The Push Jerk Exercise Guide

Video Demonstration

The Push Jerk will help you to develop your body's strength and endurance.

This lift has become very popular in many CrossFit and athletic training routines. It requires raw overhead power and proper technique for someone to perform this lift correctly.

Before using this lift you should already have a solid technique with the strict presses, and push presses.

The Strict Press will teach you how to move a weight overhead.

The Push Press will instruct you how to begin using your legs to help drive a weight overhead.

Push Jerk How to Guide

Image Example

Step by Step Description

Step 1: Use a Squat rack and position the height of the barbell to be just under the height of your shoulders.

Step 2: Have your arms and feet approximately shoulder width apart. Grab the bar with an overhand grip and bend your wrist backward (the palms of your hand should be facing upwards towards the roof).

Step 3: Unrack the bar. Hold it at shoulder height and take a step backward.

Step 4: Push your hips back and slightly bend at your knees to dip your body down. Now quickly reverse direction by driving your heels into the floor. As you drive your feet into the floor push the bar by extending at your elbows to press the weight overhead. You need to push hard enough with your legs to create a small jump. Use the momentum to help you move the weight overhead.

Step 5: While your arms are still locked out hold the weight overhead for 2 seconds and then lower it back to shoulder height.

Congratulations you have now completed one repetition.

Difficulty Level

The Push Jerk is an intermediate training method. You should have several months of lifting under your belt before attempting to do this lift.

Equipment Required

The variation you choose will determine the gear that you will need.

The exercise can get done with a barbell, Dumbbells, or kettlebells.

Being able to use multiple different equipment types makes the Push Jerk an extremely useful exercise.

Muscles Worked

The Push Jerk will work almost every muscle in your body.

The primary muscles involved in the lift are your Quadriceps.

The secondary muscles that get worked when you perform this exercise are your Shoulders, Triceps, Forearms, Core, Glutes, Hamstrings, and the Hip Flexors.

Benefits of the Push Jerk

Many people will use this lift to prepare for other more complicated Olympic lifts like the clean and Jerk.

It will teach you how to begin to use the momentum from a squat to move a weight over your head.

The exercise will help you to build explosive power and strength when you use it while lifting heavy. It is also shown to strengthen the posterior chain and create explosive hip power.

You can also use it to train your endurance and cardiovascular system. All you have to do is lighten the amount of weight you are lifting and perform a high number of repetitions.

When you are using it with a lighter weight try including it into an HIIT training routine to burn the highest amount of calories you can.

Training Tips

Focus on keeping the weight moving in the vertical plane.

If you squat from your toes instead of the heels, it will cause your body to rock back and forth.

Rocking will make lifting more difficult and decreases the efficiency of this exercise.

• Variations of the Push Jerk

• Split Jerk

• Power Jerk

• Jerk Balance

Inclosing

You can use this lift to help enter the world of Olympic lifts.

Go with a heavy weight to train your body for power and strength.

Alternatively, you can lighten the weight used and move the training to focus on your cardiovascular system instead.

If you are looking to slim down use it with a High-Intensity Interval Training program to burn a tremendous number of calories.

We offer a free Online HIIT Timer. You do not need to pay or register with us to use it.

So if you are going to use this lift with some HIIT training give the timer a try and let us know what you think.