With the messages my body is giving me, I’m going to adjust my workouts to accommodate the discomforts and hope I can work within those parameters.
My left wrist works fine in the clean and jerk, but I’m struggling with the wider grip used in the snatch. With the therapy strategy in place, I have a month before I get the answers I need to continue towards the Pan Ams and world championships.
Monday
Monday was the first day of the next phase, so I started with light work on the exercise that is creating the most problems for me. I spent a lot of time working the mobility in both wrists. Finally I could get the bar over my head with minimal discomfort and with pretty good wrist flex in the overhead position. I started with the speed snatch, doing two sets of six reps with 40kg, 50kg, and 60kg. The next exercise was power snatch from the hang, with the same sequence of weights and reps. The true test will be power snatch from the floor, I will use the same weights 40,50 and 60kg. I thought today went well, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to tell until the following day.
Tuesday
My left wrist was very sore, so I spent time working on getting it to function.
Wednesday
I still had a great deal of stiffness, so I decided to do just a pull workout. I started with snatch pulls from the hang doing 50kg, 70kg, and 80kg each for two sets of six reps. I made sure each rep went as high as possible, with most of them going to just under my chin. I made a 20kg jump to 100kg and did two sets of six reps with pulls from the floor. I switched to clean pulls from the floor and did 100kg and 120kg for two sets of six reps. I made a final jump to 140kg and did four sets of six reps. The pulls didn’t seem to bother me, and they even seemed to help with the traction they placed on both of my arms.
Thursday
I felt positive about today’s workout. I planned for one power clean, four front squats, and a jerk. I started with 50kg and made 10kg jumps all the way to 90kg. Each weight was done for one-rep sequence to make sure my wrist and elbow were okay. I made a final jump to 100kg and finished with four-rep sequences.
Friday
Friday I took a rest – well deserved, I think.
Saturday
Saturday my wrists felt better than they had all week, so I decided to repeat Monday’s workout. I did 50kg, 60kg, and 70kg for two sets of sox reps in the speed snatch. They were done pretty well, but not great. The lockout on some reps was a little sticky when my wrist or elbow caught in an uncomfortable position. I switched to power snatch from the hang and found that most of the reps were fairly painful, so I stayed with 50kg and 60kg and did four sets with the heavier weight. I dropped the weight back to 50kg and switched to power snatch from the floor, testing my wrist with each rep. It hurt, but I knew I had to suck it up. I jumped to 60kg and did two sets there. Things felt better with an adjustment with my legs in the catch position. I jumped to 70kg and then to 75kg and did one set of six reps with each weight.
Sunday
My wrist and elbow felt better than they did on the Tuesday after the same session, so I decided on clean and jerks. I repeated the same rep sequence as I did on Thursday. I got all the way up to 110kg. I caught the clean in an awkward place and put my wrist in a painful position, but still managed two front squats and the jerk. I repeated the weight and got all the reps: one power clean, four front squats, and a jerk. I jumped to 120kg and finished the workout with one power clean, a front squat, and a jerk.
My wrist and elbow were a little tender, but I managed some good work nonetheless. Let’s see what happens next week!
Terry Hadlow got started in Olympic weightlifting in 1970 and is the only Canadian to have competed in senior nationals in five different decades – 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s. Follow Terry’s journal here to learn about his approach to training and competing.
