What is the difference between a squat jerk and a power jerk?

The dip, drive and foot position are the same, but the squat jerk is caught in a full overhead squat with the thighs below horizontal. If the lifter stops and stands up before the thighs pass horizontal, the lift is a power jerk.

Is the squat jerk better than the split jerk?

Not for most lifters. A video analysis of elite male weightlifters' competition jerks found the dip and drive were essentially the same in both styles, but the squat-style catch dropped the bar much lower and left a far smaller front-to-back margin for balance than the split. The squat jerk needs less bar height, while the Barbell Split Jerk is more forgiving and easier to stand up from, which is why it remains the most common style.

Why do so few lifters use the squat jerk?

It asks for more mobility than any other jerk style, leaves very little room for error in where the bar lands, and has the hardest recovery, often straight after standing up from a heavy clean. Few lifters have all of those qualities at once, so most choose the split jerk.

How do I know if I have the mobility for a squat jerk?

Hold an empty bar overhead with your jerk grip and sit into a paused Barbell Overhead Squat. If you can reach full depth with your heels down, your torso upright and your elbows locked, you have the position the catch needs; if not, train that overhead squat before trying the squat jerk.

How should I program the squat jerk?

Lifters who compete with it usually train it in sets of 1 to 3 reps, from about 70% of their best squat jerk up to near-maximal attempts, early in the session after their snatch work. The behind-the-neck version lets the bar travel straight up and usually allows more weight, so it is a common way to overload the jerk.

Barbell Squat Jerk

What Is the Barbell Squat Jerk?

Barbell Squat Jerk is a compound exercise that primarily targets the shoulders and quads and also engages the glutes, triceps, upper back and the trunk muscles that keep the torso upright. It is an advanced-level movement in which a short dip and an explosive leg drive launch the barbell off the front of the shoulders, and the lifter drops under it into the bottom of a full overhead squat, then stands up with the bar locked overhead.

The squat jerk is one of the three accepted ways to finish the Barbell Clean and Jerk in Olympic weightlifting, alongside the split jerk and the power jerk, and it is by far the rarest. A review of weightlifting overhead lifts describes it as a challenging style used mainly by Chinese lifters, while the Barbell Split Jerk remains the most common style in competition. Lifters who use it in competition usually train it in sets of 1 to 3 reps early in the session, after their snatch work. Outside of weightlifting it has little use as a training exercise, and coaches looking for overhead stability work usually choose the Barbell Overhead Squat instead.

As with every jerk, the legs do the lifting: the quads and glutes drive the bar up off the shoulders, the deltoids and triceps punch it to lockout, and the upper back holds it in place. What sets the squat jerk apart is the catch. Because the lifter receives the bar in a full squat, the bar needs less height than in any other style, but the lifter pays for it with the highest mobility demand of the three, the smallest margin for error in bar position and the hardest recovery. In competition it usually comes straight after a heavy Barbell Squat Clean, so the legs have to stand up from two full squats with a maximal weight. The version shown moves the feet from a hip-width drive stance into a slightly wider squat stance; some lifters keep the feet planted instead, and the behind-the-neck version starts with the bar on the upper back.

It suits a small group of lifters who have no mobility limits in the shoulders, upper back, hips and ankles, very strong legs and a consistent, balanced dip and drive, but who struggle to drive the bar high enough for a power jerk. Everyone else is better served by the split jerk. Before trying it, build a deep, upright overhead squat with a jerk-width grip, a strong Barbell Front Squat and a reliable Push Press, and learn the squat jerk with an empty bar before adding weight.

Muscles Worked

MuscleActivation

Deltoid: Primary
Vastus Lateralis: Primary
Vastus Medialis: Primary
Gluteus Maximus: High
Rectus Femoris: High
Triceps Brachii (Lateral Head): High
Adductor Magnus: Medium
Erector Spinae: Medium
Serratus Anterior: Medium
Upper Trapezius: Medium
Gastrocnemius (Medial Head): Low

Instructions

Set the bar in a rack at about upper-chest height, take a full grip just outside shoulder width and step under it so it rests on the front of the shoulders against the throat.
Walk the bar out and stand with the heels about hip width apart and the toes turned slightly out, weight over the whole foot and slightly toward the heels.
Let the elbows sit down and slightly in front of the bar, not high as in a front squat. Take a big breath and brace the trunk.
Dip by bending only the knees, keeping the torso vertical and the knees tracking out over the toes. Go down only a few inches.
Stop the dip sharply and drive straight up through the whole foot, extending the knees and hips hard so the bar leaves the shoulders.
Pull the head back as the bar passes the face, then push against the bar and drop under it, moving the feet slightly out into your squat stance with the toes turned out.
Punch the elbows straight as you go down and keep sinking into the bottom of a full overhead squat, hips below the knees, heels down and chest up.
Hold the bar over the back of the neck and the middle of the foot until it is completely still.
Stand up with the bar locked overhead until the hips and knees are fully straight, then bring the feet back under the hips.
Lower the bar under control to the front of the shoulders, softening the knees to absorb it, and reset before the next rep.

Common Mistakes

Dipping forward onto the toes
Letting the knees shoot forward and the heels rise in the dip sends the drive forward, so the bar ends up in front of the body where it cannot be held in a full squat.
Pressing with the arms too early
Pushing with the arms before the legs finish the drive slows the bar and leaves it too low, so the lifter has to drop deeper than planned with a weaker lockout.
Pressing out the lockout
Catching with bent elbows and straightening them in the squat makes the shoulders and triceps finish the lift, and it is a failed lift in competition.
Letting the chest drop in the bottom
When the torso tips forward in the squat, the bar drifts in front of the feet and the small margin for error in this catch is gone.
Lifting the heels in the catch
Heels that come up in the bottom usually mean the ankles cannot reach the depth, which tips the weight forward and strains the knees.
Standing up before the bar is still
Rising while the bar is still moving overhead throws off the balance needed for the hardest part of the lift, so settle it in the bottom before standing.

Injuries

Barbell Squat Jerk is a medium risk exercise when performed with proper technique. The shoulders take the most stress, because they have to stop a fast-moving bar and then hold it at the end of their overhead range with a fairly narrow grip while the body sinks into a full squat. The wrists are bent back in the rack and overhead, the elbows take the load if the bar is caught on bent arms, and the knees and hips absorb the dip, the drop and the recovery from the bottom. When the shoulders or upper back lack mobility, lifters let the chest fall or arch the lower back to keep the bar overhead, which moves the strain onto the spine.

The risk rises quickly for lifters without the mobility the position demands, so this lift is not a good fit for anyone with shoulder impingement, a shoulder that is unstable overhead, a recent wrist or elbow injury, or hips and ankles that cannot reach an upright full squat. Warm up the shoulders, upper back and ankles first, and keep the weight at a level you can hold in a paused Barbell Overhead Squat with a jerk-width grip, heels down and elbows locked. Train on a platform with bumper plates and clear space around you, and practice missing with an empty bar: push the bar away and move your body the other way rather than trying to save it with bent arms or a rounded back.

To regress, return to the Push Press or the overhead squat, or catch the bar higher in a power jerk until the bottom position is secure. If the full-depth catch never feels stable, the Barbell Split Jerk gives a longer base and an easier recovery. Stop the set if you feel a sharp or pinching pain in the shoulder, pain in the wrist or elbow, knee pain in the bottom, or lower-back pain as you stand up.

Overview

Primary Focus: Full body
Equipment: Barbell
Modality: Strength
Difficulty: Advanced

Alternative Exercises

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the difference between a squat jerk and a power jerk?: The dip, drive and foot position are the same, but the squat jerk is caught in a full overhead squat with the thighs below horizontal. If the lifter stops and stands up before the thighs pass horizontal, the lift is a power jerk.
Q: Is the squat jerk better than the split jerk?: Not for most lifters. A video analysis of elite male weightlifters' competition jerks found the dip and drive were essentially the same in both styles, but the squat-style catch dropped the bar much lower and left a far smaller front-to-back margin for balance than the split. The squat jerk needs less bar height, while the Barbell Split Jerk is more forgiving and easier to stand up from, which is why it remains the most common style.
Q: Why do so few lifters use the squat jerk?: It asks for more mobility than any other jerk style, leaves very little room for error in where the bar lands, and has the hardest recovery, often straight after standing up from a heavy clean. Few lifters have all of those qualities at once, so most choose the split jerk.
Q: How do I know if I have the mobility for a squat jerk?: Hold an empty bar overhead with your jerk grip and sit into a paused Barbell Overhead Squat. If you can reach full depth with your heels down, your torso upright and your elbows locked, you have the position the catch needs; if not, train that overhead squat before trying the squat jerk.
Q: How should I program the squat jerk?: Lifters who compete with it usually train it in sets of 1 to 3 reps, from about 70% of their best squat jerk up to near-maximal attempts, early in the session after their snatch work. The behind-the-neck version lets the bar travel straight up and usually allows more weight, so it is a common way to overload the jerk.