Split Jerk - Front Shin Vertical
Why do we want the front shin vertical in the split jerk?
Simple: it ensures the position is strong and stable.
We need to be able to push off both the front and back legs in order to stabilize the jerk. Once the knee moves in front of the ankle, the front leg gets progressively weaker.
You can feel this easily by first holding yourself in a split position with your shin vertical for a little while.
Then, without moving the rest of your body, bring your front foot back so that your knee is in front of your ankle. Now hold that and see how you feel.
I had a guy once argue with me about this by saying I was an idiot because one of the greatest lifters of all time, Norb Schemansky, jerked with his knee way in front of his foot, and even gave me a link to a photograph to prove it…
Unfortunately for him and his argument, the photo was of Norb split snatching. Not the same split position as the jerk at all.
You’ll see lifters occasionally make huge jerks with the knee a bit too far forward—this is what’s known as an imperfect lift, not a technique. You’ll also note that nearly invariably lifters in this situation have to move forward as they recover to save the jerk—both because they’re imbalanced, and because the front leg isn’t in a strong enough position to stop forward motion as the weight settles.
Simple: it ensures the position is strong and stable.
We need to be able to push off both the front and back legs in order to stabilize the jerk. Once the knee moves in front of the ankle, the front leg gets progressively weaker.
You can feel this easily by first holding yourself in a split position with your shin vertical for a little while.
Then, without moving the rest of your body, bring your front foot back so that your knee is in front of your ankle. Now hold that and see how you feel.
I had a guy once argue with me about this by saying I was an idiot because one of the greatest lifters of all time, Norb Schemansky, jerked with his knee way in front of his foot, and even gave me a link to a photograph to prove it…
Unfortunately for him and his argument, the photo was of Norb split snatching. Not the same split position as the jerk at all.
You’ll see lifters occasionally make huge jerks with the knee a bit too far forward—this is what’s known as an imperfect lift, not a technique. You’ll also note that nearly invariably lifters in this situation have to move forward as they recover to save the jerk—both because they’re imbalanced, and because the front leg isn’t in a strong enough position to stop forward motion as the weight settles.
