoolStoryBro,
If you’re over 6 ft you need to be thinking 225 at a minimum. At that frame size you need more size to make your longer levers work better. I’ve been where you are now. I am 6’4″ and after a run in with crossfit, was at a measly 185 and weaker than hell. After a lightbulb moment, decided to gain weight in order to get stronger. At 230 now, I’m just starting to finally use my levers. 250 would be a lot better. Will be slowing moving in that direction.
It’s just plain old physics. The only people who are 180 and strong are significantly shorter than you.
First time poster, long time reader, chronic breather and smart ass
Currently working the 531 program for my bench and press along with concentrating more on the oly lifts and less on CF workouts
Anywho from the first week and second cycle:
Press: 130×7
Bench: 190×7
Menatl PR’s
Finally Front Squatting faster, with heavier weight. Proud of this because my clean and jerk has been halted by my lack of adaptation to having something heavy on my chest and still believing I can put it up.
Other notable: Did 27 bar Muscle-ups…in 13 minutes and with the last one giving me an Epic hand rip PR. Two tears in the middle of my hand, which is more impressive by the fact that I tapped my hands
Height: 6’2
Weight: 190-195, yeah yeah I know, but a high percentage of my life is spent in the company of hipsters and artist fartists and you can do more to change the system when your in it.
Edit: Hipsters and artists are 85% of time the same thing
@ Ryan.
Makes sense. Time to slowly bump up my eating and drink more milk.
Why slowly? Go for it!
Bench PR: 275×5
Deadlift PR: 405×5
Just set my goals for PL meet on November 6th:
Squat: 200 kg
Bench: 140 kg
Deadlift: 210 kg
Hopefully these aren’t too ambitious, as it’s my first meet.
So..ive been studying the squat. Now, when you sit back and break at the hips, you are supposed to feel a pretty good hamstring stretch on the way to the hole right?
HT: 5’10”
BW: 216lbs
Squat:1×5@400lbs
FT Squat: 1×5@320
Press 1×5@200lbs
Dead: 1×5@430lbs
Bench 1×5@325lbs
@ CoolStoryBro
Bingo. That’s one of the main reasons why a partial “squat” isn’t really a squat at all. The full squat is much more than a leg press. The hip drive out of the hole should be made with the hamstrings in tension, initiated by the glutes as well as the adductors. The stretch rebound out of the bottom is helpful when the weights get heavy too.
@stonewallwells: Both are good programs my squat was much better when I did texas method, partly because I weigh 10 lbs less, partly because squatting 1x just doesn’t work as well.
My deadlift is moving along again, where on texas method my 5RM deadlift stayed between 360-380 for the better part of a year.
The workouts are much shorter with 531 avoiding marathon volume days.
Honestly though you should start with TM because the rate of increases is faster. Especially if you feel you have a lot of fairly easy gains left and are willing to eat for them.
Start of week 5 of madcow 5×5. PR’d squat, that was it.
Family PR: Kid #3 this week.
Still managed to sneak in a couple of lifts.
Week 3 of 5/3/1 first cycle, modern (since I started lifting real weights again) PRs:
DL 8×390
Dips 2×5 +100
Been able to hit 8s on last sets each week on DL with reps left in the tank.
DL +65 in first cycle. Squat +15.
Press and Bench stalled.
Hitting weighted dips, floor press to try to break through on press and bench.
Happy with the DL.
Looking at belts now and all of the good belt discussion on the site. Will invest this week for next cycle.
I always wore a belt in college (last time I lifted real weights) and “donated” it to my college footbal weight room. I was never going to lift big weights again.
Who knew I’d want that sucker back in my late 30s.
Thanks for all of the posts.
Did anybody see the collar come loose and the plates start to fall off one side of the bar for that Egyptian lifter in the +105kg B group? Not really what you want when you’re trying to lock out a 228kg jerk…. The commentators said it was the first time they’d seen it in 20 years.
Does anyone know what happened with Kendrick farris at the world’s? All I’ve been able to find out is that he missed three attempts at 150 in the snatch, then didn’t contest the c&j.
@Justin-
The rack pull was from the knee.
The 335 front squat went up ugly, but it went up.
@Justin,
I’m not sure what got me unstuck. I started doing weighted dips and changed my workout from 1 lift followed by a metcon 4-5 times a week, to 2 lifting days (3 lifts/day) and 3 metcon days a week. yeah, I’m a crossfit weenie.
It could have been the 5 eggs, several thick slices of ham, a tomato and bowl of cereal I ate the night before.
For a 42 year old skinny guy (165lbs), I’m pleased with my progress. I’m stronger than I’ve ever been and in better shape.
@Ryan, I’m in Amarillo. I didn’t make it to the fair this year. Congrats on the arm wrestling competition.