Snatch critique please...

Rob Brice · 11-20-2011, 03:48 AM

Hi all,

Couple of quick snatch videos if anyone would like to have a look.

Max snatch is 70kg (154)

40kg - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVAw0S6x4RQ

55kg - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwZX08Re-H8

Cheers,

Rob.

Gareth Rees · 11-20-2011, 07:38 AM

I'm sure that somebody more knowledgable than I am will give you a much better response, but here is my attempt to help, and this is what I saw;

In your start position, your shoulders are behind the bar and not over it, and by the looks of it (looking at the bar's tracking), this is making the bar have to come away from the body just to clear the knees, and not allowing it to be swept in at the point of seperation (as it should). I believe that this is probably the main reason that you jump forward to catch the bar (because you're chasing it, due to the bar being too far forward, and thus your combined COG being too far forward too).

It also looks as though you break the bar from the floor with your hips below parallel. This is a weak position, and it should be just above parallel as this happens. Raising the hips will probably also automatically put your shoulders over the bar too.

Looks from the dramatic change of direction during the second pull as if you're also banging the bar with your hips (in fact I'd put on my month's wage that you do), which is also causing the bar to swing from your body during the third pull. You should be bringing the bar to the hips and explode up, and not the hips to the bar to bump it up (because it doesn't bump it up, but out and up, just watch the bar path. I used to have the same issue). Also looks as if you're not rotating your elbows out to the side, which helps you to keep the bar close.

There may be more, but they're my main points that I picked up on, remember baby steps. I hope this helps, and I'm sure comebody else will give you a better response also.

Rob Brice · 11-22-2011, 03:33 AM

Hi Gareth,

Some good points. Cheers.

The low hip position is something I was experimenting with to try keeping my weight on my heels without feeling like I am falling backwards. Looks like it is causing other issues though...

Greg Everett · 11-22-2011, 09:14 AM

I agree with Gareth on the shoulder/arm position - get your arm in line with that red line from Kinovea, which will place the front of your shoulder slightly in front of the bar. That alone will fix much of the subsequent problems.

The height of the hips relative to the knee I think can be above or below. Above is obviously more comfortable, but that doesn't necessarily mean it works better. Where the hips end up will be a function of your body segment lengths. Based on that video, your hips will probably be very slightly above your knees when you correct your start position, so that will be convenient for you.

If you stop the video when the bar is at your knees, it should be pretty clear that your shoulders are too far in front of it and your weight is forward on your feet. Click one "frame" ahead, and you'll see you contact the bar with the thigh, but you're on your toes and it looks like you're literally falling forward (you are). That forward balance means the bar just wants to keep moving forward even more, and it will pull you with it.

You exacerbate this problem though by contacting the bar/body a bit too low (thighs instead of up in the hips) and then having somewhat stiff arms that allow and encourage the bar to swing away rather than move vertically. You need to relax the arms completely and crank the points of the elbows out to the sides - only when you finish your explosion at the hips should your arms engage, and then to pull the elbows high and to the sides rather than dropping them back.

Despite all that, you actually manage to turn the bar over and get into a pretty good position under it - that speaks to decent flexibility and overhead position as well as aggressiveness in the turnover. However, if you fix your balance and position in the pull, you won't have to fight the bar so much.

Halting and segment deadlifts and pulls to get that balance and position into the second pull; hang high-pull + hang muscle snatch to work on the arms and turnover; high-hang snatch to practice exploding higher and keeping the bar back into you and close as you pull under, snatches from floor with a very slow first pull and wait until you're way up on the thigh to explode.

Good luck!

Rob Brice · 11-24-2011, 03:13 AM

Great. Thanks for the tips Greg

Rob Brice · 01-02-2012, 07:23 PM

Bit of an update...

Not perfect yet, but a definite improvement. After some thought I realised that I was keeping my elbows low and close to my body, forcing the bar to arc out.

Muscle snatches, focusing on the turnover and keeping the bar much closer to my body was the most effective drill. Looking forward to going for a max soon.

Before:

After: