Cleaning And Jerking It Wasn’t My Problem

Yeah, despite having an awesome pair of wrist wraps, I still do have wrist problems, particularly my right wrist.

And NO…it’s not from cleaning and jerking it.

While we haven’t done that full movement in months, I’m pretty comfortable with my form on that lift (what did you think I was talking about?). For a while, I was wondering what the hell would cause this extra strain on my wrist. Catching the barbell for cleans has become a lot easier and more efficient for me. Everything seems to be in its right place. However, my right wrist would always have some issues.

I just couldn’t figure it out.

Even my standing desk “office setup” is pretty solid with an ergonomic keyboard and mouse, which are at the proper height. I couldn’t imagine what could be wrong…

…then it hit me.

Shit.

This keyboard is fuckin wide thanks to the number pad on the right, forcing my mouse positioning to be outward and awkward.

I noticed in addition to some strain on the wrist, the front area of my right shoulder also has some discomfort during overhead squats or snatches. So there’s most likely a chance that awkward, outward positioning that I have day in, day out is to blame.

So what did I do?

Once again, another ghetto solution. I’m all about these simple yet effective tricks. My keyboard and mouse are on top of stacks of books, with the stack for my mouse being a little bit higher. I just shifted the top book on the mouse stack to the left, covering my number pad which I barely use anyway.

With my forearm angled inward, the positioning is more natural and causes a lot less strain on my wrist. Sure, nothing beats the positioning my keyboard gives my right hand, but it’s not like I can put my mouse over the “Y-U-I-O-P” area of keys.

I’ve had this setup for the past week or so, and I finally put things to the test today. It’s a deloading week, so I was taking it easy. Still, I got up to 225# on my squat clean, focusing on form. Then I did 60 75# overhead squats over the course of 5 rounds for a WOD.

So far, so good with my wrist. To think it was most likely this really basic problem I had that was messing up my wrist all the time.

If any of you are having constant wrist problems from cleans and whatnot, think about the everyday habits you have. The things you do every day. The shit you do at work. Think of anything that you do that may seem like a tiny issue with your body. This small issue could be something that you do all the time that only causes huge problems for you.

Kip it real, my friends.