The Tsar of the Kettlebell Lifts is one of the lines from Pavel’s original book on kettlebell lifting describing the kettlebell snatch. And while the center of the Hard Style kettlebell universe might be the Swing and the Get-Up, the kettlebell snatch takes the skills built there to the next level. For example, to get close to the intensity of a 24kg snatch, you need to be swinging the 32 or 36kg kettlebell.

Fast, powerful, and demanding, the kettlebell snatch is the culmination of the swing, get-up, clean, and military press. While you may have heard that a snatch is a swing that ends up overhead, it is, more appropriately, a clean that ends up overhead. That exact line is in the original RKC book, and we went on a 20+ year journey to rediscovery that powerful image.

But other than catchy names and powerful imagery, is there any research on the kettlebell snatch?

While there is more research on the kettlebell swing than on the snatch, there are a couple of studies looking at the cardiopulmonary or aerobic demands and impacts of the kettlebell snatch:

Effects of Kettlebell Training on Aerobic Capacity

Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 29(7):p 1943-1947, July 2015.

Falatic et al.

“Thus, the 4-week 15:15 MVO₂ kettlebell protocol, using high-intensity kettlebell snatches, significantly improved aerobic capacity in female intercollegiate soccer players and could be used as an alternative mode to maintain or improve cardiovascular conditioning.”

The control group “…performed multiple free-weight and dynamic body-weight exercises as part of a continuous circuit program for 20 minutes.” 

How much was the VO2max increase in the kettlebell group? “The average increase was 2.3 ml·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹, or approximately a 6% gain.” 

Cardiopulmonary Demand of 16-kg Kettlebell Snatches in Simulated Girevoy Sport

Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 34(6):p 1625-1633, June 2020.

“This study supports existing literature that kettlebell lifting is capable of challenging the aerobic system. The cardiopulmonary demand of continuous 16-kg kettlebell snatches on the population tested was of a sufficient magnitude to provoke increases in aerobic fitness in the moderately trained and lower.”

Interestingly, this study uses both a kettlebell and a rowing test to establish the heart rate and oxygen consumption. Both tests were graded tests where the intensity was increased at a consistent rate across ten minutes. The snatches increased from 1 rep every 9 seconds to 1 rep every 3 seconds across the time frame; rowing was increased by 50 watts every 1.5 min.

And “pacing at 1 repetition every 4 seconds or faster may deliver the necessary stimulus in a recreationally active population, as subjects in this study reached 58.1 ± 7.7% V̇O₂max by minute 6 of the protocol.”

This is similar to an anaerobic threshold test used in some Strong Endurance^TM protocols to set workload and intensity for snatching protocols.

But what muscles am I working?

Kettlebell Swing, Snatch, and Bottoms-up Carry: Back and Hip Muscle Activation, Motion and Low Back Loads

Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 26(1):p 16-27, January 2012. 

Dr. McGill examined muscle activation in kettlebell exercises and even Pavel’s swing. Two interesting findings of note: