Ice Cream in the Dark or Loopy Bar Syndrome

Hello again my hungry friends! I hope this morning you are training hard or recovering well from your last session. Today's topic is about another common weightlifting error. This error can make you leap forward too much as you pull under your bar. It can also cause your success to be very inconsistent. Last but not least, this error can cause you to partially crush your trachea and make talking/breathing super uncomfortable. Today, we're talking about the loopy bar path.

Eating Ice Cream in the Dark

The fastest way from one point to another is always a straight line as long as there are no obstacles to block progress. That is why a straighter bar path is desirable during the snatch or clean. I like the analogy my coach David Chiu uses on myself and other aspiring lifters. "It's like eating ice cream in the dark!" If your goal is to eat delicious ice cream in the dark, you wouldn't take the spoon in a longer looping pathway to get from the bowl to your mouth. And if your goal is to hoist heavy barbells into their proper position, you wouldn't take a longer looping pathway to get from the floor to your front rack or overhead.

Keep Your Friends Close and Your Barbell even Closer

To quote American record snatch holder Colin Burns "Feel hairs." as the bar passes over your legs. Continue the closeness into your 3rd pull or pull under the bar by leading the way with your elbows. As the well known Russian 105 kg lifter Dmitry Klokov says "The elbows point where the bar will go." Also, use your hip to push the bar upwards. Never slam your bar forwards with your hips using a humping motion. As Klokov also says: "This is for sex... This is for snatch..."

Position over Power

I like the idea of making mistakes at 100%. It's great to let loose with all of your energy and go full blast on any athletic endeavor. Alas, weightlifting, she is a complicated mistress. Being successful in weightlifting is based heavily upon your position. Relying on strength, power, and speed alone can get you only so far. Weightlifting wants you to hit all the right positions with the exact right timing. She's a little demanding but she is more than worth the effort. Using drills to segment the lifts into their smaller components is a great way to work out the kinks in your positioning. Power position is the spot a lifter will hit just before extending hips/knees/ankles and pushing their hip upwards into the barbell. Ironically enough, power position is the right spot to let loose with 100% aggression and energy. Trying to go 100% from the wrong position can lead you down the path to pain, misery, and heartache... Yes my weightlifting friends... That is definitely what she said...