Al had to miss this class due to meetings, and so did I. However, he sent out the WOD, so I'm posting it for everyone else. You'll need a barbell and a pair of dumbbells, but it's pretty much just business as usual (well, by CrossFit standards).
Be mindful of your back when doing the cleans and the thrusters, since you don't want to tweak your back. Just make sure to keep a good lumbar curve while you're doing those.
WoD
As Many Rounds As Possible (in 12 minutes) of:
- 8 power cleans
- 8 dumbbell thrusters
- 8 V-ups
Exercises
- Power Cleans
A single rep of a power clean is essentially a weighted squat with some hand motions thrown in. This exercise is meant to be done with barbells, so if you feel comfortable using that weight, go for it. If you aren't comfortable with that weight or the technique using a bar, switch to a pair of dumbbells. Remember, just make sure that you're comfortable with the form with whatever you use.
To begin with, put the weight on the ground in front of you (this is different than the "high hang" where you start with the weight near your thighs). Squat down to grab the weights, but remember to face forward and keep your chest facing forward. As you stand up, shrug your shoulders aggressively. I know it sounds silly, but it should be an *aggressive* shrug. You really want to build some momentum in that motion. However, keep your arms locked as you're doing this, or you'll end up doing more of a curl. If you need to make sure you've got it down, practice just that part of it a few times.
The next step, starting from the shrugged shoulder position, is to quickly bring the dumbbells up to about chest level and squat down at the same time. If you were to watch the path the weights travel, it should be completely vertical. If the weights travel in an arc away from your body, you're doing it wrong. Your hands don't lift the weight as much as they adjust themselves to hold the weight differently. At the end of this motion, you should have your palms facing away from your body, as if you were "racking" the dumbbells near your chest/clavicle.
You can almost think of it as letting go of the weight in midair, and positioning your body underneath the weight so that you end up in a squat with the dumbbells at your chest. Don't actually let go of the weight, that can be all sorts of bad. However, you'll find that because it's a quick squat down, you're pretty much jumping into it. At the same time, your hands will suddenly shoot up to hold the weight at your chest.
As always, keep a good lumbar curve. You don't want to bend over as you do this. If you do it wrong repeatedly or with a heavy enough weight, your lower back will pay for it. Again, practice just the squat motion a few times so that it feels natural.
Lastly, just stand up while holding the weight at your chest. Once you've stood all the way up, you can drop the weights back down to the ground to start over. That's the end of a single rep. Now all that's left is to put it all together in a smooth motion.
- Dumbbell Thrusters
Grab a pair of dumbbells; everyone uses at least 10lbs but there are also usually several people who use 15lb dumbbells. Start with the dumbbells at your shoulders with your palms facing outward away from your body (if you were looking in a mirror, you'd see your palms).
Do an air squat so that your thighs end up parallel to the ground; if you can "break parallel," that's even better. As you come up, press the weights over your head, until your arms are fully extended. Push the dumbbells straight up & down, since any horizontal motion will put undue stress on your shoulders.
Bring the dumbbells back to the “racked” position to finish the rep. For this, you can actually make it a smooth motion, and go straight into the next squat instead of stopping at starting position. This is fine so long as you fully extend the dumbbells, bring the weight back down before you start your next squat, and keep a good curve on your lower back the whole time.
- V-Ups
Lie on your back, putting our hands parallel to the ground "above" your head (if you were standing, they’d be directly over your head). Lift your legs off the ground and bring your torso up at the same time to touch your toes. In essence, your body makes a "V" shape. Go back to lying on your back to finish the rep. Be careful about slamming your legs into the ground when you finish the rep, that can hurt your lower back. Some people call these "jack knives," if that helps at all.
Scale down: Bend your knees as your bring your lower body up. You only have to touch your knees this way
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