Shrug in Snatch & Clean?
The shrug in a snatch or clean is not part of the effort to accelerate and lift the bar—It’s a natural part of the active pull under the bar.
We pull with the arms to move under the bar quickly and aggressively—the shoulders naturally shrug up with that upright rowing motion.
This means the shrug begins at the top of the pull but finishes as you’re moving down.
Don’t shrug directly or maximally, especially to continue lifting the bar while still pushing into the floor.
Let the shoulder elevation happen naturally as you pull down with the arms, and focus instead on keeping the bar close by squeezing the shoulders back during this motion.
Feel and practice this with a high-pull from power position + a tall snatch or clean.
The idea that shrugging at the top of the snatch or clean is the last upward “pop” for the lifts has been around for a long time and has been incorrect since the bar was allowed to touch the body on the way up decades ago.
Try doing an upright row without allowing your shoulders to elevate and you’ll understand what I’m saying here—that shrug is a natural part of lifting the elbows up and out, which is how we’re accelerating UNDER the bar.
It will not be a full range of motion shrug.
Also good to note that the farther back the upper body is leaned, the less pronounced the shrug will be—this is simply because that extra space between the bar path approximately over the feet and the shoulders means the elbows need to be bent less, which means less shrug.
We pull with the arms to move under the bar quickly and aggressively—the shoulders naturally shrug up with that upright rowing motion.
This means the shrug begins at the top of the pull but finishes as you’re moving down.
Don’t shrug directly or maximally, especially to continue lifting the bar while still pushing into the floor.
Let the shoulder elevation happen naturally as you pull down with the arms, and focus instead on keeping the bar close by squeezing the shoulders back during this motion.
Feel and practice this with a high-pull from power position + a tall snatch or clean.
The idea that shrugging at the top of the snatch or clean is the last upward “pop” for the lifts has been around for a long time and has been incorrect since the bar was allowed to touch the body on the way up decades ago.
Try doing an upright row without allowing your shoulders to elevate and you’ll understand what I’m saying here—that shrug is a natural part of lifting the elbows up and out, which is how we’re accelerating UNDER the bar.
It will not be a full range of motion shrug.
Also good to note that the farther back the upper body is leaned, the less pronounced the shrug will be—this is simply because that extra space between the bar path approximately over the feet and the shoulders means the elbows need to be bent less, which means less shrug.
