Snatch

Learning
Manual
CATALYST ATHLETICS

© 2016 Greg Everett

Published by Catalyst Athletics, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be repro-
duced in any form without prior written consent from the publisher.
10 Steps to the Snatch
The snatch is a technical, nuanced lift with seemingly infinite detail to overwhelm you. But it
also offers an opportunity for gratification and satisfaction unlike any other lift.

This manual will help simplify the learning process and help you begin snatching quickly with
as little extraneous information as possible.

Simply follow the ten steps in this progression using a PVC pipe, wooden dowel, or empty
barbell, practicing each until it feels smooth and consistent before moving to the next.

Spend some time on catalystathletics.com for articles, videos and more to help with your
lifting and training.

Enjoy the process.

—Greg Everett
1. Overhead Squat

Squeeze the upper inside edges of the shoulder blades together forcefully.

Squeeze the elbows forcefully in full extension.

Orient the bony points of the elbows approximately halfway between down and back.
Allow the hand and wrist to settle in with a relatively loose grip, keeping the bar in the palm
slightly behind the middle of the forearm.

Keep the head up and pushed forward slightly through the arms.

Keep the barbell vertically above the base of the neck.

Place the heels slightly outside hip-width with toes turned out comfortably.

Pressurize and stabilize the trunk.

Squat by bending at the knees and hips together to maintain an upright posture.

To recover, push up on the bar and follow it with the body, maintaining the upright posture.
2. Mid-Hang Snatch Jump

Start in the mid-hang position with the weight properly balance over the front edge of the heel.

With no countermovement, jump vertically as high as possible.

Keep the bar in light contact with the body throughout the movement.
3. Mid-Hang Snatch Pull

Start in the mid-hang position with the bar hook-gripped at snatch-width.

Push against the ground aggressively with the legs, using the lats and shoulders to keep the
bar in immediate proximity to the thighs.
Reach the final extended position with the legs vertical and the shoulders slightly behind the
hips.

Actively push the bar back into light contact with the hips.

Shrug the shoulders up to allow the bar to continue traveling momentarily without swinging
forward.

Do not prolong this extended position.

4. Tall Muscle Snatch

Stand tall with the bar at arms’ length, the elbows turned out, and the weight balanced over
the front edge of the heel.

Pull the elbows as high as possible and to the sides and squeeze the shoulder blades back,
shrugging naturally with this movement and keeping the bar as close to the body as possible.

As the elbows reach maximal height, rotate the arms to bring the bar overhead, keeping the
bar close to the face.

As the bar is turned over, release the hook grip quickly and let the hands and wrists settle into
the correct overhead position.

Punch up vertically against the bar and secure the overhead position aggressively.
5. Scarecrow Snatch

Begin standing tall with a snatch-width grip on the bar, the elbows elevated as high as possi-
ble and out to the sides, and the bar in light contact with the body.

Simultaneously lift and move the feet into the receiving position and turn the bar over into the
overhead position to move down into a squat.

Lock the bar out overhead at the same time the feet reconnect flat with the floor.

Recover to standing with the bar held securely overhead.

6. Tall Snatch

Begin standing tall with a snatch-width grip on the bar, and the bar hanging at arms’ length in
light contact with the body.

Simultaneously lift and move the feet into the receiving position and pull the elbows up and
out, then turn the bar over into the overhead position to move down into a squat.

Lock the bar out overhead at the same time the feet reconnect flat with the floor.

Recover to standing with the bar held securely overhead.

7. Mid-Hang Snatch

Begin in the mid-hang position with a snatch-width grip.

Initiate the movement by pushing with the legs against the floor.

Maintain the bar’s proximity to the body with the lats and shoulders.
Snap the hips open and continue to drive with the legs to achieve complete extension with the
legs vertical, shoulders slightly behind the hips and bar against the hips, naturally moving up
onto the balls of the feet.

Lift the feet and pull the elbows as high as possible and to the sides to move down, maintaining
the bar’s proximity to the body.

Turn the bar over and lock it in the overhead position at the same time the feet reconnect flat
with the floor.

Recover to a standing position with the bar secured aggressively overhead.

8. Snatch Starting Position

Place the barbell over approximately the balls of the foot.

Turn the feet out slightly and balance the weight evenly across them.

Hold the bar with the hook grip at snatch-width.

Assume an upright posture that orients the arms approximately vertically when viewed from
the side.

Pressurize the trunk and fix the back securely in a continuous arch.

Keep the head up with a focal point straight ahead or slightly above.

Push the knees outward inside the arms and over the bar.

Internally rotate the arms and keep them passively extended.

9. Halting Snatch Deadlift

Set the starting position tightly and hold momentarily.

Push with the legs to separate the bar from the floor smoothly.

Maintain approximately the same back angle and shift the weight to the front edge of the heels
as the bar moves toward the knees.

Continue pushing with the legs, maintaining the balance over the front edge of the heel, and
allow the shoulders to move forward slightly to reach the mid-hang position.

Hold the mid-hang position for 3 seconds.

Return the bar to the floor at a controlled speed, trying to move through the same correct
positions on the way down.
10. Snatch

Set the starting position tightly and initiate the lift by pushing with the legs against the floor.

Shift the weight back to the front edge of the heel by the time the bar reaches knee height.

Continue pushing with the legs until reaching the mid-hang position, maintaining the balance
over the front edge of the heel.

Execute the final upward explosion by pushing with the legs against the ground and extending
the hips aggressively, actively maintaining the proximity of the bar to the body.

As you reach the final extended position with the legs vertical, bar against the hips, and shoul-
ders slightly behind the hips, lift the feet and pull the elbows high and out.

Keep the bar as close to the body as possible, turn the arms over and lock the bar out at the
same time the feet land flat on the floor in the receiving position.

Continue sitting into the bottom of the squat fluidly with the bar secured tightly overhead.

Recover to a standing position by pushing straight up against the bar.

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