Technique, Technique, Technique

The programming lately has been geared toward building strength. There has been a lot of weightlifting and short met-con WODs--my favorite type. Today's WOD was very similar to last Monday's.

10 x 4 reps high bar back squat @80% with 2 minute rest between sets

Interestingly, I was able to do more weight this week (115# vs. 110# last week), and I hit a groove in the squat that I have never felt before. Today as I squatted, I was able to go lower, bear the weight in my heels, and bounce out of the squat in a way that felt so much better than it has in the past. It's the THING with all things CF--rarely or never is it best to just muscle through something. There is always some technique that,when strength, coaching, and experience meet, makes the move almost easy. The reps that I was able to accomplish in the perfect squat position with the weight in my heels felt strangely  easy. This shows me that honestly, I could probably be lifting even more, but I must get to the point where I can consistently move the weight correctly. It's all in the technique.

Let me give you a little tip, however. When doing high-bar back squats, take your necklace off. The pain of lifting heavy weight is nothing in comparison to the pain of having the loaded bar press a small metal chain deeply into your flesh. Ask me how I know.

A similar thing happened with snatching yesterday (not the necklace part) when I attended the skills class. After many reps of pulling early and missing even light lifts, I put my full concentration on the "scarecrow" move, late in the lift. I flew under the bar and stood there shocked and how low I received the bar as well as how light the weight felt. It's all in the technique.

Another area where technique has proven itself is in rope-climbing. When the coach says get your legs up as high as possible, they mean it. It is the difference between depending on your arm strength and grip to get you up the rope, and powering up feet at a time by using your legs and core. It is the difference between an exhausting 7 or 8 pulls and an easy 3 to 4.  It's all in the technique.

I have to remind myself constantly that these "techniques" are brand new to me and that "Rome was not built in a day." Why it took me 8 months to understand what it meant to have the weight in my heels is a mystery, but today I felt it and I can check that off the list. I know that one now. On to the next thing, while continuing to practice that blasted squat!