Wall Balls are a regular occurrence in CrossFit Workouts, make sure you are doing them as efficiently as possible.
1. Crossfit Workouts – Catching and Positioning the Ball
You want to keep the ball as close to your body as possible during the entire movement. As with any weight, the further away from your body it is, the heavier it will seem. This is because the resistance arm becomes longer.
The tricky part about keeping the ball close to your face and body is that we have all, whether we like to admit it or not, probably had a Wall Ball smash into our faces at some point during a WOD because of tired arms and fatigue. This isn’t pleasant, and conditions you to want to keep the ball as far away as possible in order to avoid this embarrassment happening again.
Resist the temptation and position your hands to the sides and slightly towards the bottom of Ball during the catch. Concentrating on hand positioning will help to focus your attention, and avoid any further unwanted kisses from your Ball.
2. How Deep should you Squat?
During Wall Balls in Crossfit Workouts, your hip crease must break the plane of the knee joint in the squat. There is nothing more frustrating than watching another member of your Box cheat their way through a grueling series of Wall Balls and round it off with a further set of unearned gloating and celebration. As with all Crossfit exercises, if you are going to do something, do it properly.
In order to train your body to find the exact position, try practicing with another ball placed on the floor behind you that you ‘sit’ on during each rep. Don’t let the ball take any of your weight, simply use it as a physical trigger to teach your body the depth of the position that it needs to achieve. As soon as you touch the ball, propel yourself straight back upwards.
Training with a Wall Ball on the floor can improve your movement
With Wall Balls, it is vital that you generate enough energy to propel the ball upwards with force and accuracy. Performing the squat properly is essential to making this happen. You don’t need to super deep, ass to grass, in order to create this power. If you are struggling with this, try moving your feet into a wider stance. This will force your hamstrings into the movement at an earlier point, and help generate upward force that you can then translate into the throw.
