Power Clean
The power clean turns a heavy hip extension into whole-body speed, teaching you to drive the ground away and finish through the hips. It builds rate of force development that carries into every jump, sprint, and heavy pull. Reserve it for trainees who already own a clean deadlift and front rack, and program it early in a session while you are fresh.
- Equipment
- Barbell
- Type
- Plyometric, Strength
- Browse by muscle
- Gluteus Maximus, Biceps Femoris, Erector Spinae, Vastus Lateralis
- Browse by movement
- Hinge
- Target
- Gluteus Maximus, Biceps Femoris, Erector Spinae, Vastus Lateralis
- Secondary
- Semitendinosus, Rectus Femoris, Trapezius Upper, Trapezius Middle
- Tertiary
- Deltoid Anterior, Deltoid Middle, Abdominal External Oblique, Brachioradialis
How to do it
- 1
Set your feet hip-width under the bar with the bar over mid-foot and grip just outside the knees.
- 2
Set a flat back, chest up, shoulders slightly ahead of the bar, and take the slack out of the arms.
- 3
Push the floor away to bring the bar past the knees, keeping it close to the shins and thighs.
- 4
Once the bar clears the thighs, extend the hips, knees, and ankles violently and shrug tall.
- 5
Pull yourself under the bar and whip the elbows around fast into a front-rack catch in a quarter squat.
- 6
Stand tall to finish, then lower the bar under control back to the floor for the next rep.
Tips
- Keep the bar brushing your thighs; a bar that swings out forward kills the vertical drive.
- Think 'jump, then pull under' rather than muscling the bar up with the arms.
- Meet the bar with your legs by dropping into a partial squat, not by dropping your chest.
Variations
Common mistakes
- Letting the hips rise faster than the shoulders off the floor, so the bar breaks the ground with your back already tipped more horizontal and the legs out of the lift. The lower back is left doing the legs' job.
- Setting up with the bar over the toes instead of mid-foot. It swings out as it leaves the floor, and every problem after that is a symptom of the first inch.
- Receiving with the elbows pointing down, so the bar lands on the wrists and the hands have to hold it. Whip the elbows through fast and let it sit on the shoulders.
- Jumping the feet out into a wide starfish on the catch. A shift of a few inches is plenty; a wide landing leaves you in a position you cannot stand out of.
- Cycling sets of ten for conditioning. Once bar speed drops this becomes a slow, rounded pull, which is the version most likely to hurt your back.
Frequently asked
- How many sets and reps of the power clean should you do when you are new to the exercise?
- Five sets of three, or singles and doubles once the weight climbs, with two to three minutes of rest so every rep stays fast. Never take a set to failure: the rep you grind is the rep that teaches a bad pattern. Spend the first weeks on a technique bar or an empty barbell, and add weight only while the bar still moves quickly and the catch stays quiet. Early in the session, when you are fresh, is the only sensible slot for it.
- What can I do instead of the power clean if I have no barbell?
- Dumbbell cleans, taking a bell in each hand to the shoulders, teach the same hip drive and catch with far less technical load. Kettlebell cleans and heavy swings build the same hip snap. For pure power with no skill cost, use broad jumps, box jumps, or a trap-bar jump shrug. None of them fully replace the front-rack catch, so if the lift itself is what you want, find a bar and a coach.
- Who should be doing power cleans?
- Athletes who need to produce force quickly, and lifters who want their pulling strength to move fast rather than slow. It rewards people who already own a clean deadlift and a comfortable front rack. It is a poor choice if your wrists or shoulders cannot hold the rack position, if you are training mainly for size, or if you want a conditioning tool, since high-rep clean sets are where technique and lower backs come apart. Getting eyes on your first sessions beats any cue you can read.
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