I have been working on my technique in the last few weeks, knowing that I really shouldn’t be trying to achieve higher weights if I want to control my size. I know that now, being a little older, it’s not always better to be or go bigger. That said, I have been trying to work my way into developing a solid clean and press where previously I was using the hang clean to do the movement. It has taken me a while but I am now at a point where I can comfortably do around 10 full cleans with squat and press without feeling like I am going to lose my balance or lose the bar.
I have also managed to work on my rack position so that the bar actually rests on my delts like it should but I am having a tough time with wrist flexibility and arm size. My arms are built in a way that makes it tough to get the forearm and bicep to occupy a similar space and for the wrist to maintain even the most rudimentary grip on the bar. I did notice during the Olympics that the way the pros do it is to take an extra little bump after the rack to get the hands under the bar ready to press. I’m trying to work on that.
Finally, since my squat is pretty solid I thought I would give overhead squats a try. It’s something I have tried in the past with mixed results, and by mixed I mean absolutely zero success. For some reason I can’t get my arms back far enough to balance, that is until I realized that my hands were FAR to close together. Once I slid my hands out to the end of the bar, like one would for a snatch, I found that I could squeeze out a couple of reps. I was pretty happy, but it is a very uncomfortable and strenuous activity, one that will require many many more attempts to become comfortable.
Since I am getting more comfortable I have also started doing multiple movements, specifically going from clean and press to back squat. Not only that, but a 4 movement set of deadlift, clean, clean and press, clean and press with squat. It’s becoming a lot of fun and I can definitely feel the benefit in my legs and my lower back.