The Kettlebell Snatch
A pull, a flip, and a press. The kettlebell is in for a ride
The kettlebell snatch is one of my personal favorite exercises. It builds on the kettlebell swing and the kettlebell clean to bring the kettlebell all the way from ground position to above your head and back down again. As far as exercises go, it’s one of the most demanding, yet rewarding. It is one of the exercises that gives you the most “bang for your buck” in terms of the amount good it does for your body per rep. Definitely a must have for your arsenal.
Summary
Burns an insane amount of calories? Check. Works almost the entire kinetic chain? Get the most out of your workout by incorporating snatches, which will mobilize your entire body and use muscles from everywhere to get the kettlebell from the ground above your head.
Key Points
Movement
To perform a kettlebell snatch, you start in the kettlebell clean starting position and use the same movement you mastered in the kettlebell swing in order to bring the weight up. Contrary to the kettlebell clean, you don’t stop at the rack position, but rather you bring the weight all the way up, and fully extend your arm above your head with the kettlebell resting on your forearm. However, there are certain variations in raising the kettlebell above your head. Some people prefer the clean to press approach, and others raise the kettlebell directly above and slowly release the grip so that the kettlebell rests on the forearm.
Finally, once the weight is above your head, bring the weight back down and start over. If you are just starting out with the movement, corkscrew the kettlebell down bring it to rack position half-way down until you get more comfortable at that weight. This reduces the strain on on the back and is the safest method.
Muscles Worked
The Kettlebell Snatch works almost the entire body focusing on the hamstrings, deltoids, quads, and core.
Primary
Secondary
Conclusion & How to incorporate
Primarily used as a”main movement” exercise, the Kettlebell Snatch is the type of exercise that you have to build up to and is frequently one of the hardest exercises of the entire workout. That being said, it is recommended to incorporate the Kettlebell Snatch once you are comfortable with the Kettlebell Swing and Kettlebell Clean. The best place for the Kettlebell Snatch is towards the middle or the end of the workout once the body has had a good time to warm-up..
Similar Exercises
We encourage you to check out these other kettlebell exercises if you have not done so already.
