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How to perform a power snatch

This is an excerpt from Exercises for Resistance Training by Lauren R. Tapp,Joshua Wludyga.

Primary Muscles Trained

Full body

Beginning Position

• Set a barbell on the floor in front of you.
• The bar should have full-diameter bumper plates on each end or be set on blocks to match a standard floor start position.
• Approach the bar and place your feet under the bar so that the bar is directly over the middle of the front part of your foot. Your toes should be slightly turned outward.
• Flex over at your hips and grip the bar with a wide grip (i.e., a snatch grip).
• Flex at your knees until your hips are at knee level and your shins move closer to the bar.
• With your knees and shoulders over the bar, push your chest out, flatten your back, and look straight ahead.

Movement Phases

1. First pull: Pull the bar toward your knees by moving your hips back and shifting your weight to your heels.
2. Second pull: With speed, extend at your knees and push your hips forward as you stand up, slightly leaning back.
3. Triple extension: Keep your arms relaxed and allow the bar to “fly” up past your hips as you shrug your shoulders and move onto your toes.
4. Third pull: Use a shrugging motion to move the bar to an overhead position while you rotate your hands around the bar.
5. Catch: Squat underneath the bar with your arms fully extended overhead.
6. Stand: Stand up from the squat by pushing through your heels, maintaining the overhead bar position.

Teaching Cues

• Keep the bar close to your body.
• Pull with power.
• Keep your torso straight and your chest out.

Exercise Variation

Dumbbell Snatch

As previously mentioned, dumbbell variations of the Olympic lifts can eliminate some of the fear of lifting heavy weights overhead while also providing a more joint-friendly version. The dumbbell snatch is typically performed with one dumbbell as opposed to two as described for the dumbbell clean. Start the exercise by holding the dumbbell near the floor in line with the midline of the body. Using the legs to drive the motion, pull the dumbbell across the body in a snatching motion and finish the exercise with the arm extended into a wide overhead position.

More Excerpts From Exercises for Resistance Training

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