Why Your Kettlebell Snatch Sucks
By Mandy Whitley Photography
Anyone who first sees a kettlebell snatch being performed online — you think “oh it doesn’t look that hard.” Then you attempt it in your next training session out of curiosity. The result, you look like a stripper kipping your hips back & forth and then immediately stop because you realize you’re tearing up your hands from over gripping the kettlebell. Sound familiar? Yeah that was me, and at the time I never thought I was going to get it right (as you can see below). Our biggest mistake as beginners is thinking simple is easy. Simple is what made AC/DC famous because very few could be like them without sounding like a cheap reproduction. Education and practice behind each movement is what makes them more valuable to our training methods. It’s why many don’t understand the prerequisites and critical strength foundations required to perfect this simple exercise.
So after spending years perfecting my kettlebell snatch technique. I want to share some short cuts that will help reduce the time I spent learning it. While it may seem impossible at first, everyone has that moment with a coach “why didn’t someone tell me that ALL along?!” That’s what I’m hoping to give in this article to breakdown what needs the most work to perfect your kettlebell snatch.
The Foundation: One-Arm Swing
Most are very aware of two handed kettlebell swings, but don't know the primary difference with a one-arm kettlebell swing. So what’s the difference? In Pavel’s book, Simple & Sinister, he finds incredible results on how much power and muscle contraction differs between the two and one arm kettlebell swing:
“An asymmetrical load seriously challenges the stabilizers and increases the recruitment of many muscles. When I swung a 32kg kettlebell two-handed in Prof. Stuart McGill’s lab, my glutes fired up to 80% maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVC). When I did it one handed, the recruitment was up to 100%. And the lat contraction jumped from 100% to 150%! In case you are wondering how it is possible to contract a muscle 150%, the max is isometric. In dynamic contractions higher values are possible - plyometrics are a case in point.” - Simple & Sinister by Pavel (pg.31)
This is what the U.S Army calls “same standards, different conditions”. So if your two arm kettlebell swing is solid, then you have green light to advance to the one arm swing as long as you understand the glutes and lats fire even harder to resist rotation (asymmetrical load) with the one-arm swing. This is a BIG part of the kettlebell snatch because many think you have to rip and pull the kettlebell up overhead with your upper body and twist & turn the body. When really it’s the power from your hips connecting with your glutes and lats that makes the kettlebell float (keeping the shoulders & hips square). So how is this all done? In the video below, I breakdown everything you need to know about it to integrate more into your workouts to start building your foundations for the kettlebell snatch:
The Punch: Front Snatch (aka Touch of Death)
In 2018 I assisted at Mexico’s first StrongFirst Kettlebell certification, and Master SFG Fabio Zonin brought up this great twist on the kettlebell snatch. This a great learning curve for those having trouble constantly tearing up their hands by death gripping the kettlebell as it ascends up overhead. As you see here, we’re doing the EXACT same thing with the one-arm swing. The difference is one the kettlebell is weightless I keep a little flexion in my elbow so I can punch through the handle to flip it over my hand. This is done by relaxing the hand like you’re going to do the “touch of death” on someone really quick. This same action is needed when performing the kettlebell snatch.
Flick of the Wrist (Gooseneck) Technique
This is the smallest and yet biggest game changer to save your grip when performing snatches. As I stated in the intro, many over grip the handle not letting it naturally flip over the wrist (it’ll result in tearing up your hands every time). Watch this quick tutorial to see how to bypass tearing up your grip with the flick of the wrist using the heel of your hand.
Taming the Arc: Low & High Pulls
This is a big understanding in kettlebell training with any swing variation because whether you’re performing a swing, low/high pulls, or snatch — there’s a constant control of the arc.
The white line represents my vertical plank standard (with lats/glutes engaged with core braced) and the red represents my changing condition of taming the arc.
