There were all levels of lifters in attendance ranging from people getting on the platform for the first time right up to a Master of Sport World Class. The aim of the Trojans Competition is to encourage as many people to step on the platform and compete and we had over 20 lifters from all over Europe.

The results are as follows and are in order of weight of bells and total repetitions:

Ladies 12kg
Jerk Snatch Total
Jane Ray 64 170 234
Katrina Scott 118 138 256
Cassie Jordan 146 152 298
Rebecca Heron 165 166 331
Louise Grollman ?? ?? ??

Ladies 16kg
Jerk Snatch Total
Claire Maidment 148 162 310

Mens Mixed 16 & 24kg
Jerk Snatch Total
Richard Bunto 32 112 n/a

Mens 20kg
Jerk Snatch Total
*Kat Helcmanovska 52 102 154
Steven Dawson 72 129 201
Joe Allen 80 181 261
Jason O’Brien 99 173 272
Steve Cork 111 183 284
Stephen Bourke 120 166 286

*Kat took on the boys!!!!

Mens 24kg
Jerk Snatch Total
David Sheehan 80 119 199
Mark Stapleton 118 95 213
Karsten Bollert 101 114 215
*Mark Stroud 81 151 232
* Mark Stroud dropped the bell mid snatch

Mens 28kg
Jerk Snatch Total
Paul Harrison 30 74 104

Mens 32kg
Jerk Snatch Total
Tim Joseph 54 100 154
Eddie Sheehan 78 100 178

The event was an overall success and it certainly achieved it’s objective of providing an opportunity for individual’s to get on the platform.

There were great performances all round, with a special mention to Cassie Jordan who was studying for her A Levels whilst training. Kat deserves a mention also for competing with 2 Bells in the Jerk and Eddie got the equivalent of Master of Sports numbers in his Jerk set. Congratulations go out to all of the lifters many of who achieved personal bests on the day.

Great lifting people and until next year- keep swinging…..

A couple of the lifts I had tried before but most of them were new to me. I now have a whole new bunch of lifts to add to my training and I’m looking forward to cracking on.

Anyway here are the final lifts:

Day 32: Bent Over Row

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Day 33: Barbell Carries

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Day 34: Shoulder Drop

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Day 35: Scott Lift

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Day 36: Overhead Squat

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Day 37: Two Hands Anyhow

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Day 38: Seated Press

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Day 39: Turkish Get Up

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Day 40: Pull Over Push

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There you go! That’s what I got up to for Lent this year. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. I ‘ll have a full report and exercise descriptions to come.

Accompanying the lifts from Day 26 on have been an odd dance. This is all in tribute to a little jig I saw a guy perform after he broke a world record performing the Dumbbell Clean and Jerk.

DAy 26 The Kneeling Snatch

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I’m into the home stretch now and am really looking forward to resuming regular training and incorporating some of the lifts I’ve come across!

In the last week as well as the odd lifts I’ve only managed a couple of other lifts and a few conditioning sessions. Two of these conditioning sessions have been the Crossfit Opens WOD 2 and the other has been a session with CJ Swaby and Sabina Skala of CJSFitness.

The following are last weeks lifts:

Day 20 The Windmill

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Day 21 The Split Clean

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Day 22 The Bottoms Up Press

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Day 23 Weighted Pull Ups

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Day 24 One Arm Snatch

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Day 25 The Dumbbell Swing

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15 days left. Reports and reviews of each of the exercises are being written and I’ll post them all at the end- there may even be an Odd Lift workshop or two to come….

My left to right imbalance has been highlighted even more on both grip and shoulder stability. Something that I’ll definitely be addressing moving forwards. My regular training has also suffered, mainly my strength training- due primarily to fatigue and lack of recovery time. I’m hoping that after a week of rest after the 40days I’ll hit pb’s in Dead Lifts, Squats and Presses!!

Anyway here are the last weeks lifts:
Day 14- Behind the Neck Split Jerk

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Day 15- Steinborn Lift

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Day 16- Side Press

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Day 17- One Hand Dead Lift

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Day 18- Crucifix Hold

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Day 19- Cyr Lift

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With each lift I’m finding more and more to add to my armoury, I’ll be a weapon of mass destruction soon!!

Here are the lifts from the last week:

Day 8 Side Press

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Day 9 Plate Grip

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Day 10 One Arm Clean and Jerk

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Day 11 Kneeling Clean and Press

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Day 12 Reverse Clean

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Day 13 Reeves Lift

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There are 27 more lifts to go and I’m gonna give each one a crack!!

Over the years I’ve come across most of the lifts that are on the list, I’ve either read about them, seen pics or seen peoples attempts on the internet. They are all lifts that have played their part in the history of lifting. Most of them are still used in competition, see IAWA or USAWA, of BWLA-Odd Lift Category. Despite the lifts still being used in certain competitions they have pretty much fallen off the radar of most fitness enthusiasts and even out of the grasp of a lot of strength athletes.

Part of this 40 Day Challenge is about exposing myself to lifts that I haven’t come across before and about finding out the validity of the lifts for my own and my clients strength programmes.

Most of these lifts came about before fitness or strengths machines. Many of them were essentially a means of lifting, picking, pulling, pushing or pressing a weight or weighted object. Many of the athletes who performed these lifts were pioneers of strength training. Most of the lifts today are named after their major practitioners. Each lift has a history and unique story and each will be told in part as this challenge unfolds.

My rules for the Challenge:

-            My list of 40 Odd Lifts is numbered from 1-40 in no particular order.

-             The Lifts are chosen by random (Colleagues are to be asked on the day to pick a number between 1 and 40). The only time I’ll ask a colleague to pick an new lift is if there are two similar lifts on consecutive days (this is to spare boredom, those having a look at what I’m doing and mine!).

-             The Lifts have to fit in with my current training and will be performed at the end of my normal sessions.

-             A daily REP Max is to be set on each of the lifts

-             There is to be no practice of the lift until the day of performing the lift.

That’s about it.

It’s been just over a week since I started (and since I started writing this)! The following are the Lifts that I’ve had a go at thus far:

Hack Squat

Sotts Press

Pull Over Press

Arthur Lift

Single Leg Dead Lift

Anderson Lift

Pressing Snatch Balance (I called it a heaving one- I was wrong!)

I’ve been compiling my thoughts on the lifts and a brief history/ about section on each. I’ll get the first part posted this weekend and put something up daily.

Enjoy!! They’ve been fun so far

Last Saturday my better half Jos and myself travelled down to Cardiff to spend a days training with Dafydd Dennis in his newly opened Gym: Crossfit Cardiff.

Dav is a Crossfit Level 1 Trainer as well as EKI and OWLI Instructor. His business partner John Hares is also an EKI. I first met Dav when he attended our very first OWLI course back in 2008. Since then we’ve been in touch and Dav has helped Jos and myself learn some of the basic yet skilled Crossfit movements such as Double Unders and Muscle Ups on rings.

Dav is a paramedic and former marine, he also placed 5^th in the UK and Ireland Sectionals and 15^th in the European Regionals in 2010. These places mean Dav can lay claim to being the 5^th Fittest man in the UK and Ireland and the 15^th Fittest in Europe, places Dav hopes to improve upon in 2011. Over the last year Dav’s been putting in the hard yards and working on his weaknesses. The Crossfit Open commences on the 15^th March and Dav looks fairly ready.

Davs in Action

When I say Crossfit Cardiff is newly opened I mean brand spanking- last Saturday the 19^th Feb marked 2 weeks. I was meant to go down for the opening on the 5^th February but we had an OWLI course on the same day so couldn’t get there.

The train left at 8am from London Paddington and I was starting to get a little nervous, you see Dav is one fit and highly conditioned dude and I wasn’t too sure what was in store for the afternoon. The only clue I’d got was from the night before when Dav suggested that we pack our lifting shoes so we could put some heavy stuff above our heads, this could mean only one thing: Snatch, Clean and Jerk!

Dav picked us up from Central Cardiff train station and we went straight to his “Box”. When we arrived there was already 2 of Dav’s members working hard mid workout. Dav gave us a brief tour of his facility and we had a brief discussion about what we were going to get up to. We decided that Workout 1 would be all about Snatches.

After a brief warm up and weightlifting tech practice it was time to get started. I’ve been struggling with my Snatch for the last few months, in fact ever since last September when I ran a bloody marathon, my lifting hasn’t been anywhere near where it was. Anyway it feels like it has been getting slowly back over the last few sessions. Dav told me that he was nearly making 90kg in the Snatch but just hasn’t been holding it at the bottom whereas I’ve not even been getting under 80kg at the moment let alone holding it or standing up with it!

Well it must have been the company, with Dav dropping under the bar like greased lightning all of a sudden I remembered how to get under the bar! I may have missed 80kg 4 or 5 times and missed 82.5kg but at least I was missing at the bottom! The next step is to make sure I’m solid on the ground and push up against the bar- it’s still progress.

After Snatches I had a play around with Muscle Ups. I managed 5 in a row and unbroken this is a personal best!! (it must have been the venue and the company again). It was then time for lunch.

At lunch we met up with Pete Rankin from Hells Kettlebells and the Boatshed TC. Pete was joining us for a few workouts in the afternoon. After some grub it was time to get back to the gym and get stuck in again.

Workout 2 was different for each of us. Dav and Jos did a 5 sets of 10 Back Squats with each set of 10 being timed. Their weights were 100kg and 50kg respectively. I Clean and Jerked and made my way up to 100kg. We all took approximately 20minutes for a break and then it was time to go again.

Workout 3 was half of a Crossfit workout called “Nate”. We only did half as we went for 10 minutes instead of the prescribed 20. “Nate” is 2 Muscle Ups on rings, 4 Handstand Press Ups and 8 Crossfit Ketlebell Swings with 32kg for the 10minute period. Pete and myself managed just over the 5 rounds whereas Dav got a massive 11+ rounds. This was hard on the shoulders, I reasonably happy though as I got through all muscle ups unbroken and these I’ve only just learnt. The Handstand Push Ups were what murdered me.

After another brief rest and play about it was time for the final workout of the day. Workout 4 was another variation of a Crossfit workout. We performed a variation of a workout called Helen. Helen is 3 rounds for time of Run 400m, 21 Kettlebell Swings, 12 Pull Ups. As we’d already performed Swings Dav felt Box Jumps would be a good alternative to the Swings, so workout 4 was 3 rounds of: run 400m, 21 Box Jumps, 12 Pull Ups. Well if I wasn’t already knackered this workout well and truly finished me off! It took Dav under 7minutes Pete just under 10 and it nearly took me 12 minutes! Wow I’ve got some work to do

After the final workout and a protein shake it was time to catch the train back to London. All in all it was a thoroughly enjoyable as well humbling day of training with Dav and Pete. I want to thank Dav for his hospitality. If you are ever in or about Cardiff it’s definitely worth heading down for a workout or two.

Keep an eye out for an upcoming interview with Dav.

In 2010 we had over 40 competitors from all over Europe competing in the Jerk and Snatch. There were teams from Germany, Wales, Ireland and Slovenia. In 2011 we plan on making it even bigger. With over 12 weeks to train and get yourselves ready people there really isn’t any reason why you shouldn’t be competing!

If you’ve ever thought about entering a Kettlebell Sport Competition then this is your chance.

What is a Biathlon Competition?

The Biathlon is a two event competition. The two events are the Jerk and the Snatch. Men compete with 2 bells in the Jerk and women compete with 1 bell in the Jerk with one switch/ change permitted. The Snatch for both men and women is a one hand Snatch with one change/ switch permitted.

Basic Rules

For both lifts there is a maximum of 10 minutes allowed.

In the Jerk the bell/s move from the rack position to the overhead lockout/ fixation position and must not be lowered back to the rack position until the judge has counted/ judged the repetition. The bells must not touch the shoulders or touch the ground. Once the bells have touched the ground the event is finished.

In the Snatch the bell moves from a hang position to the overhead lockout/ fixation position in one uninterrupted movement. The bell cannot touch any part of the shoulder or the body and must not be pressed out. If the bell is pressed out or not fixated on three consecutive  repetitions then the set is terminated. There is one change of hands permitted. Once the bell is on the ground the set is terminated.

How do I start training for the Competition?

If you’ve been training with bells the next step is to start performing timed sets. If you can get to 5 minutes in the Jerk at this stage and 6minutes (3minutes each hand) in the Snatch then you have plenty of time to get yourself ready for 10 minutes of each event with the same size bell or even to progress to a heavier bell. The objective is to find a pace that you are comfortable to Jerk for 5 minutes 6-10 reps per minute is a good starting point. From here try and increase your time until you get to minutes. The same applies in the Snatch.

What size bells?

For the men we will have the following categories: 20kg; 24kg; 28kg; 32kg

For the women we will have the following categories: 12kg; 16kg

Get involved people. There is plenty of time to get yourselves ready and there is also plenty of information out there, including info on this site as to how you can train for the comp.

We’ll be giving you plenty of tips in the weeks leading up to the comp. So stay tuned.

Kettlebell Snatches have been somewhat of a trial for me.

In the last year at the Trojans we’ve hosted 3 Kettlebell Sport competitions. During these competitions my Snatch has progressively gotten worse. In May ’09 I managed 100 reps, this was 45 on my left and 55 on my right. To be honest this was quite embarrassing- I teach this exercise and I had people I’ve taught to Snatch kicking my arse!

We had another competition in March this year and while I managed 78 Jerks which is reasonable this time I only managed a total of 103 Snatches where I only got 40 on my left!! I did better when I used to just bash them out. Some of this is down to a little performance anxiety I end up doing worse when competing than in training, however I still only manage 54/54 in training, this hasn’t progressed in a couple of years!

It’s not like I haven’t put the time in. I’ve trained with the Trojans every Thursday night at 8pm and Snatched on days in between these weekly sessions. Whilst my Snatch numbers were going backwards I was watching Tim Joseph’s and Katarina’s Snatch numbers go from strength to strength. What made it worse is that the harder I tried and the more I Snatched- at one stage I was Snatching everyday- the worse I was getting!! This was part of the problem, even though I was doing more I was just reinforcing bad patterns and technique.

One of the main problems was that I wasn’t able to watch myself. If I had have seen what I was doing before now I probably would have been able to make some adjustments for the good. When I did film myself just before I went to Slovenia to train with Gregor Sobocan I was amazed at how bad I was! I was pulling with my arm and shoulders and was hardly utilising proper swing and pull technique. There were a lot of other things going on, but this was a good start point to be able to make a change.

When I visited Gregor he made me work on my swing and pull for a while. Next Gregor got me to practice my overhead lockout position. This is something that I have major problems with particularly on my left. My lockout is the reason why I quit on my left arm- my shoulder, elbow and hand, in fact my whole left arm go tingly and numb. When I was in my teens I had both gleno-humeral and acromio-clavicular dislocations of my left shoulder so getting it in the correct positions can prove difficult.

Gregor noticed my difficulty and pain overhead and made a suggestion: instead of trying to get the bell and my arm in tight and over the line of my hip (line of gravity- path of least resistance and all that), I should try and move my hip slightly to the side so that my hip is directly under the bell. GENIUS!! He then prescribed a 6 minute Snatch set. This on it’s own is not a problem 3minutes is about the maximum that my left can last. What is a problem is that he also prescribed that I keep it to 15 reps a minute- this was the problem at 15rpm there is a lot of time in lockout. It may not seem like much but I generally cope with 17-18rpm up to the 3minute mark better than at 15rpm.

I told Gregor this, he just replied that with what he had just shown me with both my swing and pull and more importantly with my lockout I should have no problems with 3minutes each hand. He was right! For the first time ever I was able to stay at 15rpm and go for 3minutes on my left arm before switching to my right. This felt great and more importantly I actually felt like I could have lasted longer. This wasn’t to be as the rest of the weekend was Long Cycle focus. However I now felt confident that I would now be able to improve.

That was now just over 6 weeks ago. I’ve now since Snatched up to 138 reps, 69 each hand in 9minutes, I’ve also managed 9 and a half minutes but wasn’t counting. I now also vow to film myself whenever I can!

I’ll be getting footage over the next couple of days.

The first goal is 75/75 in 10 minutes. Then I’ll drop back to less time whilst trying to increase my RPM, with the goal of achieving 100reps each arm before I move up to the 32kgs! I tried working at 20rpm last Sunday with the 24′s and managed 6minutes which gave me 60/60, this was tough, getting to 100/100 will be no mean feat.

I’ll keep you posted.