#overhead squats

And it not the reason y'all might think. Nasty creatures. We did ( over the bar Burpees and overhead snatchgrip squats ) 21/21rep 3min rest ,add weight and 18/18rep 3min rest and finally add weight 12/12reps. It it just aches to sit upright

Strength: Snatch + overhead squat (1+2)

2x1 63#, then every 90s for 6 rounds: 1 at 63#, 1 at 73#, 2 at 83#, 1 at 93#, 1 at 103#

Accessory: Snatch grip RDL: 3x7 103#

Matched my 1RM snatch, and it felt easy. Technique work is definitely helping.

WOD: 15 minute EMOM:

Minute 1: Handstand shoulder taps (4/side)

Minute 2: 4 pistols /side

Minute 3: 4 Bulgarian split squats /side (rd 1 unweighted, 2 and 3 w/20# DBs)

Minute 4: 5 plank presses off a 24 in box

Minute 5: 15s side plank per side

Overhead squats (3x3)

3 x 45 kg

3 x 45

3 x 45

Bar was taken off racks for these. Mannn my shoulder was not liking these at all! It took a while to find a grip width where everything felt stacked and secure overhead. It finally felt a little better on the third set lol. The weight was good too - one that was uncomfortable, but not pushing it to the point where technique deteriorated.

WOD (20 min cap)

For Time

21-15-9:

Box jumps (20″)

Power cleans (40kg)

15-12-9:

Row cals

Front squats (40kg)

12-9-6:

Lateral bar bupees

Push jerks (40kg)

Completed: 18.10 mins

I was in a puddle throughout this whole workout - it worked up a good sweat!

Recycled most of the box jumps, it was my fitness that forced me to slow down lol. The power cleans were good, first round went 10/5/6, second 8/7 and last was unbroken.

The row throughout the rounds was good - just tried to focus on driving through the legs. Front squat reps were divided 10/5, second 6/6 and last 5/4. Wanted to hold on for all 9 but legs were not having it!

Partner WOD (Share the reps)

For Time

60 Overhead squats (30kg)

120 cal bike

50 Power snatches (35kg)

100 Box jump overs (20″)

40 Squat snatches (40kg)

80 cal bike

Completed: 31.00 mins

Got the idea to do this one from Helen who instagrammed her box’s wod for the day, but just adapted some of the movements to add a bit of variety.

Partnered up with Sam, and it honestly was so bloody hot and felt claustrophobic in our little workout space inside! I was struggling to breathe and became a sweaty mess which meant there were some unnecessary failed reps where the bar slipped out of my hands. I need to get some chalk!

I was moody going into this one ‘cos I didn’t want to do it. Full disclosure, I had a packet of chips and a bottle of cider about an hour beforehand then was like UHH WHAT when Sam asked if I wanted to workout together lol. But I sucked it up and did it because something is better than nothing.

The overhead squats were hard but they got better as the reps went on. We split the reps into sets of 10, and my hands were sliding wider and wider throughout my turns because of the sweat... Ewww.

The bike is always hard lol. We split reps up into 15 cals each for the 120, then 20 cals each for the last 80.

Power snatches were harder than I thought they would be, especially coming off the bike. I started off with touch & go sets of 5, then with some I had to break sets into 3/2 because I was so gassed. Once when I stopped after 3, Sam went to pick up his bar and I glared at him and yelled out LEAAAAVVVEEEE ITT lol. Poor Sam.

Box jump overs were sweet. We split total reps up into sets of 10 each. I jumped all reps and stepped down over the other side to save my legs.

Week 1 / Day 2

Power cleans 

3 x 60 kg

3 x 60

3 x 60

3 x 60

3 x 60

Felt a little heavier than I expected. Reps weren’t touch & go, just made sure not to rest too long before getting into the next rep.

Push jerks 

3 x 55 kg

3 x 55

3 x 55

3 x 55

3 x 55

Taken off racks, these were fine.

Overhead squats

3 x 55 kg

3 x 55

3 x 55

3 x 55

3 x 55

Taken off the racks and did this EMOM style so it only took 5 minutes. My wrists and shoulders did not like this movement one little bit, even with the lighter weights. It’s as if it’s been years since I’ve done any of these!

WOD - 5 Rounds for Time

20 Dbl DB alternating lunges

200m run

60 Double unders

Completed: 18.25 mins

This was hard! Trained with friends today.

Lunges - 17.5kg DBs. All reps done unbroken, reps felt a little sluggish though.

200m run - The gym we train in doesn’t have easy access to the run (you have to walk about 100m from the entrance to the gym door) - we just ran shuttles inside the gym up to about 200m. They were tough!

In CrossFit we use the front squat, back squat and overhead squat time and time again, there are other variations but in this blog I will talk about these three squats, their differences and how the demands of each will influence your athletic performance in different ways.

The most obvious difference between these three squats is the bar placement. In the front squat the bar is placed in the front rack position (on the shoulders with the elbows high), in the back squat the bar is placed on the upper back, and in the overhead squat the bar is held overhead with the arms locked out.

A well executed squat, regardless of the type, requires that the bar stays centred over the middle of the foot throughout the lift. Because of the different bar placements, each of the squats places different demands on the body.

Front Squat vs. Back Squat 

In the front squat the torso must stay upright in order to keep the bar over the mid foot and stop the bar rolling forwards off of the shoulders. In the back squat the torso doesn’t need to be as upright and you will have more of a forward lean:

The mechanics of the front squat place greater demands on the quads, abdominals and knees and place less stress on the hamstrings and glutes compared to the back squat. In the back squat the back angle does not need to be as vertical as in the front squat to keep the bar above the middle of the foot due to the bar placement, and the activation of the powerful muscles in the glutes, hamstrings and hips means that you will be able to lift significantly more weight in the back squat than in the front squat. On average the front squat will be 70-85% of the back squat. The bar placement of the back squat means the hips can sit further back placing less stress on the knees and requiring less ankle mobility than the front squat. These elements combined with the bar and hand position allows us to drive more force up in to the bar which is why we can handle heavier loads in the back squat. The back squat an excellent tool for developing strength, especially in the posterior chain. 

The front squat requires greater mobility in the shoulders, wrists and ankles than the back squat. In CrossFit, we carry the bar on our shoulders and use the front squat position in a lot of other movements such as the clean, power clean, thrusters, push press, push jerk and so on. Working to improve and build a strong position in the front squat will carry over and help to improve all of these movements and more!

The Overhead Squat

Usually the most frustrating of the three squats discussed here, the overhead squat is unrivalled in exposing weaknesses in mobility, flexibility, balance, strength and coordination. The overhead squat places much greater demands on the body, you’ll need flexibility and strength in the shoulders, hips, glutes, hamstrings and adductors in order to execute a good overhead squat. Taking the time to iron out these weaknesses and really working to improve your overhead squat will pay off massively in many other areas in CrossFit. The overhead squat is at the heart of the snatch of course, but its reach goes beyond this one movement. The overhead squat will help you identify the mobility issues you need to work on, it is a fantastic movement for developing midline stability and it will help you develop great shoulder stability.  Keeping the bar in balance during an overhead squat and maintaining good form can be extremely challenging, but persevere with this movement and over time you will get comfortable squatting with the bar overhead.

Each of the three squats have their benefits and tricky areas, but it is important to focus on improving all three of these squats making sure you have balance as doing so will improve your overall performance not just in the lifts, but your overall performance in CrossFit.

So how can I improve my squats?

here’s yesterday’s workout, and then i’m all caught up!

i definitely did NOT make it through 6 rounds, i got halfway through round 4 before the time cap [28 mins i think] ran out. i was still feeling tired and woozy and was trying not to push myself.

200m run: a run is a run. kept them slow to recover.

12 OH squats: 45 lbs, and i snatched them up to get the first round instead of power snatching and then doing them. the snatches felt very good and i was able to keep my squats low and even.

18 KB f8 uppercuts: did these at 20 lbs. this is one of my favorite kb movements!

Your workout for today is:

Movement & Skills: Overhead Squats

A) Overhead Squats

Work on form before you load:

 #1: 8 reps  #2: 8 reps  #3: 8 reps  #4: 8 reps  #5: 8 reps

B) Rowing & Recovery under stress

In teams of 2, complete 10 rounds of:

18/15 Cal row (or bike)

- hold double 32/20kg KB in Front Rack Position, you are not allowed to drop the KB's - each completes 5 rounds of rowing