Shot Put is one of the most explosive events in track and field. To perform at the highest level, these athletes must be technically proficient in the circle, strong as a bull in the weight room, and explosive as a cheetah. Out of all the exercises a thrower can use to help build them to peak performance, this one exercise reigns overall, and today, we will be sharing what that exercise is!
The BEST Exercise!
The Snatch is the one exercise that reigns over all other exercises when building strength for peak performance in the shot put. The snatch is like the Swiss Army Knife of exercise. It is a technical coordination exercise that builds explosiveness, strength, mobility, and coordination.
How Does It Relate to Shot Putting?
Shot Put is a power-based event. Throwers who can generate high levels of power in the shortest amount of time are the athletes who perform the best. They work endlessly to increase their strength and power capabilities so that they can accelerate the implement on the longest path possible to achieve great distances. The best exercise to increase those capabilities outside the circle is with the snatch.
As mentioned, the Snatch has several components that build physical performance, building strength, speed, endurance, mobility, and coordination, components vital to perform at the highest level. There are several commonalities between snatching and shot putting, such as the coordination of the body to execute the movement, moving from and into long ranges of motion, and accelerating loads at high speeds. It's the perfect exercise for any athlete to reach that next level.
I Don't Know How to Snatch?
Don't worry; we have resources that you can use to help implement snatching into your training regimen. Head over to the Garage Strength YouTube page, where Dane will go over snatching and different variations of the lift. For a quick explanation, check out the video linked below!
Recap
Snatches are the BEST exercises for developing shot putters, throwers, and overall athletes. It's an exercise that trains all the components needed for high performance in the throwing events.
For further details, check out our video, where Dane talks about snatches and how they help shot throwers!
FIREMEUP - Sam Weeks
"Our aim is to provide concise and concrete education and training on the throws, helping coaches and athletes learn what they need to do to succeed and become champions."
- Dane, Trevor, and Sam
After re-reading my original comment, I realized that I also want to add something positive. I wanted to simply edit my original comment with an update, but apparently editing comments is not possible.
Anyway, while I expressed concerns about advocacy for Olympic-style lifting as a tool for improving throws performance. I want the publishers of Throws University to know that otherwise I very much appreciate and respect the content that they share and wish that this type of resource was available when I was a young thrower. For instance, while viewing some video you guys posted, I realized that the reason that I was dumping throws out of the right side of the sector and out of bounds (b…
Research shows that focusing upon resistance exercises that focus purely upon increasing muscle size and strength, while minimizing risk of injury and then applying that newly acquired strength to sport specific training is vastly superior in improving outcomes than performing Olympic lifts and hoping that there is a translation of the motion of the lift to the specific sport activity. Certainly one can achieve some gains through using Olympic lifts, but it is not the most effective and safe means for achieving best results.
The video is awesome. Such strength, speed, explosiveness, flexibility, and guts!
But, what do powerlifters and weightlifters have in common? OK, don't dwell on that too long. I'll tell you. They are trying to get from the start to the finish expending the least energy possible.
For example, the sideways splitting of the legs actually reduces the vertical height that the lifter has to lift before the final foot adjustment (that was clipped from the video). Sumo deadlift is a great example of "cheating". If done correctly by a 5'8" lifter, the weights at the end of each side of the bar only go up by about 4".
To improve the usefulness of power snatch, keep the feet planted. Go…