Bottomed Out

Thursday, March 8;

The SOTS press is a wrecker! It highlights strengths as well as technical weaknesses. Jerry pulled this nasty little movement out today. In some respects I've come so far, but in others I'm still so weak!

Before my shoulder injury, I loved the SOTS press. I was able to press the 45lb barbell while in squatting position, but it always felt a little creepy on my shoulder. I never tried a max effort. This movement is extremely difficult for men, because it requires flexibility in the shoulders as well as through the legs. The idea is to keep a perfectly upright torso, while in a squatting position.. not easy to do. I'm lucky because I've always been flexible in both my shoulders and squat. Since the shoulder injury, I've realized that I'm actually too flexible in my shoulders. That means when I put weight in an overhead position my shoulders have a tendency to dislocate. Sounds nice, huh!? I used to be able to manage a decent sized load overhead, but these days I'm much weaker. The shoulder felt fine with a simple PVC pipe, but the second I tried to press the 15lb barbell my shoulder gets that "I'm going to pop out feeling." Nasty.. let me tell you. So, I guess I can work within this position, but I'll have to start with REALLY light weights and move up in 1lb increments.

On a much more positive note, I've been working on squat depth and efficiency for the past several months. The SOTS press gave me a chance to see how much this has paid off. Jerry asked what I think about to get to the position. After thinking a little more about it, I've realized that I've changed several things about my squat position. First, when I'm receiving the bar in the squat position I feel the opposition of a push and pull. The push is in my rear. I'm thinking of bringing my butt in line with the rest of my spine... literally pushing it to my knees. At the same time, the opposing force is on the knees. Visualize someone putting their hands on the inside of your knees and pulling OUT and BACK.

The third change I've made with my squat is very small, but I think it's really helped with how I position my weight on my feet. I noticed a while ago that Jerry actually lifts his toes off the ground when he squats. I do that for every squat now. It's gotten to the point that I don't even realize that I'm doing it. Check out where my weight is in the picture above. Look at my feet. You should notice that the weight is on the outer part of my foot. It has to be because I've eliminated the support on the inside, which would be offered by my toes.. especially my big toe.

That's enough discussion about that!

Workout:

AMRAP in 20 minutes

10 SOTS presses w/ PVC

10 chair dips

10 ring rows

Total: 10 rounds

Had time for maybe one more set, but decided to stop for the shoulders sake.

Getting revved up for my first Crossfit Certification tomorrow! Wish me luck and many bruises!!!