Alternative to the Olympic Lifts

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Everyone has their own opinion and there always seems to be a great debate on whether or not the olympic lifts should be used for athletes. I still have mixed thoughts, and tend to flip flop between yes I like them and no I don’t like them. I am leaning towards not using the because there are better alternatives. The rational behind using olympic lifts stems from how athletic, strong, and explosive these athletes are. Coaches say, I want my athletes like that, so I must do what they do. I say wrong! Just because you see some Chinese Olympic lifter who has been doing them for 12 years clean 400 lbs and jump 36 inches doesn’t mean your athletes will reap the same benefits. You have to be very proficient in the olympic lifts in order to derive the same benefits. Which means you have to practice them a lot. Olympic lifts demand high technical mastery, which ends up taking away from the other myriad of qualities that athletes need to develop. However, I do like some variations of the olympic lifts like clean pulls from blocks, etc.

(Good Technique, however usually not what you see in collegiate weight rooms)

I break down the lifts into 2 phases, force production by triple extension and force absorption. Can they produce force and get triple extension? Second phase is force absorption by “the catch.”  Can they absorb the impact of the weight coming down on their shoulders and absorb the force? Some coaches say you don’t need to learn the catch unless you are competing, and I did not like that concept because I liked the force absorption aspect of the lifts.You cannot produce what you cannot absorb.

My problem with the olympic lifts and their variations, is I am looking for triple extension in the lifts, and I usually don’t see much of it in amateur athletes doing a typical power clean. They usually look awful. Weighted triple extension is what I am looking for…Thats it. I tested this out on myself, and video taped it. I have been self taught the olympic lifts and consider myself Okay at them, better than what you see most athletes. I cannot get triple extension every rep, every time, it is just too hard to focus on everything….”arms straight, hips through, shrug, oh yea triple extension.” To remedy this problem I like the idea of box jumps. You take any kid and tell them to jump on a box and stick the landing….triple extension every time.  Yes, its magic. You then give them a 20 lb weight and jump….weighted triple extension. Exactly what I am looking for…no technical cues for the athlete to focus on expect explosion. What I found as a better alternative to develop starting strength is a seated weighted box jump, where they sit on a box relax and explode up. Fast rate of force development, explosive, no counter movement, no guess work, and it’s measurable. I like Michael Boyle’s approach to where the athlete lands in the same position as they started. Not the alpha male approach of getting the highest height possible by any means possible. I tend to like the approach of replacing the Olympic lifts with box jumps.

The second phase, force absorption, I almost consider more important. Once again, most coaches have athletes catch in the athletic stance, which is okay. I understand it, but I don’t like it; the stress on the wrists and elbows, the awkward position. Usually front squats need to be added in order to teach the catch position before anything. Again this takes away from other qualities that could be developed during this time. And if your the coach that doesn’t like the catch, then I ask what are you doing to teach force absorption? You cannot produce what you cannot absorb. Your body will limit your power output if it cannot stabilize large, fast eccentric loading. I like to use drop jumps, ADA jumps, whatever you want to call it to teach power absorption. All you cue is to step off a box, land in an athletic stance, and stick the landing for 2-3 seconds showing me you can absorb the force of impact. Stay on the toes, with the butt back and hamstrings, glutes engaged. No awkward hand positions, nice athletic position, good force absorption every time, and it’s measurable by height of the box. If they cannot keep good posture, cannot hold the landing, or don’t feel it in their posterior chain they are doing it wrong, so regress them to a lower height.  Stay relaxed on the box and once you hit the ground there is a fast eccentric firing to tense up and absorb impact. So that takes care of the force absorption aspect of the lifts, being replaced by Altitude Drop Absorption jumps.

There is one more thing Id like to add and that is reactive ability. Olympic lifting does not really address this concept. This is the ability to switch from a fast eccentric action to explosive concentric with minimal time spent in the amortization phase. Since cleans, snatches, etc don’t really address this to a great extent that is another strike against them. A Reactive Squat, or Reactive Lunge teaches this ability. Drop into a squat, almost by a free fall (but under control), and pop back up. This sounds easy but actually feels much much different as you don’t get as much antagonistic firing of the muscles on the way up, and it is almost exclusively from the elastic recoil of the muscles, tendons, fascia, etc. Aim to be like a spring on the way up, and not muscle it up. Drop lunge is the same way, but harder since it is a unilateral exercise. I usually do not progress to this version until they have developed a good isometric/eccentric strength via drop lunge versions and isometic holds. Same principles apply, elastic recoil on the way up relaxed on the way down.

So how do you organize this into a workout? Just like you would cleans and the olympic lifts.Someone with a 24 in Vertical…

24″ Box Jump 5×3-5

24 ” ADA Jump 5×3-5

Rea Squat 5×3-5 <30% 1rm squat

Or you could Auto-regulate the workout until they cannot jump higher and/or stick the landings each time you raise it up an inch.

If you like the Olympic Lifts and coach it well, good for you. I have just found this to be easier, more applicable, and easier to understand (for both coach and athlete), which is why I tend to favor this approach more. I have to thank Wanna Get Fast and Evolutionary Athletics for these concepts.