We Olympic weightlifters prefer to always have a bar in our hands. We're like babies with a pacifier - a bar in the hand makes us feel all warm and fuzzy. So it should come as no surprise that this article details a warm-up for the Olympic lifts, squats, and deadlifts that uses the barbell, exclusively.
A good warm-up should follow a logical pattern and address three key areas: mobility, activation, and movement prep.
Similarly, our three-phase Olympic lifting warm-up will have mobility, activation, and movement prep phases.
This warm-up is done in three parts, and each part should be performed for 2-3 sets. The rep scheme for each portion should be about 5-8 reps per exercise, except for the movement prep portion, which should only be performed for 5 reps per exercise.
The four specific areas that we want to mobilize in the Olympic lifts are:
A lifter that doesn't spend time mobilizing these areas could have problems executing the lifts with any semblance of good technique. A lack of mobility in these areas can lead to compensatory patterns that could cause injury.
One note about this mobility piece: while there are equal or better mobility drills that can be done without the bar for the hip, t-spine, and shoulder, I argue that there isn't a better mobility solution for the ankle than the above drill.
This drill is specific and effective for squatting. Let's just admit that nobody's ankle mobility has ever improved through "wall ankle mobs."
The activation phase is intended to stack stability around the newfound mobility. For that we're going to look to stabilize at the pelvis, trunk, and shoulder specifically.
Mobility with no stability is just a floppy mess. As you go through this phase of the warm-up, make sure to feel yourself activate (or contract) at points where stability is required.
Here you'll do three movements, each with a specific area of activation.
The final piece of the warm-up puzzle is to start performing the movements at a lower intensity. Like a baseball pitcher, this is your "bullpen" session before hitting the mound, but without the silly socks.
The movement prep phase will advance in both range of motion and technical difficulty by starting from an easy short range of motion and progressing to a full lift. This allows you to practice every piece of the Olympic lift.
Life's too short to spend half an hour doing meaningless warm-up drills that do nothing but sap your energy and annoy the daylights out of you. If you have the heart of an Olympic lifter - the type of heart that only feels good when there's a barbell in your hand - then give this bar warm-up a shot.
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