If you know me you know I love the Big Bang exercises, starting with the Shoulder Press. One of the cousins of the press and another Big Bang movement is the Jerk. But for some reason, this movement scares people. They over analyze until they are paralyzed and ultimately never learn the movement. Here is how I break the Jerk down to make it simpler for my athletes. The biggest thing to remember is: Dip, Drive, Dip, then you Stand tall. It really is that simple.

*****First you need to have your mobility worked out… especially your thoracic mobility. Any ankle, hip, or shoulder issues and this move will make them worse. I require at least an FMS score of 2/2 in the shoulder before we begin to practice the Jerk.*****

These are the steps and movements I use to lead up to the Kettlebell Jerk.

Step One:
Loaded Holds. Clean a pair of heavy ‘bells and hold them in the rack position for time (30 secs, 1 min , 2 min). Here you’re learning to get comfortable under some heavy weight.

“Get comfortable being uncomfortable.” ~ Pavel Tsatsouline.
You’re also learning to brace -to really brace- your midsection. At this point you really want to spend some time  finding your Center of Gravity ( CoG ).
As with any rack position, root down, draw up your knee caps, glutes pinched, abs braced, lats flexed, shoulders in the back pockets.

Step Two:
The Dip. This is what really gets people frustrated with this lift. I think of the dip as a short squat or quarter front squat. This is a weightlifting FS not a powerlifting FS ( think more of a Goblet Squat). If your dip is too short you won’t move the ‘bells high enough to lock out. If your dip is too deep, you lose the mechanical advantage of the knee. You have to find that sweet spot (to get technical, Russian science says 11% of the height of the lifter is the depth).  As you practice this, think of compressing a very powerful spring that you’re going to let go. DO NOT hold/pause at the bottom of your Dip. Again find your CoG while moving.

Step Three:
The Drive. Start adding a bounce to your first Dip, while keeping the CoG between your mid foot and ankle joint. Start with your dip then explode out of the hole! The ‘bells should float at the top. Ride them back to your rack position and as soon as your arms contact your rib cage,  dip again to use your big muscles ( legs ) to distribute the force and repeat.  Here, again, you’re getting used to the weight and finding your CoG. Once you have a solid controlled bounce where the ‘bells reach at least parallel to your forehead, it’s time to move on.

Step Four:
Overhead Holds. Similar to the above but with a moderate set of ‘bells. Again you are getting comfortable with the weight overhead. Shoulders packed, hold for time. Start adding in your dip, with control, no explosion yet. Here your looking to groove your CoG with the weight overhead.Hand position is important here. Your going straight up from the rack.  There should be no outward motion of the arms. The closer to mid-line the safer you are.  One of my rules of thumb is when you look up at a ‘bell over your head you should be able to see the fat part of your thumb. If you only see iron you have issues ( this works for Pressing, and TGUs as well ).  This hand position has minimal movement in the shoulder joint keeping it in a safer position. And since the body of the ‘bell wants to come straight down if its over your face, it’s harder to bail out if things go wrong. 

Now to put it all together:
Get your mind right.

Clean your ‘bells. Root down, get comfortable.
First Dip
Drive, this is that ‘all or nothing’ point, you’re fully committed here… explode!
Second Dip, drop below the ‘bells to lock out your arms to catch weightless ‘bells overhead. In Kettlebells the start of a movement looks a lot like the finish, so this dip should look like the first.

Stand

You’re finished. Simple right?

We’ll add one more “D” the Drop. This is how you get the ‘bells back to the rack.  Ride the ‘bells back to the rack position and once your arms come in contact with your ribs, add a third dip, that looks like the first and second, to use your legs to catch the weight.

Return to the start position. You’re ready to go again.

Heels, up or down… this is always up for discussion.  All our Kettlebell movements drive through the heels, so, In my opinion, you should drive through the heels for Kettlebell Jerks. Just know that heels up or down are acceptable within the kettlebell community. Find what works best for you.

Don’t avoid this Big Bang movement, for for hip and leg power, shoulder stability and strength and to turn you body into a fat melting machine, Jerks are hard to beat. Enjoy..