My Elbows Can't Go That High for the Snatch!
As you pull under a snatch, you need to pull your elbows up toward your shoulders.
A lot of athletes who leave their elbows low and swing the bar out will argue about this, claiming their elbows can’t get that high.
And that’s true for some of them… but most of the time it’s not.
The best way to find out if you can get your elbows higher, or if you’re just making excuses, is to do a high-pull.
This lets you use bar momentum to aid in the motion, just like will be happening in an actual snatch.
If you can get your elbows higher with the bar nice and close in a high-pull than you do when you pull under a snatch, quit pretending it’s impossible and try to be better.
First, before anyone even says it… No. You are NOT trying to lift your elbows vertically. Aside from that being impossible for most people in terms of mobility, your upper body will not be vertical at the top of the pull, meaning that would require the elbows moving in front of the shoulders.
We are pulling “up” toward the shoulders, meaning it will also be a bit backward, and a bit more backward because as you near max range, your arms will begin externally rotating… and the farther back you’re leaned, the less the elbows will bend… there’s a lot going on and most of you have already stopped reading.
I’m not telling you to pull your elbows straight up above your shoulders like you’ve seen little 12-year-old Chinese lifters doing in high-pull—aim for near shoulder level. Most of you will be able to get a bit below the shoulders, and that’s enough.
The point is to continue actively keeping the bar and body close to each other as you accelerate under—this is what gets you under in time, and that speed and proximity are what allow the turnover itself to be quick and accurate.
This motion does require a healthy amount of internal rotation mobility in the shoulder. And it is very true that a lot of athletes are limited in that respect.
However, you have to remember that this motion is being undertaken while the bar has upward momentum and the body has downward momentum—you’re not having to muscle your way into this position.
If you’re looking at your internal rotation in more of a static position or in an isolated snatch-grip upright row, you’re not going to be accessing the same range of motion you’ll be able to access during an actual snatch.
And remember that a major component to mobility improvement is consistently and actively trying to move your body through the ranges of motion you want to access—that is active mobility work. If you simply avoid it, that range is never going to improve.
A lot of athletes who leave their elbows low and swing the bar out will argue about this, claiming their elbows can’t get that high.
And that’s true for some of them… but most of the time it’s not.
The best way to find out if you can get your elbows higher, or if you’re just making excuses, is to do a high-pull.
This lets you use bar momentum to aid in the motion, just like will be happening in an actual snatch.
If you can get your elbows higher with the bar nice and close in a high-pull than you do when you pull under a snatch, quit pretending it’s impossible and try to be better.
First, before anyone even says it… No. You are NOT trying to lift your elbows vertically. Aside from that being impossible for most people in terms of mobility, your upper body will not be vertical at the top of the pull, meaning that would require the elbows moving in front of the shoulders.
We are pulling “up” toward the shoulders, meaning it will also be a bit backward, and a bit more backward because as you near max range, your arms will begin externally rotating… and the farther back you’re leaned, the less the elbows will bend… there’s a lot going on and most of you have already stopped reading.
I’m not telling you to pull your elbows straight up above your shoulders like you’ve seen little 12-year-old Chinese lifters doing in high-pull—aim for near shoulder level. Most of you will be able to get a bit below the shoulders, and that’s enough.
The point is to continue actively keeping the bar and body close to each other as you accelerate under—this is what gets you under in time, and that speed and proximity are what allow the turnover itself to be quick and accurate.
This motion does require a healthy amount of internal rotation mobility in the shoulder. And it is very true that a lot of athletes are limited in that respect.
However, you have to remember that this motion is being undertaken while the bar has upward momentum and the body has downward momentum—you’re not having to muscle your way into this position.
If you’re looking at your internal rotation in more of a static position or in an isolated snatch-grip upright row, you’re not going to be accessing the same range of motion you’ll be able to access during an actual snatch.
And remember that a major component to mobility improvement is consistently and actively trying to move your body through the ranges of motion you want to access—that is active mobility work. If you simply avoid it, that range is never going to improve.
