Snatch – BASIC TECHNIQUE True Snatch Bottom Up Snatch Waiter Snatch Olympic Snatch Seated Snatch Squat Snatch Lunge Snatch
Before performing the Snatch you should be proficient in the Swing, the Clean and the Press. The Snatch is a modified swingwhere as the kettlebell swings up above the head, the bell flips over the hand and ends up in the same overhead position as the press. Start by performing the Snatch as you would the Swing, there is no difference at all. As the kettlebell raises up over the head, do a slight corkscrew with the hand so the bell flips directly over the hand. Do this in one complete fluid motion. The fingers of the hand doing the Snatch can be left open at the top of the movement, or you can close them around the handle. Image as if you are putting you hand in a glove over your head. The lift of the bell coming up is with the hips once again and not the arms. The kettlebell comes to rest overhead in the same position as the press, elbow locked out, shoulder packed.
To repeat another snatch bring the arm down in two different ways. One is the same as a swing moving down where the kettlebell will come over the top of the hand and the entire arm will swing down between your legs. The other is a corkscrew down movement where the arm is rotated in a reverse corkscrew pattern to the inside of the body and drops in and arc backward so it can swing back up from the bottom. As in most techniques the variations are endless, such as Power Snatches (two kettlebells), bottoms up, standing on blocks for a deeper squats, etc.
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It all starts with the swinging back of the kettlebell
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Prepping for the back swing Mw/two bells
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Different views of the Snatch
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Front view
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Side view
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Rear View
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Power Snatch
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The True Snatch is the original snatch technique that was changed to the snatch we show above. Perform this from the Olympic position. Using either one or two hands the kettlebell is pulled straight up from the floor and over head without flipping the kettlebell over the hand. The bell ends up in a bottom down position in front of the arm. This will challenge your thumb gripping so be careful. Keep the kettlebell close to the body when bringing it up. There is no swing here so it is similar to the Olympic Press where you explode from the floor. As always, keep the shoulders packed and down. Avoid the use of the top of the shoulders to lift. Do not shrug your shoulders.
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Start of True Snatch from the floor
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On its way up through the middle of the body
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Completion if the True Snatch
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Two hand True Snatch
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The Bottom Up Snatch is performed the same as the Snatch except the kettlebell is held in the bottom up hold. Look at the position of the handles of the kettlebell in the final position. Try pressing, reverse pressing and squatting with the kettlebell(s) in this position.
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Bottom Up Snatch
| Power Bottom Up Snatch |
The Waiter Snatch is performed the same as the Snatch except you flip the kettlebell into a waiter hold at the top of the swing. Everything thing is the same as the Snatch except at the top of the rise instead of flipping the kettlebell over the hand you release the bell and flip it in to the open palm of your hand to the waiter position. The kettlebell handle can be in a host of positions just as in the variations of the basic grip and holds. To swing down, push the ball away from you. This will rotate the ball down and the handle will raise up. Catch the handle on the rotation of the bell and continue the swing down.
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Waiter Snatch
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Power Waiter Snatch
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The Olympic Snatch is performed the same as the Snatch except is is performed from the olympic position without any swing. Emphasis is placed on the legs starting the motion. The bell start from a dead position resting on the floor and placed back there before the next repetition or from the hang position where it does net rest on the floor but returns to hang position above the floor.Do not jerk the kettlebell up first with the arm only but use the legs to start the rise then engage the the packed shoulders and lat's to raise the bell up. The kettlebell travels close to the body on its way up over your head. Corkscrew the kettlebell as you bring the bell down back between your legs.
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Starting position
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On it's way up
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Final position of Snatch
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Just as the name implies perform a Snatch from a seated position. Make sure there is clearance underneath of you seat for the ball to swing through. As you cannot use your hips as you can with the normal Snatch be careful and stay out of your back. A lighter weight is best to start with until you are comfortable with this movement.
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Seated Snatch
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This is a combination movement where you performing the Snatch at the same time you perform a Squat. These are not done as two separate movements but as one. This takes careful timing and flexibility and is an excellent challenge for both your body and your mind. You can start this from a host of positions, from a swing, an olympic position, in the rack, etc. This can be done with one bell, two bells, as well as different hand positions such as a bottom up or waiter.
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Snatch squat
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Power snatch squat
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Again this is a combination movement as in the Squat Snatch, you Lunge and Snatch at the same time. The Lunge can have the back knee on or off the floor. If you want to really challenge yourself, keep the back knee off the floor and that leg parallel to the ground. Hold this position for 5 seconds, then stand back up from the lunge. Both of your legs get continual work when keeping the rear leg off the ground. Vary the patterns, but do equal amount of performances left right , forwards backwards, lateral lunge, etc.
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Snatch Lunge Mw/knee off ground
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Power Snatch Lunge Mw/knee on ground
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