by Thomas Incledon, PhD(c), RD, LD/LN, RPT, NSCA-CPT, CSCS
Knocking Down Walls
An exercise science student was working diligently in the lab one day when his professor walked in. “Dr. Smith, “ he asked, “what exactly is power? People say you need power movements in training programs, but I‘m not sure I know exactly what that means.” “Power!! You want to know what power means? I’ll show you some power!” With that said, Dr. Smith set up in a three-point stance and bull-rushed poor John. The consequences wouldn’t have been too bad, except for the fact that Dr. Smith outweighed John by 60 pounds. When his massive frame collided with John’s, it knocked him into the next room and through a sheet rock wall. Our story ends with John regaining consciousness and wondering why he ever gave Dr. Smith that bottle of ephedrine. But most importantly he learned that power involves explosive movements. We’ll try some more subtle tactics with this article, and hopefully we won’t have to knock down any walls or force you to lose consciousness.
Olympic Lifting vs. Bodybuilding vs. Powerlifting
Let’s take an elite level bodybuilder, powerlifter, and Olympic lifter (weightlifter), each weighing the same. The bodybuilder is clearly the most muscular, the powerlifter is usually the strongest, and the weightlifter is usually the most powerful. Participants from each of these sports perform many similar exercises, such as squats and pressing movements. Why then is the Olympic lifter so much more powerful than the other athletes who also lift weights? One reason is that this type of athlete performs several movements in a very explosive fashion. Snatches, cleans, jerks, pulls, squats, and various forms of these movements shape the bulk of the training program for weightlifters. These movements are done explosively, meaning that the athlete attempts to move the weights as quickly as possible. The result of this type of training is more power. Power is defined as force times velocity. A fairly high force is required to move an object very quickly. With certain movements like power snatches and power cleans there is a carry-over effect that results in increases in jumping and sprinting abilities. This type of training won’t guarantee that you will become a better athlete; after all, athletic performance involves a variety of factors. However, since most bodybuilders tend to perform the same type of training all the time, while they have excessive muscularity, they may not have other athletic components. In this regard, adding Olympic lifts or some variation of them to a bodybuilding program can develop athletic qualities that may be underdeveloped. Also, Phoenix-based physical preparation specialist Charles Staley (Myo Dynamics 800-519-2492, www.myodynamics.com) prescribes power training even for those only interested in aesthetic goals. Staley bases this recommendation on research that suggests fast twitch muscle fibers are more capable of hypertrophy (enlargement) than slow twitch fibers. So by adding power movements to your training you can have your buffed bod and some athletic skills to use it!
The Basics – patience and technique
Explosive movements such as power snatches and power cleans can be added to most bodybuilding programs. Keep in mind a few pointers to maximize the benefits of performing these movements. Power exercises require a higher degree of skill than simpler exercises like a barbell curls or shoulder presses. Spend time learning how to do the movement with light weights. Once your technique is developed, you can start to progressively add some weight. It’s best to do these types of movements first in your workout. If you are just learning how to do a new exercise, perform it first so fatigue from previous movements does not interfere. If you already know how to perform these exercises, then you should still to do them first so that you can work on improving your maximal power while you are still fresh. If you are tired or fatigued from other exercises then you may not be able to perform these explosive movements to the best of your ability.
It took a long time for the wall separating Germany to be broken down, and you’re not going to make the Olympic team after one workout. Most people add weight too quickly and consequently develop bad habits. While lifting large weights may seem gratifying, improper technique doesn’t allow you to develop power and maximize what you can lift. At first it may help to watch yourself in the mirror so that you can minimize any mistakes in your lifting. As you become better at performing the exercises, try not to rely on the mirror, as it will slow you down. Initially you should focus on learning the pulling motion for these exercises. Once you understand the transition that joints such as the knees and hips make throughout the pull, then focus on performing the lift faster. When you can perform the pulling motion quickly, progress to more advanced movements. If you have access to a coach or someone familiar with these movements, it can save you a tremendous amount of time. They can help correct mistakes in technique and guide you on when to progress to more advanced movements.
Exercises
Name of exercise: Push Press
Muscle groups worked: Deltoids and triceps primarily, quadriceps and gluteus maximus to a lesser degree.
Execution
Start: You can generally handle much more weight with this movement as compared to a strict military press. Make sure you attempt to use your legs to lift the bar overhead. A barbell is unracked from a power rack/squat rack and positioned on the clavicles, with hands in a pronated position, spaced about shoulder width or wider apart. Perform a slight knee bend, pause briefly, and forcefully use your legs to drive the bar overhead to full elbow extension. You will have to coordinate the drive by your legs with the pressing of your shoulders and arms.
Midpoint: The bar is held arms-length overhead for a brief period of time. Usually this is just long enough to make sure there is control of the bar.
End: The bar is lowered rapidly back to the clavicles. To minimize impact, the knees bend slightly and assist with breaking the descent of the bar.
Training Tip: Keep the bar moving over the spine. To do this you may have to lift you chin up and head back slightly so that the bar moves in a straight path.
Name of exercise: Hang Power Cleans
Muscle groups worked: Gluteus maximus, quadriceps, and spinal erectors. To a smaller extent trapezius, deltoids, and biceps brachii.
Execution
Start: While standing, grasp a barbell with the hands in a pronated position, spaced apart about midway between hip and shoulder width. Perform a slight knee bend, lean forward slightly. You should be in the same position as if you were going to do a vertical jump. Pause briefly and jump up. The feet will shuffle outwards from the jump and you will pull the weight up to the clavicles, rotating the elbows and arms under the bar to “rack” in the weight.
Midpoint: You should be in a quarter-squat position with the bar resting on your clavicles.
End: The bar is returned back to the starting position. If you are using rubber weights, you can just guide the bar down as it free falls to the floor. Remove your hands after the bar passes the knees so that it doesn’t bounce up and hit you. If you don’t have access to rubber weights, you can lower the bar to your thighs and then resume the starting position from there. Be careful not to let it fall too fast or you will bruise your thighs.
Training Tip: Focus on jumping with the weight. The arms should be relaxed so that initially they are straight and the momentum from the bar moving upward is timed with bending the arms. If you just extended the hips and knees without racking in the weight, this would be called a hang clean pull. You may want to start with the pulling motion first and perform the hang power clean only after you feel comfortable with the pull.
Name of exercise: Power Snatch
Muscle groups worked: Gluteus maximus, hamstrings, quadriceps, gastrocnemius, soleus, and spinal erectors. To a smaller extent trapezius, deltoids, biceps brachii, and triceps brachii.
Execution
Start: A barbell is positioned on the ground. Squat down and grasp the barbell with the hands in a pronated position, spaced apart much wider than shoulder width. Pull against the bar so that the arms are straight and the lower back is flat or slightly arched. You will be leaning forward slightly, but your weight should be evenly distributed on your feet. As you stand up, the shoulders will remain in front of the bar, the bar will move backwards slightly (staying close to the shins and thighs). After the bar passes the knees, it will slide up the thighs as the hips and knees come forward. You will then jump, shuffle the feet out laterally, and pull the bar overhead.
Midpoint: You should be in a quarter-squat position with the bar overhead.
End: The bar is returned back to the starting position. If you are using rubber weights, you can just guide the bar down as it free falls to the floor. Remove your hands after the bar passes the knees so that it doesn’t bounce up and hit you. If you don’t have access to rubber weights, you can lower the bar to your thighs and then resume the starting position from there. Be careful not to let it fall too fast or you will bruise your thighs.
Training Tip: As in the hang clean, focus on jumping with the weight. The arms should be relaxed so that initially they are straight and the momentum from the bar moving upward is timed with bending the arms. Don’t forget to do the knee bend after the bar passes the knees (it should be around the upper third of the thigh).
Name of exercise: Jump Squat
Muscle groups worked: Gluteus maximus, quadriceps, hamstrings, spinal erectors, and gastrocnemius.
Execution:
Start: The bar is placed behind on the head resting on the top of the trapezius muscles. Squat to a quarter-squat position and jump up with the weight as high as you can.
Midpoint: Technically the midpoint would be at maximal vertical height, which means you are in the air. Practically we might say there is no midpoint.
End: You will land on you feet and just like recovering from a jump, make sure to flex your knees so that you minimize impact on your joints.
Training Tip: This is a fairly easy movement to perform. When you first start out, perform each repetition one at a time with a brief pause between each rep. As you develop more skill, you can perform multiple reps as quickly as possible.
Name of exercise: Overhead Throw Downs With Medicine Ball
Muscle groups worked: Abdominals, quadriceps, hamstrings, pectoralis major, deltoids, latissimus dorsi.
Execution:
Start: With the medicine ball in your hands, raise your arms overhead. Initiate a slight pre-stretch by moving towards full extension in the ankles, knees, hips, and shoulders, and quickly change direction as you slam the medicine ball against the ground.
Midpoint: You just released the ball and it is accelerating towards the ground.
End: Catch the ball and move rapidly toward the fully extended position to resume the start above.
Training Tip: This is done to the front to explosively train the rectus abdominus. To explosively train the obliques, alternate from side to side.
Adding in Plyometrics
Plyometrics are simply movements preceded by a prestretch due to a sudden change from the eccentric to concentric phase of a movement. Any exercise can be made into a plyometric just by performing the eccentric portion as rapidly as possible and then quickly reversing direction and performing the concentric phase of the movement as quickly as possible. Traditionally most people thinking of jumping movements as plyometric exercises. However, you can perform rope pulls for the back, push-ups with a clap, and all kinds of movements that would qualify as plyometrics. If you are just starting to add explosive lifts to your training, you may think it is a good idea to add plyometric exercises as well. We usually advise our clients against this because it is too much too soon and can lead to overuse injuries. Once we know how the client is responding to the training program we phase in additional exercises, such as plyometrics.
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