Snatches!

September 22, 2008 · Filed Under work out of the day

Increasing work capacity across broad time and modal domains

Whenever the “what is CrossFit?” question comes up, the above headline is a very clear and concise definition – but you can’t stop there – you’ll be forced to elaborate, the statement serves as the perfect foundation for further discussion.

What’s a great example? How about one of the best examples – Snatches!

WOD – Isabel

30 snatches
- Men RX 135 lbs
- Men scale 95 lbs
- Men noob 75 lbs
- Men beginner 45 lbs and less

Christian’s time: 7:56 – 75 lbs

Christian says, “Snatches are tough. Keeping count for 30 is tough. Not counting drops is tough. …all this at only 75 pounds. Snatches are definitely the most technical of all the Olympic lifts, but the amount of work* performed is huge, thus, the amount of power** generation is also a factor.

* Work is defined as
Work = Load x Distance

** Power is defined as:
Power = Work(Load x Distance)/Time

If you can perform the same work, for more repetitions, in the same amount of time, you are said to be increasing your power. Similarily, if you can perform increased work (i.e. increased load) in less time, you are said to have increased power output.

This is one of the key concepts behind CrossFit and basis to functional fitness.

Tags: olympic lifts, snatch, What is Crossfit?