The tendency during Olympic lifts is to focus on the jump and shrug, which is important, but the footwork is often neglected. Your starting and finishing foot position play a major part in the efficiency of the lift. Below is an excerpt from an article by Coach Bergener in the CrossFit Journal.
“The proper stance in the pulling, or jumping, position
aligns the feet under the hips. This jumping position
allows more force against the ground when driving the
bar upward. This is also the most natural stance—the
one that 99% of the population naturally assumes when
asked to prepare to jump high: the feet directly under
the hips. If the feet are too wide, the potential for
power is lost. If the feet are too close, both balance and
drive are sacrificed. The remedy is simply to consciously
place the feet under the hips to begin the pulling
sequence.
The width of the landing position is approximately 1 to
3 inches outside the jumping position, or generally
under the shoulders, with the knees bent, chest up, back
arched, and weight placed on the feet from mid-foot to
the heel. The movement of the feet from the jumping to
the landing position should be fast and aggressive,
without any excessive lift of the feet (which is known as
donkey kicking). This is true for the clean, the snatch,
and the push jerk.
If the feet are too wide in the landing position, the
athlete loses the ability to receive the weight in a
controlled manner, and his ability to recover strongly
out of the low position is compromised. The same goes
for receiving the weight with the feet too narrow, which
both limits the athlete’s flexibility and reduces the
stability of the body in receiving the bar.”
Strength
Clean and Jerk
3-3-2-1-1-1
WOD
12 min AMRAP
3 Squat Cleans
6 Push-ups
9 Box Jumps (24/20)
L3/Advanced (135/95)
L2 (115/80)
L1 (95/65)