Today we’ll take a look at five critical snatch variations.
Snatch Grip Push Press + Overhead Squat with Pause
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Snatching requires an extreme amount of overhead stability, and the best way to work in overhead stability in both the top and bottom position is this variation. It will expose any and all weaknesses a lifter may have overhead, as well as expose any weaknesses in the bottom position of the snatch. Another sneaky side benefit of this exercise is the amount of time you have to hold the bar locked out above the head. This is a position that most weightlifters don’t spend nearly enough time in, resulting in poor mechanics and missed lifts. This variation is best used to help fix any overhead issues an athlete may have and clean up the bottom position of the snatch (including balance issues, incorrect body angles, and poor lockout position overhead).
Snatch Balance:
Similar to the SGPP + OHS, this variation focuses more on teaching an athlete how to drive into the bar and receive the bar correctly in the catch position. This is a very fast motion, and because of this, there is very little room for error. That makes it a perfect exercise for correcting an athlete’s lack of drive into the bar OR the athlete becoming lazy before/during/after the drive. It is also a great tool for developing strength and balance in the catch positions of the snatch, and if you really want to make sure you know how to stick the landing, add a pause in the bottom.
No Feet Snatch/Pulls
One of the biggest mistakes athletes make with a snatch is coming onto his or her toes too early and jumping too early. It is perfectly fine to push off of your toes and to jump; however this is only done AFTER the bar has made contact with your hips AND your hips have fully extended. Then and only then may one push off the toes. By coming onto the toes too early, you lose the ability to fully engage all your musculature during the second pull which either means you’re going to cut your pull short and dive under or miss the lift. In the video, despite my best efforts, I go onto my toes too early which results in a less than ideal pull. The barbell should be slightly higher than your nipples, and it should arrive at that height with relative ease...if you did everything correctly. Jumping too early has a similar effect on the lift. It is impossible to pull up on the bar if your feet are off the ground. You may be able to get away with it at light weights, but as soon as you try to lift heavier, you’re screwed. No feet variations solve all these problems! They are performed exactly the same way as a classic snatch or high pull; however the goal is to keep the feet planted the entire time. Mastering this skill will translate to better second pulls (hip contact, making the bar fly up higher) and more kilos on the bar.
Slow Snatch
This is one of the variations that I personally hate the most. I suck at them, and they are fucking awful. This variation may seem simple, but it is really brutal. Slow snatch is just that: A really, really, slow snatch. Snatching is extremely fast, and as such, it’s very easy for athletes to not be in control of every single little position during the lift. Doing a really slow snatch allows athletes to slow down and make new connections to a movement pattern they have done thousands of times. Moving slowly exposes everything. Think you had that second pull dialed in? Wrong. How about that catch position? Locked out strong and fully balanced? Probably not. Try these bad boys out. And yeah, that’s the oldest, dumbest cliche there is, but it’s still true. You gotta walk (or snatch really slow) before you can run (or snatch really big weights).
Snatch Transitions
For those of you who don’t know, I’m kind of obsessed with Mother Russia. In the past 150 years, no other country on Earth has enjoyed as rich of a history of strength, Russia is #1. They have studied everything about strength and excelled in Olympic weightlifting which, for a while, was the only strength sport around. This has had numerous benefits for mankind, but it also comes with a curse. By studying everything weightlifting, they found out which exercises worked and which didn’t. Unfortunately, most of the exercises that work are hard as shit to do and require you to be as mobile as Gumby while having the strength of Hercules (aka Gumbercules). That’s where this horrible exercise comes in. This snatch variation has the same setup as a regular snatch, but your hips, back, and legs don’t move. You are pulling the bar only with your arms from the ground to the catch position of a snatch. Don’t know how to pull with your arms? This will fix it. Don’t know how to keep your feet planted? Do this. Want to look like a badass? Try this.