Back Foot Hits First In The Split Jerk


In the split jerk, the rear foot should connect with the platform a split second before the front foot.

This allows you to push off the back leg slightly to keep your hips under the bar as you finish moving into the split.

This staggered connection generally won’t be significant enough to see in real time. In real time, it will typically look and sound like the feet hit together.

Without the back foot connecting first, it’s more likely that your hips will move behind the bar instead of under it, preventing a solid structure to support the weight. The effect is the same as the bar being pushed forward even if it wasn’t. This is a common cause of the need to recover forward in the split.

Don’t dive the head and chest forward under the bar as you split – this is often a cause of the rear leg and hips moving backward and forcing the front foot down first.

When you split, keep your head and chest up and step the front foot and hips forward.

Allow the proper trunk and head position to be a result of pushing the bar into place over the back of the neck with the arms like you would in a press or push press.

Use the jerk balance to get a feel for the motion in an exaggerated fashion.

Then use the tall jerk as a simple drill to focus on a proper split motion. Video yourself to check your feet and hold the split position to make sure your hips are under the bar and your weight is balanced equally between your two feet.

Lifting footage by Hookgrip

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