Barbell Snatch

See it in motion

How to do it

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and grip the barbell with a wide grip. Begin by lifting the bar from the ground, extending your hips and knees explosively, while keeping the bar close to your body. As the bar reaches chest height, drop underneath it into an overhead squat position, catching the bar overhead with locked arms. Stand up to complete the lift.

1. 1Begin with a tight setup and explode through your legs and hips, pulling the bar overhead in one fluid motion
2. 2Drop under the bar quickly and catch it in a deep squat, feeling your shoulders, core, and legs stabilise the weight
3. 3Stand up from the squat with the bar locked out overhead, feeling full body coordination

Common mistakes

• ×Don't bend your arms early or swing the bar away from your body
• ×Avoid catching the bar with soft elbows or collapsed shoulders
• ×Don't let your knees cave or your back round during the catch

Muscles worked

The barbell snatch mainly works the quads and glutes, with the triceps, upper traps, upper abs, lower abs, hamstrings, front delts, upper chest, lats, lower back, calves, and side delts assisting.

• QuadsPrimary
• GlutesPrimary
• TricepsSupport
• Upper TrapsSupport
• Upper AbsSupport
• Lower AbsSupport
• HamstringsSupport
• Front DeltsSupport
• Upper ChestSupport
• LatsSupport
• Lower BackSupport
• CalvesSupport
• Side DeltsSupport
• ForearmsMinor
• Lower TrapsMinor
• ObliquesMinor