5 Powerful Snatch Exercise Alternatives

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The snatch exercise can be beneficial but too challenging. Discover some alternatives to snatches that offer similar effects.

In the snatch exercise, you lift a weight (barbell, dumbbell, kettlebell, sandbag, etc.) from the ground with enough power so that you can catch it in an overhead squat position. To finish you squat upward.

Snatches work a variety of muscles including the lower back, erector spinae, glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, forearms, trapezius, calves, deltoids, biceps, and core.

On top of helping you build muscle, snatches can help you improve balance, improve coordination, burn calories, and offer other typical exercise benefits.

Whether you don’t enjoy snatches, you want more beginner-friendly options, or you want an alternative for any other reason, these snatch exercise substitutes can offer you some or all of the same benefits.

1. Deadlifts

The first snatch alternative is basically one of the main parts of the movement in a separate exercise. For deadlifts, you typically use a weighted barbell but other weights can work too up to a certain weight.

Take the following steps to do a deadlift with a barbell:

  1. Stand up straight with your feet at more or less shoulder width in front of a weighted barbell.
  2. Slightly fold your legs at the knees and tilt your upper body forward to grab the barbell on the ground.
  3. Tilt back your upper body and stretch your legs in one continuous motion until your upper body and legs are stretched in one straight line. When doing a deadlift it is very important to keep your back in a straight line during the exercise.
  4. Slowly move back into the position of step 2 by first tilting your upper body forward (with a straight back) and then folding your knees.

One difference between the snatch exercise and deadlifts is how far your hands are apart.

In barbell snatches your hands are farther apart which makes it so your glutes, hamstrings, and quadriceps go through a larger range of motion.

Once you have the technique down, you can do deadlifts in an explosive manner to simulate snatches more closely and possibly work up to them.

The muscles you work with deadlifts are mostly similar to snatches.

These muscles include your glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, lower back, erector spinae, forearms, calves, and trapezius. Deadlifts do engage your deltoids and biceps less than snatches.

2. Overhead squats

Squats are one of the, if not the most, popular leg exercises, and for a good reason. They are great for training a wide variety of leg muscles.

A variation of this typical exercise is even present in the snatch exercise. Take the following steps to do an overhead squat:

  1. Find a squat rack with enough room above your head for the rest of the exercise and place the barbell at about chest height.
  2. Stand under the barbell, push your shoulders up so that the barbell rests on your higher back, and hold it there with your hands. You can already put your hands slightly wider at the right distance for overhead squats.
  3. Unrack the barbell and take a few steps back so that you have enough. Stand up straight with your feet at more or less shoulder width.
  4. Lower your hips a small amount to get the barbell in an overhead position.
  5. Push your hips up explosively and move up the barbell in an overhead position in one motion.
  6. Slowly lower your hips by bending your knees. How far depends on different factors like knee health but at your lowest point you want your hips to be at or lower than your knee height.
  7. Push yourself up again into starting position by stretching your legs.

Doing overhead squats as a separate alternative can offer you a few benefits over going straight to snatches.

First of all, overhead squats help you get used to the weight distribution you will experience in the middle and final part of the snatch exercise. This can make this exercise a bit less challenging and help you avoid accidents.

Additionally, overhead squats help you train your glutes, quadriceps, calves, hamstrings, core, erector spinae, and deltoids which play important roles in snatches.

The walkthrough describes overhead squats with a barbell but you can also use dumbbells, kettlebells, workout sandbags, etc.

3. Upright rows

After the initial deadlift and before the overhead squats, you also bring the barbell up explosively during snatches. A lot of this moment will come from the initial deadlift but your trapezius, shoulders, and biceps also help a bit.

This part of the snatch exercise resembles upright rows a lot. That means you can do this exercise as a separate snatch alternative. Take the following steps to do an upright row with a barbell:

  1. Load the barbell with the desired number of weight plates. Stand right in front of it with feet about shoulder width apart.
  2. Grab the barbell with an overhanded grip, your hand palms pointing back/down, with your hands at about shoulder width or slightly wider.
  3. Lift the barbell and stand up straight. Keep your spine straight during this initial lift. Let your arms with the barbell hang down for now.
  4. Raise the barbell straight upward in a controlled manner until your hands are at about shoulder height.
  5. Slowly lower the barbell back into the position of step 3.

Upright rows work your trapezius, deltoid, bicep, and forearm muscles. By training these, the part of snatches where you bring the barbell from hip height to shoulder height will become somewhat easier.

During snatches a lot of the upward momentum comes from your legs and back. Because of this, the weights you will be able to use for upright rows tend to be lighter.

4. Clean and presses

Snatches can be a fun exercise to master while also working your muscles in nice amounts. There are also similar exercises with slightly different focuses like the clean and press.

Take the following steps to do this exercise:

  1. Stand up straight with your feet at more or less shoulder width in front of a weighted barbell.
  2. Slightly fold your legs at the knees and tilt your upper body forward to grab the barbell on the ground with your hand palms facing backward.
  3. Tilt back your upper body and stretch your legs in one continuous motion in an explosive way so you can raise the barbell enough for the following steps. It is very important to keep your back in a straight line during this step.
  4. Most of the upward force of the barbell will come from your legs but you can pull it upward slightly higher.
  5. Move under the barbell to a position where you can do the next step. You will have to change the angle of your wrists in relation to the barbell.
  6. Catch the barbell on the front part of your shoulders with your hands still holding the barbell to control it. Your hand palms will point upward and your legs should be slightly bent.
  7. Lower your hips a small amount after a few seconds of rest.
  8. Push your hips up explosively and press the barbell up in one continuous movement. Make sure your elbows are close enough to the center to avoid shoulder injuries.

Clean and presses are somewhat similar to snatches but there are a few important differences.

First of all, your glutes, hamstrings, and quadriceps will go through a slightly smaller range of motion during clean and presses. Both during the initial lift and the (mini) squats after.

Secondly, your shoulders will have to work more dynamically during this alternative.

In short, clean and presses typically focus slightly more on your shoulder muscles and less on your leg muscles than the snatch exercise.

5. Broad jumps

For the next snatch alternative, all you need is enough room to do the exercise. A softer surface like a grass field is welcome but not required. Take the following steps to do a broad jump:

  1. Stand up straight with your feet about shoulder-width apart.
  2. Slowly lower your hips by bending your knees. How far depends on different factors like knee health but at your lowest point you ideally want your hips to be at or lower than your knee height. You will likely have to bend forward for balance but keep your back in a straight line throughout the movement.
  3. Start leaning forward, depending on your calf flexibility you may have to lift your heels off the ground. You can move your arms back if you want to use them in the broad jump.
  4. Push your body up and forward fast, mainly with the help of your front upper leg muscles. You have to generate enough upward power so that you jump. You can swing your arms forward to jump farther.
  5. How you want to land depends on what body parts you want to absorb the shock. You generally want to at least fold your legs slightly so your knees don’t absorb all the weight.
How to do a broad jump exercise

Broad jumps can help you train your leg muscles in an explosive way similar to snatches. Jumping forward has the benefit that it will be easier on your body than jumping upward.

One potential downside of this alternative is that it does not offer any real shoulder workout.

You could wear something like a weighted vest during broad jumps to make the muscle strength/power gains more similar to snatches but this could be too hard on your body. More specifically your ankles and knees.

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Author:

Matt Claes founded Weight Loss Made Practical to help people get in shape and stay there after losing 37 pounds and learning the best of the best about weight loss, health, and longevity for over 4 years. Over these years he has become an expert in nutrition, exercise, and other physical health aspects.