Time to highlight another useful piece of equipment.
Staircase Pulling Blocks
You have probably seen them in Russian or Asian weightlifting videos (or if you are lucky your gym already has those).
Update 15.08.2015: Here are (rough) measurements of the one they use in the Chekhov training base.
See for example Vasiliy Polovnikov using them for 190kg x3 Snatch Pulls.
Use Case Snatch Pulls
- to isolate the top part of the pull
- to help if you are cutting your pull short (start to go down early)
Bonus: These are not only very space efficient, but also easy to make.
Update: Greg Everett build some and made a Step by Step Guide.
Now you might say “this will probably bend my bar”. Maybe, if you repeatedly drop a fully loaded bar onto it. As you can see in the videos below, you lower the barbell gently. So don’t be an idiot or use two.
Below are the measurements of one of the many blocks from the Russian gym Igor Lukanin trains in (thanks to Igor for taking the photos).
Measurements
Not set in stone obviously.
Modifications
Put some rubber and a little barrier on top of each step to prevent the barbell from rolling off.
Update: Photo of the Russian Team with a Metal Staircase Block
Videos of them in Use
In the background of Nadezda’s 110kg Snatch x2 video Olga Zubova uses hers.
See Andrei Kozlov using them here.
Check out Nadezda Evstyukhina using them.
Julia Konovalova even does 100kg Power Snatches off them.
Update: Hookgrip also got a good shot of Viktor Getts using them.
[The block] is used to force a controlled descent which, according to Viktor, helps to strengthen the back.
Update: Here one of Vladimir Safonov’s athletes (Ekaterina Katina) accidentally drops the from overhead.
Nice, but be aware you never drop a bar on one of those! I have seen a bar being thrashed, and it was an Eleiko!
RIP
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwXhnujtkQo
I have seen this 7000 times and every time i am amazed by the guy in the background that has no reaction at all to what just happened infront of him.
Hahaha
My critique would be that you could never drop a loaded bar and that you would never use anything more than the first step or two.
That’s why I said “you lower the barbell gently”. These are not for max Power Shrugs.
In the first video, anyone have an idea of what is underneath the rubber on the “platform” that the woman is snatching on? It looks like a thin layer of something familiar that I cant put my finger on.
I went to one of the seminars put on at Waxman’s by Norwood Weightlifting and Vasiliy Polovnikov. The reason for for this type of block is to “feel” the energy of the bar and for timing. It gives you a stopping point and is not meant to be a load bearing block. They discussed a lot of rhythm implementation and I am sure a lot of people have seen videos of Klokov doing repetitive snatch high pulls…this would be a tool they would use for such movements. This was my take away, I don’t want to put words in their mouths.
Here’s what I have made
Nice!