Question on Olympic Lifts?

[Kovy_Ribs_Fedo 3]

Is it better to use lighter weights and faster movement or a heavier weight with a slower movement for Olympic Lifting?

[gman 0]

Is it better to use lighter weights and faster movement or a heavier weight with a slower movement for Olympic Lifting?

DEFINITELY go lighter to get your form down. If you do not have competent instruction you need to go lighter even longer.

Links to instructionals:

http://www6.mailordercentral.com/ironmind/...asp?number=1207

http://www6.mailordercentral.com/ironmind/...asp?number=1204

http://www6.mailordercentral.com/ironmind/...asp?number=1341

http://www6.mailordercentral.com/ironmind/...p?number=1341-A

Take a look at any one of these for sure. This site has more good stuff on it than you can digest in one sitting. If you send an e-mail to them they will answer. These folks are the real deal---not posers. They travel the world competing and really getting into the sports...

[biff44 0]

Wow!!! From your question it is pretty clear that you do not have a trainer. STOP right now and get one. You start olympic lifiting with a 2 pound wooden broom handle, and do not do any more weight than that until you have the form and explosiveness down!

[Kovy_Ribs_Fedo 3]

Wow!!!  From your question it is pretty clear that you do not have a trainer.  STOP right now and get one.  You start olympic lifiting with a 2 pound wooden broom handle, and do not do any more weight than that until you have the form and explosiveness down!

I know the techniques because we had a trainer with our team this winter who show them to us. But we've always use easy weight when doing them with him.

[hockechamp14 0]

Either way you're exploding with the weight, so you could hardly call it slower if you put on more weight. You of course want to use as much weight as you can. Of course- that is if you have the right form and do it safely.

[Gongshow11 1]

use light weight, say 40% of your max, and that should be the most you do, until you get it down pat. Plus your season just ended, why you doing olympic lifts now? no recovery phase?

[Kovy_Ribs_Fedo 3]

use light weight, say 40% of your max, and that should be the most you do, until you get it down pat. Plus your season just ended, why you doing olympic lifts now? no recovery phase?

I'm not doing these right now, I'm just preparing my program for the upcoming wekks and the question cross my mind.

[biff44 0]

Good. There are some really subtle things, like having the bar hug the shins on the way up, not arching the back at all, etc., that are really important. Pros spend a lot of time at the start with the plates up on 1' high wood blocks and practice only a portion of the movement.

If you have the training, then start off with a 20# plate on either side and see how it goes.

And long before you start lifting anything heavy, learn how to "lose" the load without killing yourself if the lift goes wrong. If the lift goes wrong, you do not try to rebalance it above your head (you will pull your muscles), you let it go in a controlled fashion (front or back) so it does not bounce onto your foot. Have a pro show you how.

[ktang 34]

Wow!!!  From your question it is pretty clear that you do not have a trainer.  STOP right now and get one.  You start olympic lifiting with a 2 pound wooden broom handle, and do not do any more weight than that until you have the form and explosiveness down!

I know the techniques because we had a trainer with our team this winter who show them to us. But we've always use easy weight when doing them with him.

We used just sticks and barbells 2 years before we were allowed to add any plates.

Be careful!!! I've seen some pretty gruesome injuries when guys tried to lift too much too soon, or were distracted.

I'm definitely not an expert, but I think hockey players don't need to put on that much weight on the bar, anyways, because we are going for explosiveness and not for brute strength.

[hockechamp14 0]

I'm definitely not an expert, but I think hockey players don't need to put on that much weight on the bar, anyways, because we are going for explosiveness and not for brute strength.

Max stregnth is a building block for power development. You can't increase your max power without increasing your reflexibility or stregnth. If your reflexive stregnth is at it's max, then you can't create any more power without increasing your max effort stregnth.

[ktang 34]

I'm definitely not an expert, but I think hockey players don't need to put on that much weight on the bar, anyways, because we are going for explosiveness and not for brute strength.

Max stregnth is a building block for power development. You can't increase your max power without increasing your reflexibility or stregnth. If your reflexive stregnth is at it's max, then you can't create any more power without increasing your max effort stregnth.

Could we do the lift faster or higher (clean->snatch), or increase the set volume, instead of increasing the weight?

(very, very interesting discussion for me)

[hockechamp14 0]

I'm definitely not an expert, but I think hockey players don't need to put on that much weight on the bar, anyways, because we are going for explosiveness and not for brute strength.

Max stregnth is a building block for power development. You can't increase your max power without increasing your reflexibility or stregnth. If your reflexive stregnth is at it's max, then you can't create any more power without increasing your max effort stregnth.

Could we do the lift faster or higher (clean->snatch), or increase the set volume, instead of increasing the weight?

(very, very interesting discussion for me)

To repeat, power output=Force*Speed

So as far as increasing speed in the lift, speed is just another word for

well reflexive power and speed are basically the same thing, in how quickly you can apply force.

Really the only way to improve your stregnth in the lift is to put more plates on the bar.

However, doing snatches creates a higher bar speed than cleans do, so that's a good reason to do them. Increasing the set volume isn't bad, but in order to allow you to have the best form, you might want to do more sets of singles or doubles.

Reguardless, your max clean has little corralation to your skating, so although the hip extention will help you skate with power, other factors are important so developing the ability to do higher volume and other stuff could be helpful.

[biff44 0]

The big point of Olympic Lifting is the speed. You are training you brain to be able to fire all of the muscles needed for the lift in as little a time period as possible. You are training your brain, your nerve system, and your muscles.

Then later when you are playing hockey and you have to be 20 feet "over there" to make a big play, your body knows how to get there in the shortest time.

Adding more weight is not the main point here, the speed and total body coordination is.