Technique Thursday: Hips and Torso Raise Together

Today we are looking at the hips and torso when it comes to Olympic lifts.

Have you ever heard your coach mention the "stripper butt" after watching your lift? Were you a little confused afterwards? Who knows maybe flattered? ...depending on the person.

Well what they are referring to is your hips raising first during an lift. This causes the weight to shift forward, forces you to pull early, and effects your balance. Maybe you're unsure what this looks like. Check out the video of Andrew showing us his stripper butt. Please note this is somewhat of a dramatization.

What we are looking for is the hips and torso to raise together. The hips will raise but the angle of the torso will not change until the bar is brought to the hips and ready to launch above your head. See the next video of Andrew performing those same three movements.

How to avoid the stripper butt:

- Unless you can keep a good torso angle while pulling the bar quickly, do not rush the movement, do not rip the bar off the ground.

- Think about driving your legs into the floor to drive your chest away from your knees.

- Lower the weights and practice. Ask your coach to watch form or record yourself so you can see how you move.

Feel free to join our 7pm Oly Class on Thursdays. Tonight we covered a lot of great positions through out the movement to avoid the stripper butt. We also had a lot of "Ah Hah" moments when reviewing form.