SHRUG？Or no SHRUG - That's not a question.

previous video talking about why no shrug in Olympic Lifts :
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Venus Weightlifting, Chinese Weightlifting.

Recently, we got a lot of DMs and comments from our fans asking about the shrug in Olympic Weightlifting. So I decided to make another video explaining my opinion, and that is you should never actively shrug in a lift. If you haven’t watched our first video on this topic, please check it out. We will leave a link in the description box below.

In this video, we will focus on a lifter’s movement following the triple extension. At this phase of the lift, the goal should be to bring the barbell to as high as possible. Because the higher the barbell is, the better chance a lifter can catch the bar to complete the lift.

Same as a lot of other weightlifting coaches, “shrug and elbows up” was an old cue I have used for a long time in the past. This was until one day when I was training with Deng Wei, the famous Olympic Gold Medalist, she mentioned to me “don’t shrug, or you cannot lift your elbows high in a snatch pull.” That’s when I started to question the use of this cue.

To begin, let us do a simple experiment. First, shrug your shoulders, then lift your elbows with your shoulders shrugged, see how much you can move your elbows. Then, relax your shoulders, and you will realize there is more room for your elbows to be rotated upwardly. And when there is a barbell in your hands, this would transfer to higher bar position, and better chance to complete a lift.
Let’s break down the biomechanics to further understand this concept, there are two main reasons:
When your scapula and ribs are in their neutral position, that’s when the scapulothoracic joint can function properly. The muscles attached between the scapula and the ribs are all very short, and when the shoulders are shrugged up, the muscles will be in a stretched position, which will limit muscle engagement and movement. So the cue of “shrug and elbows up” will lead to loss of stability and power leakage from your shoulders and ribs
Secondly, in order to lift your elbows high, the scapula needs to complete upward rotation, this is referred to as Scapulohumeral Rhythm. But if the shoulders are pre-shrugged, there won’t be enough space between the scapula and ribs that allow for such rotation. And that’s why you can’t lift your elbows while shrugging

So we now understand that, the optimal movement during the pull phase of the snatch is upward shoulder rotation, rather than just trying to elevate your shoulders, a.k.a. the snatch movement.
From the perspective of a weightlifting coach, I have always found that, when lifters, especially beginners, are given the “shrug and elbows up” cue, they tend to actively elevate their traps, which would lead to an awkward movement pattern, or worse, potential shoulder impingements.
Instead, I have come to the realisation that “rotate elbows upwardly” is a much better cue for all my clients. With this cue, they typically give me more natural and smoother movements, which would lead to a higher bar position and a straighter bar path.

So why does this “shrug and elbows up” cue exist in the first place? There is an old Chinese saying “能阴阳者非阴阳所能”. This means only focusing on the appearance of a matter does not allow you to be able to doit,
By Only Looking at the weightlifting videos , you won’t be able to understand the nature of the movement.
So yes, we’ve all seen the lifter’s shoulders moving upwardly, but is this means a lifter has to shrug actively, or it’s just an appearance of shoulder upward rotation. If it’s just the appearance should we need the shrug as a cue as an instruction?
In the current day and age of sport science, we have to understand the biomechanics behind each movement, and that is how we improve our techniques and reduce chances of injuries. And that’s what we believe at Venus Weightlifting.

There you go, that’s why we think elbow rotation is a much healthier and more useful cue than “shrug and elbows up”. I suggest you give it a try, regardless if you are a lifter or a coach like myself. We are not saying this is the only right way to teach weightlifting, this is just to explain our position and backing it up with science. We are always open to different opinions and friendly discussions. Leave us a comment, tell us what works the best for you.