Hi guys! Okay…I did 17.2 this morning. Before I did it, I watched this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kR5h-3R7f6U&feature=youtu.be
If you guys have 4 minutes to spare, I suggest watching this!! They go over every movement in pretty good depth, and their strategy really helped me.
DUMBBELL LUNGES: I agree with the YouTube video. Holding the DB horizontally puts a lot of pressure on your forearms. The back side of the DB needs to cross the vertical plane of your body, so propping them up, like in the video, allows you to loosen your grip. This workout is ALL about your grip – a huge forearm burner. Lunges should attempt to be unbroken. Take them slow and breathe.
TOES TO BAR/KNEE-UPS: In the video, they suggest breaking up the TTB/knee-ups as singles. This all depends on the athlete. But, I will say, that even the BEST gymnastics athlete should not attempt to go unbroken on the 16 TTB. 12 minutes is a long time. Personally, I broke the TTB up into 7, then 5, then 4. If you know you are weaker at TTB, I suggest singles like in the video. If you are pretty proficient at them, I suggest breaking it up into 3 sets. In between sets, shake out your arms. (2 sets or unbroken will simply blow up your forearms).
DB CLEANS: Key part about the DB cleans is that only one bell needs to hit the ground (unlike 17.1 with the snatches and they BOTH have to hit the ground). You can either muscle clean these, or power clean. 35# in each hand felt heavy to me, so I power cleaned them.
***After the 7th rep, REST. Do 7 reps (or break it up more if you’d like), but after the 7th rep, drop the DBs and rest for 1-3 Mississippi. Then do a DB clean again, and go straight into your lunges.
In order for the DB clean to count as a rep, the movement needs to start with one side of the DB touching the ground, then end with one side of the DB at the shoulders, behind the vertical plane of your body.
BAR MUSCLE UP/CHEST TO BAR/PULL-UPS/JUMPING PULL-UPS: You should approach this similarly to the TTB. Small sets will be more effective. If you are doing BMU – do NOT work until failure. You do not want to fail a rep – that takes a lot of energy. I suggest doing singles, or 2-3 at a time (depending on your skill level).
Lastly, have a plan. Know how you are going to break up what, and let your judge know ahead of time so they are on the same page as you. When you see the clock hit 11 minutes, go into that dark place and do everything you can to get as many reps as you can in that last minute. GOOD LUCK GUYS!!:)