By: Mark Gomes
There are some coaches who believe that the front leg should push back first, followed by the rear leg, and alternating smaller steps until the feet are parallel to the bar overhead.
However, some coaches believe the opposite; that the rear leg should push forward first then the front leg. If this is not done, they argue, the bar will remain hanging over mid air.
My opinion is to go with the front leg movement first. If this fails to work, then analyze your dip and push and if the bar is consistently slightly ahead, then the rear leg first may be best suited for you.
A random examination of some lifters at the St.Thomas Open noted that:
There were 13 successful Jerks among the six lifters.
Of the six lifters, 4 lifters always recovered with Front Leg first, 1 lifter always used the rear leg first, and one lifter used front leg for one jerk, but his rear leg for another jerk.
10/13 successful jerks were recovered with the front leg first.
Two of the three Masters Lifters recovered with their rear leg first (shoulder flexibility may be a concern.)
If the reception is solid, and the bar directly overhead, either recovery method may be ok. So one will have to judge themselves which recovery produced more stable results and successful lifts.
M Gomes
