Full body / Advanced / Compound (multi-joint)

Power Clean

An explosive Olympic-style lift pulling a barbell from the floor to the front rack, developing total-body power.

At a glance

Primary

Glutes, Hamstrings, Quads

Secondary

Upper traps, Lower back (erectors), Upper back (rhomboids, mid/lower traps), Calves, Forearms & grip

Equipment

Barbell

Movement pattern

Hip hinge, Jump / plyometric, Shrug

Level

Advanced

Type

Full body, Compound (multi-joint), Explosive

Loads the lower back, wrist. Use a load you can control and skip it if it causes pain.

How to do it

1. Stand with feet hip-width apart, the bar over your mid-foot, and grip it just outside the knees.
2. With a flat back, lift the bar off the floor by pushing through the legs.
3. Once the bar passes the knees, explosively extend the hips, knees and ankles and shrug.
4. Pull yourself under the bar and catch it on the front of your shoulders with elbows high, in a partial squat.
5. Stand up fully, then lower the bar back to the floor under control.

Tips

• Keep the bar close to your body.
• Learn with a light bar or coach before loading.

Common mistakes

• ✗ Pulling with the arms early.

  Why it hurts: The wrists and elbows take the force meant for the legs and hips, and the bar loops away from the body.

  ✓ Instead: Keep the arms long until the hips and knees have fully extended, then pull yourself under the bar.

• ✗ Catching with the elbows low and the bar on the hands.

  Why it hurts: Wrist sprains and elbow pain come from catching the bar on bent wrists.

  ✓ Instead: Whip the elbows forward and catch the bar on the shoulders with a relaxed grip. Learn it with an empty bar or a coach.

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