Iron Cardio: Week 2

12/8
Classic - 26 sets in 20 min.

12/10
Clasic + Chinup x 3

Classic - 28 sets
Chinup - 42 reps

I wanted to see if I can induce some bicep and upper back hypertrophy by doing chinups at least 40 total reps. I was able to handle the volume, but it took about 50 min. of training to do all this work. I don't want to spend that much time on training all the time. I don't the Iron Cardio manual recommends it either. I think it would be better to wait for my strength and endurance to improve. As strength improves, each set will take less effort to execute. As endurance improves, less rest will be required between sets. Thus over time I should be able to do more sets in one session without increasing training time.

12/12
Classic + Snatch + Chinup x 2 in 30 min.

Classic + Chinup x 2 - 14 sets
Chinup - 14 reps

I decided to try doing full snatches instead of half snatches. I needed the confidence that I can handle the eccentric phase of the movement. It's critical that the KB travel down a nearly vertical arc. If it travels on an outward arc instead, it could injure the lower back. My technique felt smoother on the right side. I did an extra snatch on the left side because on the next to last rep, I messed up with the KB handle getting caught on my palm again. I tried to observe why the snatch felt smoother on the right side, beside the grip being consistenly loose enough to allow the KB to rodate. It seems like on my right side I'm just better at "looking at my watch" on the way up, and leading with my elbow to drop the KB. However, I might have a tendency to flip the KB up and out, which should be corrected. Overally, full snatch has a higher energy expenditure than half snatch, and this seems to be reflected in how many sets I was able to do, compared to when I did the half snatch last week. I needed more rest between sets.
This video shows the wristwatch cue for the concentric phase of the snatch:



This video has nice tips for the eccentric phase of the snatch:



I'm thinking of doing these Iron Cardio variations next week. I'll do some sets of chinups after the sessions to try to compensate for the pronation-dominant work. I'm not giving up on practicing the snatch. I just want to try these Iron Cardio options which I haven't tried yet, without the complication that would be introduced by also including the snatch option.

• Mon: Classic (Clean+Press+Squat) - 40 sets
• Wed: Classic with Alternating 20kg and 24kg - 30 min.
• Fri: Classic Traveling 2s - 30 min.