The power snatch and its variations is a great strength and conditioning exercise for an athlete. Usually this exercise is done in conjunction with lower body and upper body exercises in a strength training program. However, there are times during the year when due to travel or competition you may not have as much time to train. In those cases, it’s time to become more efficient with your training. This can be done by combining the snatch with other exercises. This post will cover several exercise variations that combine the snatch with other exercises to maximize your training time. This post will cover how to use several exercise variations that combine the snatch with other exercises to maximize your training time.
Examples of these include:
Snatch + Overhead Squat (perform the desired number of snatches in your set, stand up with the barbell overhead, and then perform overhead squats).
Pull + Snatch (perform the desired number of pull in your set then switch to the snatch).
Romanian Deadlift + Snatch (perform the desired number of Romanian deadlifts with a snatch grip, then perform the snatches).
With each of these variations, the lifts should be performed one at a time. For example, let’s say that you are doing snatches + overhead squats, for three sets, with three snatches and six overhead squats in each set. Ideally in each set you should perform all three snatches first, then do the six overhead squats. This helps to keep you focused on each exercise. With these type of exercise combinations, you are going to be limited by your weakest exercise. As a result, you should adjust the volume on your stronger exercise accordingly to keep things challenging. Using the snatch + overhead squat example, you can probably overhead squat more than you can snatch.
When I was working with competitive Olympic lifters, I would select one day of the week and make it combination exercise day. This would serve to overprepare the athletes for the rigours and fatigue of competition. For example, a workout session might look like:
Snatch + Overhead Squat, 3×3+4×70%
Snatch Pull + Snatch, 3×6+3×75%
Back Squats, 3×4-8×80%
Back Raises, 3×12-15
This has a lot of value during the season when there isn’t much time to train. For example, snatch grip Romanian deadlifts + snatches from the hang allows you to hit the back chain with the RDLs and to train power with the snatch in one exercise, which saves a lot of time and space in the weightroom.
Revised October 5, 2024
