The Barbell Split Jerk is a dynamic overhead lift that develops power and coordination.

  1. Start with the barbell resting on your shoulders, feet shoulder-width apart.
  2. Dip slightly by bending your knees, then explosively extend your legs while pressing the barbell overhead.
  3. As you press, split your legs into a lunge position, landing with one foot forward and the other back.
  4. Stabilize the bar overhead, then return to the starting position.

How to perform the Barbell Split Jerk

  1. Set up. Set up in a stable, balanced starting position appropriate for the Barbell Split Jerk using your barbell.
  2. Brace and execute. Brace your core, control the descent, and move through a full pain-free range of motion while emphasizing your hamstrings.
  3. Reset. Reverse the movement under control and reset between repetitions, keeping your form crisp on every rep.

Coaching cues

  • Move with intent — every rep should feel deliberate, not rushed.
  • Drive force through your hamstrings rather than momentum.
  • Keep your breathing steady: exhale on the hard part, inhale on the reset.

Common mistakes

  • Using too much weight and losing positional control.
  • Cutting the range of motion short and missing the target muscle.
  • Letting your spine round or hyperextend instead of staying neutral.

Detailed cues, common mistakes, and demonstration video are available in the Fitly app.

Build a free routine

Stage exercises here, then sign up to save them as a real Fitly routine — synced to web and mobile.

View staged routine (0)

Related exercises

0 exercises staged Save your routine — sign up free.