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Off the Floor

You Are Hyperextending Instead of Bracing

The fault

Getting so focused on a tight back that you hyperextend and go soft in front.

Why it happens

A hyperextended back feels tight but it delays and blunts the hips. From that position the pelvis cannot close fast at the finish, so the extension comes late and weak.

The fix

Get tight in front as well as behind. Brace the abdomen so the ribcage sits down, not flared. The back stays strong, the hips stay free to snap, and the finish arrives on time.

About this fix
Originally published as "Tight in Front", part of The Lifting Fix, the free weekly technique series Danny Lehr started filming over a decade ago. He gave every episode away then, and they are still free here. Danny Lehr competed in Olympic weightlifting from 2010 to 2019 and won the 2019 Masters World Cup. More about Danny Lehr.
Transcript

go ahead and you can be really hyper extended and you're struggling to know what that feels like so go into position one, through positions and hyper extension down below the knee and you just really struggle to feel it okay so go into the bar now so simple fix just to know what it feels like I just had him grab his hand and he's gonna take his thumb and he's gonna find his xyphoid process that's just the pointy thing at the bottom of your wrist the thumb right on the bottom of that and then pick you straight down and then he's going to squeeze tight so he can feel his abs. Makes him lean, makes him feel like a man. Now holding it there, bend your knees a little bit, pretend like you have a bar in your hands and then go to that position one and now down to two and make sure it's tight and then back up to one. back down to the floor where the read.

You notice he's not hyper-sent, he's staying tight. Up to the knees and then all the way up the entire time he's maintaining that. Alright, so now when he moves that hand down the leg, go ahead and grab the bar. He knows what it feels like to stay tight.

So now go ahead and get tight and then through your positions. and they're back up to one, or the floor, yeah whatever. Good. Another thing you could do is you could do a whole thing of tape and tape and connect them and they kind of feel a little more.

Just that little bit of touch and going through positions help people to understand staying tight all the way around. Alright, thank you Austin, thank you buddy, thank you Hampton Virginia and across the students.

More off the floor fixes

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Your Back Lights Up When You Lower the Bar

Pain or a hot, fatigued low back on the way down rather than on the way up.

Off the Floor2:18

Your Hips Rise Before Your Shoulders

Off the floor the hips shoot up first and the shoulders lag behind.

Off the Floor2:31

Your Upper Back Is Loose at the Setup

No tightness through the upper back before the bar leaves the ground.

Off the Floor1:54

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