This article will guide you through performing this simple yet tricky move. We’ve got tips on how to do a hang snatch and perfect your form. 

Plus, get to know the benefits of doing hang snatches and learn how to work this Olympic weightlifting-inspired move into your weekly workout routine. 

What is a Hang Snatch? 

Despite its odd-sounding name, the hang snatch is a variation of the Olympic snatch lift.

(What is Olympic lifting? If you don’t know, you can find out here: Olympic lifting vs. Powerlifting). 

This version focuses on explosive power and coordination. What’s the key difference between a hang snatch and a regular snatch? 

While you’re still “snatching” your barbell in the air, in this exercise, your barbell starts from a "hang" position. 

This means you start holding your barbell down by your hips with your arms extended, rather than pulling the barbell up from the floor. 

Here's how to do a hang snatch:

How Do You Do a Hang Snatch?

To master this requires a few steps and a lot of patience as you progress into the explosive portion of your movement. 

• Set Up: Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Hold a loaded barbell with a wide, overhand grip (snatch grip). Let the barbell hang in front of your thighs so your arms are fully extended.
• Body Position: Bend your knees and hips slightly as you hinge forward. Keep your back flat and your chest up. Your shoulders should sit slightly over your bar.
• Action: Start your movement by explosively straightening your legs, and lifting your bar up, close to your body. Shrug your shoulders and pull yourself under the bar, rotating your wrists to catch the bar overhead. As you catch your barbell, quickly drop back into a squat. Lock out your elbows. 
• Stand Up: Stand up from your squat, keeping your barbell overhead.
• Reps: Perform this move at low reps. You usually only want to perform about 1-5 of these lifts in a training session, aiming for either a one-rep or five-rep max. 

Hang Snatch— Tips and Tricks

Warm-Up

Make sure you give a good warm-up to your shoulders, hips, and legs. This will help you get ready for the taxing effort explosive movement can have on your body, especially once you start lifting heavier weights. 

Check Your Form 

Focus on maintaining your form so you don’t get injured. Once you’re familiar with it, the hang snatch can be a fun and challenging move to perform, but it does have a lot of moving parts. Make sure you’ve taken the time to break down each component of your lift, from your starting “hang” to the “catch” phase. Getting yourself under the barbell without injury is easier said than done! 

Try working with a spotter while you master your form and take the time to lift light or unweighted barbells before you progress. 

Follow the Proper Progression

As mentioned above, start with lighter weights to master your technique before progressing to heavier loads. Not only does this let you follow the principles of progressive overload— where you up your weight, reps, or the intensity of a workout as you increase in skill— it diminishes your risk of getting seriously injured. 

After all, who wants to get crushed by a heavy barbell?

Check your Mobility

Make sure you’ve got enough shoulder and hip mobility to perform this lift properly. The quick, explosive pattern of movement in a hang snatch can be taxing on your joints.

Start with a simple warm-up like shoulder or hip circles to get your joints warmed up. Want to know if your joints are mobile enough to start snatching? 

We’ve got a few simple mobility tests you can perform to see how you measure up and whether you’re ready for this tricky move. 

What are the Benefits of Hang Snatches? 

The hang snatch is a highly beneficial exercise, particularly for athletes and individuals looking to improve their overall strength and power. Here are some of the key benefits of incorporating hang snatch exercises into your fitness routine:

1. Explosive Power

First off, a hang snatch lets you build your explosive power. For this move, you need quick,  powerful hip and leg extensions. This helps you build up the type of power you need for most plyometric exercises. Clean pulls are another way you can start to increase the explosive quality of your movement. 

What is plyometric training? This is a discipline of exercise science that deals with explosive resistance exercises. Research on plyometric exercise and damage to type II muscle fibers (your fast-twitch muscle fibers, associated with quick moves, like you make in a hang snatch), shows that this type of training mainly affects this fiber type. 

A comparison of weightlifting, traditional resistance training and plyometrics on strength, power and speed found conventional weight training and plyometric training to both be effective ways to improve strength and sprint speed performance.  

2. Coordination and Balance

This is a technical and tricky move with many components working in unison. Because of this, the hang snatch can improve your neuromuscular coordination, balance, and proprioception (the perception or understanding of your body in space). 

3. Core Stability

Hang snatches can also act as a compound core exercise. Keeping the barbell stable overhead requires substantial core engagement, which strengthens your core muscles and gives you better overall stability.

4. Burns More Calories 

Looking to torch a few pounds? The hang snatch is a high-intensity exercise that can boost your metabolic rate, burn many calories, or potentially lower your metabolic age. Since it’s a dynamic move that gets your heart rate up, it can contribute to fat loss, improving your body composition.

Hang Snatch— Weekly Workout Plan

Now that we understand the benefits and technique behind the hang snatch and have a few performance tips and tricks up our sleeves, let’s see how this move fits into your weekly routine. 

This workout plan is structured around training for Olympic lifting, but you can always adjust as needed! 

Monday: Explosive Power

Explosive power is a key component of building your base for a solid hang snatch. Here is a day centered around training this movement quality. 

Warm-Up:

• Dynamic stretches and mobility exercises. You may also want to use chest warm up exercises to prepare for your workout (10 minutes). Try some light cardio too (5 minutes).

Workout:

• Hang Snatch: 3 sets of 3-5 reps
• Power Clean: 3 sets of 3-5 reps
• Box Jumps: 3 sets of 10 reps
• Plyometric Push-Ups: 3 sets of 10 reps

Accessory Moves (Optional):

• Overhead Barbell Squat: 3 sets of 8 reps
• Russian Twists: 3 sets of 15 reps (each side)

Cool-Down & Stretch:

• Try some light stretching or foam roll your muscles if you’re sore (10 minutes)

Tuesday: Upper Body Strength

Warm-Up:

• Grab a dowel with an overhand grip, lifting it overhead, then behind your back, keeping a grip on it the whole time. You can also use a towel in a pinch. This will help warm up your shoulders (10 minutes)

Workout:

• Military Press or Shoulder Press: 3 sets of 6-10 reps
• Bent Over Rows: 4 sets of 6-8 reps
• Pull-Ups: 3 sets of 8-10 reps

Accessory (Optional):

• Bodyweight Dips: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
• Bicep Curls: 3 sets of 12 reps

Cool-Down:

• Stretch your chest. You may also want to use a foam roller for your obliques or side muscles. (10 minutes)

Wednesday: Rest & Recover

• Take a light walk or do a slow yoga flow or tai chi workout. 

Thursday: Lower Body Strength

Warm-Up:

Dynamic stretches focusing on hips and legs (10 minutes)

Workout:

• Squats: 4 sets of 6-8 reps
• Deadlifts: 4 sets of 6-8 reps
• Lunges: 3 sets of 10 reps (each leg)
• Romanian Deadlifts: 3 sets of 10 reps

Accessory (Optional):

• Calf Raises: 3 sets of 15 reps
• Leg Press: 3 sets of 12 reps

Cool-Down:

• Stretching and foam rolling (10 minutes)

Friday: Power and Speed

Warm-Up:

• Dynamic stretches and mobility exercises (10 minutes)
• Light cardio (5 minutes)

Main Workout:

• Hang Snatch: 4 sets of 3-5 reps
• Power Clean and Jerk: 4 sets of 3-5 reps
• Medicine Ball Slams: 3 sets of 10 reps
• Sprints (hill sprints if outside): 5 sets of 50 meters

Accessory (Optional):

• Plank Hold: 3 sets of 45 seconds- 1 minute
• Hanging Leg Raises: 3 sets of 12 reps

Cool-Down:

• Full Body Stretch(10 minutes)

Day 6: Full Body Conditioning

Warm-Up

• Light cardio and stretching (15 minutes). 

Workout:

• Circuit Training: 
  • Kettlebell Swings: 15 reps
  • Push-Ups: 15 reps
  • Goblet Squats: 15 reps
  • Burpees: 15 reps
• Repeat this full circuit between 3 and 5 times, depending on your fitness goals and energy levels. 

Cool-Down:

• 10 minutes or more to stretch

Day 7: Rest or Active Recovery

• Take this day to recover as you please with a light walk or a simple stretch. 

Tips for Incorporation:

• Progression: Start with lighter weights to master the hang snatch technique before you increase your load.
• Consistency: Try to practice your hang snatches on days focused on power and explosiveness (day 1 and day 5 in this plan or Monday and Friday).
• Recovery: Make sure to get enough rest and recovery between sessions so you don’t overtrain.
• Form: Make proper form and technique priorities. This will help prevent injuries and give you more benefits.
• Variation: Don’t be shy to mix up your accessory exercises to target different muscle groups and keep the workouts interesting.

This plan can be adjusted based on your fitness level and goals. Make sure to listen to your body and modify the plan as needed

What are the Risks and Safety Considerations of the Hang Snatch?

When performing the hang snatch exercise, safety is paramount to prevent injury and ensure effective training. Here are three key safety considerations:

1. Technique 

• Always think about form first if you’re working towards a hang snatch. Although this move doesn’t have to be dangerous, it certainly can be if you are not lifting with proper technique and understanding the mechanics behind your movement. If you're new to the hang snatch, consider working with a qualified coach or personal trainer. 
• Start with an unloaded barbell to practice the movement pattern before you add weight.

2. Weight Choice

• Gradual Progression: Start with light weights to master the technique. Gradually increase the load as you become more comfortable and proficient. : If you feel pain or discomfort, lower your weight or take a break. Although this should feel like a challenge, it’s not worth pushing through pain and injuring yourself. 

3. Equipment

• Make sure you’re using good quality barbells and plates so you can bail, if necessary without damaging the equipment or yourself! Always check your barbell and weights for any damage before starting. Get familiar with barbell clips and other safety precautions and make sure any weight is secure before you lift.

Big Picture

If you want better improved explosive power, full-body strength, coordination, and mobility, the hang snatch is an exercise that covers all of these bases. 

When you work this dynamic lift into your fitness routine, you set yourself up to improve athletic performance, boost your metabolic rate, and build up functional strength. 

These factors translate to better performance, whether you’re into Olympic lifting or other sports. It can also help you out in your day-to-day activities. 

When you lift with proper technique and take your safety into account, adding the hang snatch to your workout plan can be a valuable addition to help you build strength, muscle and coordination. 

References

Davies, G., Riemann, B. L., & Manske, R. (2015). CURRENT CONCEPTS OF PLYOMETRIC EXERCISE. International journal of sports physical therapy, 10(6), 760–786.

Macaluso, F., Isaacs, A. W., & Myburgh, K. H. (2012). Preferential type II muscle fiber damage from plyometric exercise. Journal of athletic training, 47(4), 414–420. https://doi.org/10.4085/1062-6050-47.4.13

Morris, S. J., Oliver, J. L., Pedley, J. S., Haff, G. G., & Lloyd, R. S. (2022). Comparison of Weightlifting, Traditional Resistance Training and Plyometrics on Strength, Power and Speed: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis. Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 52(7), 1533–1554. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-021-01627-2

Plotkin, D., Coleman, M., Van Every, D., Maldonado, J., Oberlin, D., Israetel, M., Feather, J., Alto, A., Vigotsky, A. D., & Schoenfeld, B. J. (2022). Progressive overload without progressing load? The effects of load or repetition progression on muscular adaptations. PeerJ, 10, e14142. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.14142