Exercise Library
Snatch Short Pull
AKA Lasha snatch pull, snatch low pull
AKA Lasha snatch pull, snatch low pull
The snatch short pull is a partial pull variation that focuses on staying over the bar.
Perform a snatch pull, but instead of opening the hips to extend completely at the top, keep the shoulders in front of the bar as you finish an explosive vertical leg drive with flat feet and shrug the shoulders. Actively push the bar back against the body aggressively at the top, and ensure you remain balanced evenly over the whole foot.
Return the bar to the floor under minimal control to maintain your grip and basic position for the next rep.
Notes
A common error is to shift to the heels at the top, often to the point of the toes completely lifting off the floor—maintain whole foot balance just as you would in any other pull. The short pulls differs from the pull to hip in that there is acceleration at the top and a shrug to guide the bar up against the body.
Purpose
The snatch short pull is a pulling variation that emphasizes staying over the bar and actively pushing the bar into the body. Unlike a pull to hip, there is maximal acceleration at the top, which is why we need to shrug to help guide the bar against the body. It’s primarily used to improve leg drive in the pull, but it’s a tricky exercise to do well—many lifters aren’t able to do it well enough for it to be effective, and in those cases, it can be counterproductive.
Programming
Generally the snatch short pull should be done for 2-5 reps per set anywhere from 80%-100% of the lifter’s best snatch. Newer lifters whose snatches are significantly limited by technique will likely need to pull much heavier percentages to adequately train strength in the pull. In any case, the weight should not exceed what the lifter can do with proper positioning and technique.
It can be temporarily used a substitute for regular pulls, although it’s better in combination with them, either in the same session or week. Short pulls are also good to place in a complex that finishes with one on more regular pulls to help apply the technique of the short pull to the pull.
As a strength exercise, it should be placed toward the end of a workout, but because it also involves some speed and technique, it’s generally best placed before more basic strength work like squats.
Variations
The snatch short pull can be performed on a riser, from blocks, with slow eccentrics (3-6 seconds typically), with one or more pauses on the way up, from various hang or block heights, with slow concentrics in the lower range to emphasize control over posture and balance, with a static or dynamic start, with or without straps, and many other possibilities.
Perform a snatch pull, but instead of opening the hips to extend completely at the top, keep the shoulders in front of the bar as you finish an explosive vertical leg drive with flat feet and shrug the shoulders. Actively push the bar back against the body aggressively at the top, and ensure you remain balanced evenly over the whole foot.
Return the bar to the floor under minimal control to maintain your grip and basic position for the next rep.
Notes
A common error is to shift to the heels at the top, often to the point of the toes completely lifting off the floor—maintain whole foot balance just as you would in any other pull. The short pulls differs from the pull to hip in that there is acceleration at the top and a shrug to guide the bar up against the body.
Purpose
The snatch short pull is a pulling variation that emphasizes staying over the bar and actively pushing the bar into the body. Unlike a pull to hip, there is maximal acceleration at the top, which is why we need to shrug to help guide the bar against the body. It’s primarily used to improve leg drive in the pull, but it’s a tricky exercise to do well—many lifters aren’t able to do it well enough for it to be effective, and in those cases, it can be counterproductive.
Programming
Generally the snatch short pull should be done for 2-5 reps per set anywhere from 80%-100% of the lifter’s best snatch. Newer lifters whose snatches are significantly limited by technique will likely need to pull much heavier percentages to adequately train strength in the pull. In any case, the weight should not exceed what the lifter can do with proper positioning and technique.
It can be temporarily used a substitute for regular pulls, although it’s better in combination with them, either in the same session or week. Short pulls are also good to place in a complex that finishes with one on more regular pulls to help apply the technique of the short pull to the pull.
As a strength exercise, it should be placed toward the end of a workout, but because it also involves some speed and technique, it’s generally best placed before more basic strength work like squats.
Variations
The snatch short pull can be performed on a riser, from blocks, with slow eccentrics (3-6 seconds typically), with one or more pauses on the way up, from various hang or block heights, with slow concentrics in the lower range to emphasize control over posture and balance, with a static or dynamic start, with or without straps, and many other possibilities.
