i don't know how it could be any less important. do it. "learning" from 6" off the floor is dumb if the goal is getting good at snatching from 8.5".

After reading this article on startingstrength.com:

http://startingstrength.com/articles...ear_gibson.pdf

I ordered sleeves for my knees and my elbows plus wrist bandages to teach me not to bend my wrists on the squat. Elbows and knees always were a source of concern for me. I injured myself a lot lately. I hope wearing that kind of gear protects my health a little.

Why are you guys against them, just because they work your grip less than a mixed grip?

yes. Developing grip strength is an essential element of training and it's very useful.

Yeah but...when Ripple's himself says it's ok to use straps (as long as you do double overhand for warm-ups) if you're not gonna compete..but I guess it's better to use a mixed grip until it starts causing you problems with injuries.

he says to do so for the heavy sets when the grip becomes an issue so that it doesn't hold you back.

no he doesn't. he specifically leaves it to the trainee to decide and says they'll have a place in your program depending on "personal preference, flexibility, and training goals."

You can always start with the power-hang version of both PCs and snatch.

I am quite an O-noob, but I believe it is preferable to start that way.

OMG Head Asplode. A hang snatch. Pretty obvious now. I started with Hang cleans until I could do 135+ and realized power cleaning 135 is wayyyy easier than hang cleaning the same amount of weight.

A hang snatch. Wow. That's awesome. I'll will get on this tomorrow.

Oh, and for anther noob question.

Since I don't have bumper plates, I have to lower my power cleans a lot more carefully so I don't drop them, and I usually try to do it quickly. Would this make me a little stronger than someone who can power clean the same amount of weight with bumper plates who just drops them?

Marginally, perhaps. Also, marginally more prone to injury.

It made me more powerful. I also hurt my knee once. lol oops

shouldn't be that way, especially for beginners since it is often hard to get the bar into a good position for the second pull from the floor but very easy from the hang. you also get a pretty good stretch reflex in the hamstrings when lifting from the hang.

i find the hang pretty awkward at light weights but fine past 100lbs or so

I wouldn't call it "very easy", but it's definitely an order of magnitude easier to get about perfect.

My gym has a concept 2 and I've never used it or done any rowing, but I hear it's a decent way to warm up as well as work on ankle mobility (not sure where I remember reading this but I could def. used the help in this area).

There's just the tiny little keypad in front, what's the standard way to set things up I guess resistance wise? Also, is something like 3-5 minutes good enough to warm up before doing my mobility/foam-rolling stuff?

How do you breathe during press sets of 5? I breathe at the bottom, which means I also take a "break" there and thereby start every rep without the strech reflex, or what it's called. So far it's gone pretty well (63kg last time) but I wanna try to perfect my technique so I wont plateau unnecessary early. I know Rip says to just try what works best but I would like to know what you guys do.

Edit: Just read this at the SS wiki:

"A quick breath or two can be taken at either the top or the bottom, but you will find it most beneficial to breathe at the top and thus take advantage of the "stretch reflex" you get at the bottom."

Is this also the case as the weight gets high?

I noticed in the DVD that he also advocated breathing at the top there.

I have tried both ways and prefer breathing at the top for the stretch reflex. I don't know why Rip says more advanced lifters tend to breathe at the bottom, perhaps it used to have something to do with practicing for 1rm efforts for competition where you begin at the bottom.

edit: just reread that paragraph in SS and he says breathing at the bottom allows lifters the luxury of a 1-2 second break between heavy reps

when the weight gets high the bounce itself becomes more taxing (mainly on the abs) and hard to control.

a lot of it also depends on your lockout position. if you have flexible shoulders and your arms extend to straight or beyond, it is not very hard for you to hold the bar overhead for a second to breathe. my elbows do not allow my arms to extend straight, and i struggle to hold weight overhead which affects later reps. that and i never really had a problem starting from a dead stop, so i switched.

some people are immensely weak from a dead stop and it is close to the limiting factor on completing a set of 5 (if they can get a rep up the stretch reflex allows them to do many more reps of the same weight). though you could use this for reasoning to breath at either the top or bottom. breath at top because you can do more weight. breath at bottom because you suck at lifting from a dead stop and shouldn't exclude that ROM from your lift. dunno.

As long as the ROM is the same and no other muscles are recruited, breathing at the top makes sense in that case. More weight = more tension = good. If you were competing in a xfit total or something it would be smart to practice from a dead stop for a while though.

Maybe.

http://www.g2fitnessproducts.com/Pro...ars/aot-56.jpg

If i do dead lifts using this hexagon shaped bar is it any better or worse than using a normal olympic straight bar. reason i ask is because i struggle with proper form using the straight bar.

Those are trap bar DLs. Don't bother.

Post videos here as soon as possible. That's the best way to look for and correct any form errors before they become potential injuries at heavier weights.

[dtemp, sorry, deleted my own post]

I'm 32, skinny weak again after losing 35 pounds in the last 12 months through not eating so much ****. My only regular exercise is at least regular: 2-3 miles daily biking on flat ground to run my very hyper dog.

I'm very interested in SS, ordered the book, have a local gym and a desire to go get strong, but some beginner questions:

1. I had a back back hurt/screaming pain 3 weeks ago. First of its kind in years. Chiropractor said I compressed 4 vertebrae, but after 2 sessions, I don't even feel stiff a week after last treatment. Any reason for any precaution beyond starting low?

2. I am not very flexible, and for flat-heeled squats with arched back, my thighs aren't close to parallel to the ground. Should I focus on getting deep airsquats before bringing a bar into the picture? See also #1.

3. Will a stretching routine like this (http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/sh...2&postcount=20) 3 times a week get me below parallel in a foreseeable timespan? Is there a stretching/flexibility routine you'd rather recommend to a stiff-bodied lummox?

I'm willing to do the prep work, I'm happy to start with body-weight, and once I've done it a day or two I'll be happy to post videos.