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Hi everyone! Welcome to my latest challenge! Had a busy couple of months, so although I've kept working on my lifting programming, I haven't done a challenge for a while... This challenge is all about trying out new exercise variations and building technique in the olympic lifts, which I have only just started learning I will still be continuing with my regular powerlifting stuff, just adding in some oly skill practice at the beginning and substituting in overhead and front squats more often. Challenge points This challenge I will earn points by sticking to my program. I want to work on something every day. Per week: Lifting x 3 Yoga x 3 Muay thai class x 1 I will give myself a point for each. I can sub the kickboxing class for boxing at home or more yoga. Rewards 16pts = successful challenge! Reward will be a pair of weightlifting shoes 24pts = stretch goal! Reward will be 1 month remote coaching in olympic weightlifting Advice please! I am in the process of putting together a home gym in the garage shed. Would love to hear from anyone who has bought a bar - did you go cheap, expensive or something in between? Are you happy with your choice? I will need a 20kg power bar, but want to get a 15kg olympic bar too… Not sure whether I will regret getting mid-range (~aud$200) bars instead of the highly recommended ABC bars (~aud$450) made here in Australia.

So, I had a battle log back in '11, but since it's been so long and my training has shifted, I thought I'd start a new one. I'm currently following a program from Catalyst Athletics - Jessica's Complex & Competition Cycle, picked because I liked the complexes in the training. (I'm in Week 6) I'll only list my working sets unless someone asks to see my warmup sets. Monday 12/7/15 Exercise Clean & Jerk - 38kg (2+1)x2, 40kg (2+1)x3 High-hang snatch + Snatch - 30kg (1+1)x2, 32kg (1+1)x3 Clean deadlift - 56kg 3x2, 59kg 3x3 Back squat - 61kg x4, 65kg x1, 61kg x4, 67kg x1, 61kg x4, 68kg x1 3 sets, no rest: 15 back extensions, 15 sit ups Food Breakfast: plain oatmeal w/ dried cranberries, coffee Morning snack: apple Lunch: SmartOnes frozen meal Afternoon snack: rice cake Dinner: Pho Dac Biet, Goi Cuon, 2 glasses wine Water 8 - 8oz cups

So I've been thinking about swapping power cleans in for barbell rows, but I'm a little hesitant to try them without coaching. because the movement is so complex. The instructions in Starting Strength seem to go against everything I know about lifting weights, but Rippetoe obviously has more experience with them then I will ever have, but I've also seen in a couple of places people saying that Rip's version of the Power Clean is wrong. It's the "jump" part that seems weird to me. Am I just overthinking it?