Grip Strength....and the last crazy ass snatch!

For the past month or so I've been lucky enough to be able to play around with some different types of ideas of taking my own training in a slightly different direction. I've been testing swing and snatch sets as long as two minutes with heavier bells. I do want to get stronger, but it's not my goal for absolute strength to be the core of my training. I will always train high volume with acceleration and power as the focus, but once a week I'm going to be working on kind of combining the two.

I'm not interested in training GS style of swings or snatches but I have the highest respect for those who do. I'm quite interested in the challenge of snatching the 16kg for 5 minutes without a hand switch on both right and left sides. No doubt at some point my form will take on a more efficient style, but I'm excited to have started the process and to see how it evolves over the next few months time.

Yesterdays workout started with six 2 minutes snatch sets with one minute rest period in between. Each two minute set was attempted with no hand switch. That means 3 sets on the right and 3 sets on the left. You could put the bell down however as many times as you wanted to. The goal was endurance, to go as long as possible, not speed.

I started out with the 16kg for the first 2 sets, went down to the 14kg for the next 2 sets and the 12kg for the last 2 sets. That was my plan knowing that even though I would be decreasing the bell weight, taking so little rest inbetween sets it would not get much easier....and I was right!



16kg snatch R

I lasted the entire 2 minutes and that was my goal. I believe I counted 36 snatches.

16kg snatch L

I lasted the entire 2 minutes....barely! As you can see in this video, that I so generously share with you, that I almost lost the bell on that last crazy ass rep! Let me tell you that even with all of the training I do, and have done, it's been forever, if ever, since I felt that kind of instability overhead! When the grip goes, it goes, and the thought of 36lbs falling on my head was scary! rep count 33 snatches.

14kg snatch R

It did not surprise me that I could not last the entire 2 minutes of this set. I did however last 1 minute 50 seconds, having to put the bell down for the last 10 sec. Still I was mighty pleased to have lasted that long. rep count 34 snatches

14kg snatch L

Not so lucky with this set....or should I say, not so strong! I lasted about 1 minute 30 sec. Rested 15 seconds and finished the 2 minutes. rep count 32, rest, 4, total 36 snatches.

12kg snatch R

Again, grip giving way after 1 min. 30 sec. Although it seemed as if my pace was faster with this lightest bell it was not! I got 32 reps, rested and got another 7 reps, total rep count 39 snatches.

12kg snatch L

Last 2 minutes set....1 min 30 sec. 30 reps, rest 15 sec. another 7 reps, total rep count 37 snatches.

Whew! And this was only half of our workout! We went on to power snatches and heavy 2 hand swings for the remaining 30+ minutes. This was by far the hardest training I've done in a long time, and I still had to lead an Intermediate and Beginning Swing class.....oh well what's another 1200+ swings and 150+ snatches?

Lucky me. I'm not being sarcastic, I really mean lucky me!