Dr Mel Siff Blog

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The discussion on weightlifting pulling styles that I have been enjoying with
Istvan Javorek on IWF list continues:

Istvan Javorek:

In addition, I would like to share some of my ideas from my upcoming book:

The Step-by-step phases of the classical Snatch and Clean & Jerk exercise are:

- Start
- Pull to squat or split:
- First phase of pull with leg extension
- First phase of pull with trunk extension
- Second phase of pull: spontaneous knees bent
- Second phase of pull: straight-arms, elbows turned out
- Second phase of pull: final leg-trunk extension
- Second phase of pull: central of gravity on straight vertical line, body
weight between balls of the feet and heels, slightly more toward the heels

- Second phase of pull: hit the barbell on flat foot

- Second phase of pull: due to the inertia the barbell and the athlete’s body
is in weightless ” in suspension” stage

- Second phase of pull: trapezius action
- Second phase of pull: arms action (flexion- extension for snatch:
flexion-elbows’ rotation forward under the barbell) and preparation of
pressing under the barbell

- Squat or Split:
- Legs’ displacement

- Legs’ action (flexion or split) under the bar
- Pressing the body under the barbell
- Recovery:
- Legs’ extension
- Legs’ replacement: from split the front leg first; from squat one leg at a
time

The first and very important thing to figure out for every individual athlete
is the optimal grip as well as the body balance in the different phases of an
exercise. It is easy to measure the athlete’s body segment and to find out
the most efficient body alignment.

In the starting position the arm’s musculature should be relaxed, just holding
the barbell with a firm hook grip. The elbow-shoulders-head position is the
most favorable position to let the trapezius musculature act during the
shrugging movement. Usually the big technical error is a chain reaction from
this phase of the pull.

The common center of gravity in the start should be balanced in the mid
section of the feet, between the balls of the feet and the heels. During the
first phase of the pull the center of gravity should be shifted back more
toward the heels, but the balls of the feet should never lose contact with
the platform.

The first phase of the Pull: – The athlete contracts his/her extensor muscles
and starts the first phase of the pull. The body weight has already been
shifted toward the heels, and simultaneously is opening the ankles’, knees’,
and hip’s (coxo-femoral) joints. In this way the hip and the shoulders are
doing an upward and simultaneous movement, lifting the weight up from the
platform and up to the knees’ level. From this point the knees are extended
slightly. (In weightlifting never extend the knees to a complete extension
during a pull or a jerk. A little flexion must be in the knees’ joint,
permitting to the athlete to distribute the barbell’s weight equally on the
whole osteo-muscular system, finding the perfect balance on the middle of the
feet, holding the center of gravity between the balls’ of the feet and
gradually more toward the heels.) The athlete’s torso still should be over
the barbell, with a straight, tight back. The elbows turned out, and the
shoulders turned in.

In the beginning of this first phase of the pull it is very important to
extend the barbell and just after that to start the lift, because of the
barbell’s elasticity and the spaces between the holes in the plates and the
barbell’s sleeves. This is the first time when we can apply in weightlifting
Newton’s First law of physics: “Every action has an equal and opposite
reaction”.

The start of the pull has to begin slowly (in any case slower than the next
phase of the pull), similar to the action of a rocket propelling from the
surface. The motion is initiated gradually, and then increased in velocity.
With a fast start, the rocket would fall down because it could not increase
the velocity anymore. This same situation also occurs in weightlifting. In
this phase the common center of gravity is balanced between the balls of the
feet and heels with a tendency more toward the heels. The first phase of the
pull should be executed in this body balance, gradually extending the knees
and holding the trunk with an extended (concave) back straight and over the
bar.

The head position is still in continuation of the back, looking forward down
on the platform. The shoulders are still turned in, elbows turned out and
straight. Further into this phase the athlete straightens his/her knees and
lifts the barbell up to his/her knee level, making a very opened knees angle
and a 90 – 94 degree hip-trunk angle. The most important part of the pull is
the following: the athlete starts to straighten his/her trunk upward, pushing
his/her knees involuntarily forward, shifting the center of gravity back in
the middle of the feet. The athlete is doing an inherent, automatic
movement, bending his/her knees slightly and straightening the back
completely. His/her bodyweight is still flatfooted but shifted more toward
the balls of the feet, with the toes free to move, without any body weight on
them. This is the phase which we refer to incorrectly as the
second knee bend phase.

During the complete motion of the first phase which is actually two different
sub phases (“Up” to the knees, and then “Up” to the upper part of the
“thighs”), it is very important to find the optimal counter-balance position.
When the athlete finishes the so-called “double knee bend” motion he/she is
in the strongest osteo- muscular correlation. This phase is the so-called
“hit” position. In this position the athlete “hits” the barbell with his/her
legs’ and scapular muscles at the same time, and gives to the barbell the
biggest possible upward action . The athlete, with this perfect movement
gives the barbell a projection so that it conforms to the physical laws of
matter in suspension.

On this point is the biggest technical misconception. Several coaches are
teaching the athletes intentionally shifting the body weight all the way
forward onto the toes and to rise up onto the toes. This movement onto the
toes will cause the athlete to swing the bar forward, shifting from its
position of up and behind the vertical line. The barbell’s distance of
travel will be lengthened and will give a false forward trajectory, which is
harmful to the athlete’s knees’, hip’s and shoulders’ joints.

Mel Siff:

*** Neither video analysis or free body diagram analysis shows that
plantarflexed pulling necessarily results in a marked horizontal force
component away from the body. If that happens it is due to deficient
technique or imperfect use of the “hitting” of the bar (often against the
body), as described below in your next comments.

Istvan Javorek:

For maximum efficiency it is best to perform this phase of the pull
flatfooted with the center of gravity in the middle of the foot with a slight
inclination toward and gradually more on the balls of the feet, but not in
any case on the toes. During this phase, the athlete is imitating a
standing and backward acting, double leg bounce, with the knees very slightly
flexed. Actually, when utilizing the combined forces of the legs and
trapezius sufficient power and speed are developed for a maximum and
efficient lift.

To be more understandable I would like to go into more depth in explanation
of this part of the pulling phase. When the athlete “hits” the bar with an
optimal strength in an optimal position, sufficient inertia and velocity can
be developed to be capable of executing the pressing motion under the barbell
with maximum efficiency. (Due to the inertia of the weight, the whole
barbell with the plates becomes suspended and its weight 0.00 kg). On this
weightless in suspension phase of the barbell the athlete body is in
suspension also, because when an athlete “hits” the barbell on a perfect
vertical line, with straight, turned out elbows, and turned in shoulders,
his/her body forms a compact object with the barbell. This is why when the
barbell becomes suspended due to the inertia; the athlete’s body becomes
weightless also.

The athlete, being a human who has learned from an early age to walk on two
feet in a vertical position, the first conditioned reflex, which acts on an
athlete in this weightless stage, is trying to find the platform, (the
supporting surface) for balance. This is the phase when the majority of the
pictures of world champions show the athletes in the “toward the toes”
position. If someone looks more closely at these pictures, they will see
that the athlete actually is not on his toes, and that the balls of his feet
are closer to the platform than his toes.

Mel Siff:

*** No matter what description is offered of what one sees on slow motion or
freeze frame video, the fact is that ANY degree of plantarflexion is revealed
by the heels being raised. Let’s forget whether the lifter is actually
rising to the toes or the balls of the feet – the fact is that some degree of
plantarflexion is taking place, with the extent being determined by the
magnitude of the load and individual characteristics of the lifter. Analysis
certainly shows that premature plantarflexion before the bar reaches a level
nearer the hips tends to be a less efficient way of pulling, but, so far, I
have seen no similar scientific analysis which categorically shows that
well-timed or simply reflexive plantarflexion is inferior to flatfooted
pulling.

Istvan Javorek:

During the “hitting” phase, if the athlete intentionally is getting on
his/her toes, the athlete will project the barbell forward losing the
verticality of the barbell and wasting its benefit. Secondly for this reason
and as an effect of it, the athlete will lose the benefit of being a compact
object with the barbell, which is not possible when the bar is mowing
forward.

Mel Siff:

*** As I have noted before, this is not necessarily true. It is usually a
result of poor technique. If it is, let’s see even a very basic free body
diagram analysis which corroborates this point of view. By the way, some of
the world’s top lifters also jump backwards with the bar, an action which a
lso lengthens the trajectory followed by the bar – is this method also
inadvisable, even though some coaches actually teach it?

Finally, if an athlete gets on his/her toes intentionally, he/she will ruin
this weightless, “in suspension” momentum (phase). Consequently, it becomes
difficult and potentially dangerous to accomplish the next phase of the
exercise, because the law of gravity, which attracts all objects toward the
center of the earth, will influence the motion further. This phase in our
situation is the squatting or splitting and pressing under the barbell
(squat, split and power snatch, squat, split or power clean).

Mel Siff:

*** Aha! Since you are now adding the word “intentionally” to the discussion,
you seem to be heading more in the direction of my Alternative #3 stated in
my original letter on pulling, namely: “Alternative # 3. Most lifters don’t
really concern themselves with what happens to their heels during the pull
and that they simply focus on pulling as powerfully as possible, no matter
whether this involves plantarflexion or not.” Would this be correct?

Istvan Javorek:

I do not contest that results can be achieved in this phase by an athlete,
when he/she finishes the movement with the center of gravity more toward the
balls of the feet, with a slight heel raise, (due to the before-mentioned
weightless stage, but not intentionally). But I do believe and state, that
rising intentionally on toes is not correct. Actually I consider, balancing
on the side edges and flat foot with a slight heel raise better, with an easy
shifting of the center of gravity toward the balls of the feet. See Nicu Vlad
1984 Olympic champion’s 220 kg clean and jerk and Pavel Kuznetsov’s world
record clean and jerk photo sequences. (Photos by Bruce Klemens). This style
of displacing the feet is much more, efficient, beneficial and advantageous
in my opinion for placing the body in the proper position for the next phase
(replacing the feet). Also if you look at Vardanian sequences you see what I
mean the adaptation of perfect technique to a particular athlete.

The first phase of the pull should be slower in comparison with the vertical
“hitting” phase, which requires the most explosive motion of a snatch or
clean exercise. The barbell must be continuously in the closest possible
position to the athlete’s body. In this phase the athlete is pushing his
feet into the platform, like driving a nail into the platform with his/her
heel. As a confirmation of the previously mentioned Newtonian law of
physics, the barbell will action upward due to the plates’ opposite reaction
and at the same time due to the tremendous, continuation action of the
trapezius musculature. This is the “momentum” when the athlete must press
his/her body under the bar for a perfect clean or snatch. On this phase it is
so important to “meet” the bar on its maximal position during that
weightless situation. This is the so-called “momentum” of a lift.

My good friend Bud Charniga, told me a year ago, that he was analyzing since
I had a clinics at USAWL Federation in 1984 or 1985 my statements about flat
footed technique, and year by year became more convinced the correctness of
my technique and Bud took hundreds of photos at the major international
events).

Mel Siff:

*** Interestingly, Bud also tends to go along more with the suggestion
offered in my Alternative #3. Does this mean that we are heading towards
some sort of consensus or is there still some merit in my other alternatives?

Dr Mel Siff
Denver, USA
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Supertraining/

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