Snatch and Clean & Jerk. Both of these movements are tested in WL and in the sport of Crossfit. Therefore this has led many to believe that traditional weightlifting training methods are the most effective regardless of the sport an athlete is training for and in contrast, athletes who have attempted the olympic lifts during Crossfit sessions, believe they possess the adequate training adaptations that will allow them to effectively hit 1 rep max attempts to the best of their athletic potential.
They are both wrong.
There are some obvious similarities between weightlfiting in the two sports, however there are a multitude of large differences and requirements between them, that demand completely different training stimulus'.
Their are three main differences, which we'll cover in this post. The first being force production. The sport of weightlifting is scored by the load of the barbell during one repetition. For the vast majority of Crossfit scored events, it requires multiple repetitions at a set load as quickly as possible; 'For Time'. Yes, we are aware there are Crossfit events that are scored by total load, but that's another story.
Training should mimic these requirements. Olympic lifting requires maximal effort during the lifts in training, even during lighter loads the speed of the barbell is usually a priority. Here we are developing the body's ability to apply maximal force.
However barbell cycling in Crossfit requires submaximal effort to maintain constant repetitions over a piece of conditioning. The less effort needed for each lift, is energy saved for later on in the workout. Crossfitters must be conditioned to apply just the right amount of force required to move the barbell efficiently but still allows them to conserve energy and keep their heart rate under control.
This is often demonstrated well when Olympic weightlifters attempt Crossfit workouts and struggle with high rep barbell pieces. Even though they are incredibly strong, they are conditioned to apply maximal force to each individual rep thus get fatigued extremely quickly.
Think of it this way, you have to perform 20 clean and jerks @50% of your max as quickly as possible, but you apply as much effort to every rep as you do to your one rep max attempts, you'd start struggling pretty quickly and it would impact your finish time drastically. Therefore the force production required for each sport varies greatly
Moving on, another difference between Weightlifting and Weightlifting in Crossfit is the testing metrics for 'weightlifting strength events'
As everyone knows and previously stated, in the sport of Weightlifting athletes have 3 attempts in each lift to establish their heaviest total. In crossfit however, it is rare that you will find a strength test that requires the athlete to perform lifts unfatigued. Strength events within competitions will usually require the max lifts to be performed pre-fatigued, either by a conditioning based workout placed directly beforehand, giving the athlete minimal time to recover before attempting lifts. Directly within a workout sandwiched between other movements or towards the end of a competition day thus systemically and locally fatigued.
Training and programming design should mirror these differences. Training for the sport of Weightlifting should be programmed around adequate recovery for 'heavy' days, where maximal effort is required for the main lifts. This will vary dependant on the individual athletes and their training tolerance, however it should be a considered factor for every athlete. Weightlifters training days will most likely be arranged by a corrective exercise, followed by a variation of snatch or clean + jerk, then squats/pulls or other variations of strength work, finally accessory based movements. It would be counterproductive to complete all of their accessories and heavy strength work before their main lifts, because being fresh is a priority.
However, Weightlifting in Crossfit should be trained slightly differently. Strength is obviously a requirement and should be trained at the start of some sessions to drive up raw strength numbers throughout the season. However as we've mentioned strength is usually tested prefatigued. So heavy snatch and clean + jerks should be practised in this state. Doing well in Crossfit based strength events is usually determined by how close an athlete can get to their 1RMs in a fatigued state. Building percentages across a training cycle towards the back end of sessions or straight after a conditioning piece helps close the gap between fresh 1RMs and sport specific workout 1RMs.
The third biggest difference between WL and WL for Crossfit is movement efficiency. Efficiency is defined as achieving maximum productivity with minimum wasted effort or expense. As the task for each sport differs, efficiency will also look different for each.
As stated multiple times previously the sport of WL is scored on the total load lifted. Thus training is centred around this, therefore efficient movement patterns would be based around applying maximal force to the barbell and utlising the correct and strongest muscle groups whilst taking advantage of extended ranges of motion to create more force in the pull or a deeper position when receiving the barbell.
In contrast, WL in Crossfit is most commonly scored around the speed at which multiple lifts can be completed, commonly within a piece of conditioning with other varied movements. Thus efficient movement here would be based around the quickest way the lift can be completed without creating too much fatigue that will slow the athlete down later in the workout whilst maintaining safe movement patterns to prevent injury.
For example, take the set up position for a clean and jerk. Optimal position for weightlifting requires an athlete to take time to follow a set routine that they are able to replicate to allow for consistency in their start position. To be fully braced, get their hips set in the correct position, take the tension out of the bar, thus leading to an efficient first pull where their torso angle remains constant. Contrastingly in a barbell cycling piece as part of a workout, the start positions will be completely different. Hips will commonly be much higher with less bend in the knee requiring a bigger hip hinge to effectively load the hamstrings. The athlete will usually utilise a touch and go method where the plates only briefly make contact with the ground before returning into the pull, removing the ability to set properly and take tension out of the bar. This reduces the time per rep and also lowers the force required per rep, therefore saving time and energy.
The two portions of movement are completely different skills and require completely different methods at which to improve them. Neither is wrong as both are the most effective for that individual requirement and goals of that sport. With WL the set up is important to move correctly and with purpose to allow maximum force to be applied to the barbell in extension, however with barbell cycling the fastest way to move through the pull is to limit the flexion in the knees, not drop the hips and just tap the plates to the ground before returning to the pull to save time and energy each rep.
Your training goals dictate your training methods, even if the movements look the same. WL looks different dependant on the sport you are training for, so stop training for them in the same way.
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