CrossFit Santa Cruz’s Laurie Galassi is a gymnast and CrossFit coach. In this instructional video, she breaks down that most challenging CrossFit movement: the muscle-up.
After dealing with body shaping and grip in Part 1, Galassi addresses the place where everything usually goes awry: the transition.
Working from a position lying under the rings, Galassi demonstrates the transition by pulling while keeping her legs out front as she pushes the chest through and keeps the rings close to her body. Also important is a grip that allows the rings to move a little bit as you transition from a position below the rings to the bottom of a dip on top of the rings.
To help athletes feel the positions, Galassi introduces the “dream machine”—a harness that reduces the load and allows the athlete to move more easily.
Ultimately, there is a strength requirement for a muscle-up, and you have to drill the positions over and over again.
“Do a whole bunch. Then do a whole bunch more,” Galassi says.
13min 57sec
Additional reading: The Muscle-Up by Greg Glassman, published Nov. 1, 2002.