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Build muscle, strength, power, and coordination by learning how to snatch

For any snatch novice, learning how to snatch properly from the ground up will help you maximize the benefits of this weightlifting move. And if you persevere with leveling up your snatch skills before bad habits set in, it’s much easier to master, although you’ll still spend years refining your technique.

Alongside advanced weightlifting exercises like the clean and press, jerk, or split jerk, the snatch nudges its way up the list of moves to master if you plan on exercising in classes like CrossFit or Olympic lifting. But what is it?

The snatch is a floor-to-overhead move that requires plenty of snappy power. It basically involves gripping a weight on the floor, then driving said weight above your head in an explosive pulling motion. But of course, it’s not as simple as that — unfortunately. To safely wield a heavy weight overhead, it takes skill to control it. Below, we cover how to snatch, the benefits, and snatch variations using kettlebells, the best adjustable dumbbells, or barbells. 

If you nail your snatch technique, you could build a powerhouse body of strength, power, and muscle and develop core and shoulder stability and coordination. Not only will snatches help you advance in weightlifting, but the move works multiple muscle groups, including your chest, back, arms, shoulders, legs, and glute muscles. 

Good technique will translate elsewhere, improving exercises like the overhead squat, overhead press strength, and (for the CrossFitters amongst you) handstands.

Your core muscles engage throughout the snatch, especially to stabilize your torso, while your legs, shoulders, and arms will help drive the weight overhead into the catch position. To push up underneath the weight in order to stand, your legs, chest, and shoulder muscles engage. Driving any weight up this fast will help your body learn to coordinate, balance, and develop power.

Any exercise that requires speed and power will recruit fast-twitch muscle fibers (opens in new tab) — the same ones active during exercise like sprinting. These fibers fatigue quicker, but training them will help develop a better mind-body connection, power output, speed, and more efficient neuromuscular pathways. Used in classes alongside conditioning, you’ll stimulate muscle growth and burn a load of calories. 

The barbell snatch is perhaps the most technical snatch variation to master, especially as you can pack on the most weight using a bar. The skill lies in transferring the weight from the lower to the upper body and catching under the bar with stability before you press upward.

The two snatch variations below use free weights. Free weights allow you to work single-sided, which is great news for building strength and balance and addressing muscle imbalances. It could also benefit beginners learning the move, especially as Olympic bars at the gym often start at a weighty 15kg. 

Avoid banging the weight against your wrist — this one’s all in the wrists. Find out what happened when our writer did 100 kettlebell snatches a day, and learn how to hold a kettlebell properly using various grip techniques here. 

You might have seen terms like "hang snatch," "power snatch," "muscle snatch," and "hang power snatch" used. 

During a power snatch, you'll receive the bar in a partial squat, otherwise you'll catch in a deep overhead squat. During muscle snatches, you'll catch the bar with straight legs. "Hang" refers to your starting position. If it's a hang snatch, you'll start with the bar hanging down rather than on the floor. 

Phew, that's a lot of snatches.

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Sam Hopes is a level III fitness trainer, level II reiki practitioner, and resident fitness writer at Future PLC, the publisher of Tom's Guide. Having trained to work with mind and body, Sam is a big advocate of using mindfulness techniques in sport and fitness, and their impact on performance. She’s also passionate about the fundamentals of training and building sustainable training methods.  When she's writing up her experiences with the latest fitness tech, you’ll find her writing about nutrition, sleep, recovery, and workouts.

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