The Best Base for the Kettlebell Snatch

The snatch is the most technical of all the kettlebell-specific lifts (that is, lifts that must be performed in a specific manner with the kettlebell). In Australia, it has only been over the past few years that we have had access to some of the best kettlebell lifters in the world and, as a result, have begun to understand just how complex this lift is. Learning from the likes of Ivan Denisov (literally the best kettlebell snatcher of all time) and Valery Fedorenko has given us invaluable insights into best practice for lifting technique.

Seven years ago when I first started lifting kettlebells it was standard (at least standard outside of Eastern Bloc countries) to use the high pull as a precursor to the snatch. This was possibly intended to make the kettlebell version of the lift analogous to the barbell version, since the barbell snatch follows the same path as the barbell high pull.

The kettlebell snatch, however, doesn’t have that much in common with its barbell counterpart and they have quite different aims: the kettlebell aims for power endurance, the barbell for maximal power. In addition, to state the obvious, the kettlebell snatch and barbell snatch are performed with objects that do not resemble one another at all. Importantly, though, any snatch should aim to move the object along the most efficient path: the more efficient the path, the greater the weight that can be moved either in terms of a single rep or in terms of the total volume.

The problem with using the high pull as a precursor to the snatch is that it doesn’t move the kettlebell along the most efficient path to overhead lockout. Generally, the high pull is taught from a swing base where there is a single hip and leg extension to propel the kettlebell into the upswing. With this swing base, force is applied at the end of the back swing as the lifter extends their legs and hips to stand up.

Force applied at the end of the back swing will send the kettlebell forward: if you were to let go of the kettlebell on the upswing it would fly across the room in front of you. This forwards movement then requires the lifter to pull back with the arm - the “high pull” component - to bring the kettlebell in towards the body in order to get it closer to where it should be for overhead lockout. This forwards and backwards movement is a giant power leak, according to Denisov in the snatch: “Too much horizontal speed is very bad.”

The increased reliance on the upper body in the high pull, in particular the fact that it will cause over-gripping, will also prematurely fatigue the weakest links in the lift. Fedorenko identifies this as one of the reasons people struggle with the snatch: “People try to use the max strength [in the] grip, that’s the mistake. You [have] to … spread your energy.” Further to this, most people will pull the kettlebell out to the side of their body when performing a kettlebell high pull, which adds unnecessary lateral movement into the mix (more power leakage).

The best way to propel the kettlebell up to overhead lockout is to apply force when it passes just in front of the knees. Applying force at this point will send the kettlebell upwards, rather than forwards; this enables the legs to be used to generate power and once the legs have done their job the grip gets a rest. In fact, one of Fedorenko’s tips for saving your grip is simply: “Make sure your legs [are] working.”

So how do you apply force as the kettlebell passes in front of the knees rather than at the end of the back swing? You add a “second dip”.

As the kettlebell swings into the back swing, instead of absorbing the shock by sitting back with a single flexion of the legs before standing up, follow the kettlebell back so that the legs extend (not necessarily to full lockout) at the end of the back swing. As a bonus, you will also get more out of the stretch shortening cycle of the hamstrings.

After the kettlebell reaches its natural end-point in the back swing, the change in direction to initiate the upswing comes not from standing up, but from flexing the knees again (this is the “second dip”). The kettlebell will swing forward in response to this second dip, allowing you to then stand up and apply force as it passes just in front of the knees. Denisov recommends that the shoulders stay at the same level, moving horizontally only, until the kettlebell reaches the knees, at which point the shoulders move vertically as a result of standing up and applying force. If you get the timing right, and apply sufficient force, the kettlebell should float upwards (if you let it go it would continue to fly upwards, rather than forwards).

Apart from increased efficiency and therefore, better training outcomes, learning to use the lower body properly also decreases the risk of injury. The hands, wrists, elbows and shoulders are the most vulnerable to injury and over-training in the kettlebell snatch; using the lower body as much as possible takes unnecessary stress off these areas.

The high pull is arguably the quickest and easiest way to progress to snatching a kettlebell, but the “double dip” swing base will get you better training outcomes with reduced injury risk and should therefore be regarded as best practice.