Lots of people are in a rush to go overhead with their KBs – particularly the Snatch.
They want to rush to get there.
Here’s a little nugget of gold for you:
Did you know that at the RKC weekend – the world’s premiere kettlebell training certification – we teach the Snatch LAST?
Yup.
Why?
Cause there’s lots of work to do before you get there.
Here’s 5 steps you need to “own” – that is, be honest to yourself that you can really do these things – before you rush into your Snatch.
(Heck, even if you haven’t rushed into your Snatch, you should for both safety and performance sake, KNOW that you can do these things.)
1. Have a darn good “hinge.”
Yup, your Swing should be on point.
You should really be able to load up your hips to get your KB to float effortlessly after an aggressive hip snap.
The only way to do that is to make sure you own your hinge.
(There are SO MANY ways to do this.)
2. Make sure your abs work well and and are well conditioned.
I’ve been guilty of this in the past – wrongly believing that I don’t need any direct ab work. That heavy lifting – KB or otherwise would do the trick.
It won’t.
Your abs are designed to protect your spine and stabilize your pelvis. Many of us have got that first part down, but not so much the second part.
You don’t want to jack up your lower back either trying to get that bell overhead or while it’s overhead or on the way back down.
Do your ab work.
3. Get your thoracic spine mobility.
Don’t be “Mr Hunched Over Computer Guy.” You know the one I mean – head forward, upper back rounded.
Yeah, besides being a great way to trash your shoulders, it’s a wonderful way to destroy your lower back while going overhead.
Think about it – if your arm can’t go straight up overhead, you gotta get that motion somewhere – and that’s by leaning back into your lower back. And that’s a great way to get hurt.
4. Get and keep your shoulder mobility and flexibility.
Two words: Get Up.
Nuff said.
5. Get your shoulder strength up.
Yeah, you’re doing your GUs and that’s great for being able to hold the weight overhead, but you gotta have the strength to go from between your legs to overhead and back down between your legs.
I love to use the Press for this. So make sure you spend some time there.
Your workouts should include some or all of these parts of the checklist, whether your learning how to Snatch, or want to drive your numbers up in the Snatch – either raw strength or endurance.
I recommend starting with “Swing Season 1 or 2″ or the ”OLAD” series and then “Getting’ Down With The Get Up” from “Kettlebell Express!” to make certain you got steps 1 and 2 down pat.
http://kettlebellsecrets.com/
Talk soon.
Geoff
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