Step by Step: How to Do the Snatch

We teach foundations of the snatch in our safe weightlifting workshop.

For those new to the snatch, it is a movement where you bring the barbell to an overhead squat position from the floor in a single motion.

To learn the snatch, break it down into the following steps.

1. Grip

To find your grip, follow these five steps:

1. Grab a barbell with your arms relaxed

2. Dip into a mini quarter squat

3. Put your weight on the balls of your feet

4. Shift your grip width till you can maintain a chest up posture with the barbell at your hip crease

5. Extend your arms till they’re straight but kept relaxed

2. Snatch Balance

After finding your grip, learn how to do the snatch balance.

To perform the snatch balance:

1. Assume your snatch grip with the barbell on your shoulders behind the neck

2. Dip into a quarter squat position

3. From there, jump up from the quarter squat position. This should push the barbell up

4. Punch out your arms, while also returning to a quarter squat position to receive the barbell

5. Follow the downward momentum to perform a full overhead squat

Once you’re no longer chasing the barbell, i.e. balancing the barbell without moving, move onto the hang snatch.

The purpose of this exercise is to practise the power transfer from your hip crease to overhead.

To do the hang snatch:

1. Assume your snatch grip on the barbell while standing upright

2. Maintain a chest-up posture and dip into a quarter squat position

3. Upon reaching quarter squat depth, bring the barbell to your hip crease, while squatting upwards

4. Once the barbell reaches your hip crease, jump upwards to push the barbell up

5. Throw the barbell further up and back before dipping into a squat position to receive the barbell overhead

Once you are able to balance the barbell after receiving it, move onto the snatch pull.

To learn the snatch pull:

1. Assume your snatch grip on the barbell while in a deadlift position.

2. Drive upwards from the legs till the barbell crosses the knee.

3. With the barbell above the knees, start bringing the barbell towards the hip crease, while continuing to drive upwards

4. And once the barbell reaches hip crease, return the barbell back to the deadlift position

Once you have done the snatch pull, put all three practice movements together to do the full snatch.

If you have trouble feeling the flow through the three exercises, check out our next article on mistakes.

Alternatively, feel free to approach us for guidance one-to-one or in a small group setting.