The Power Clean is probably the best known of all the Olympic lifts.  It simultaneously develops the power of muscles of the upper and lower body.  Since the Power Clean involves a jumping movement, it is ideal power training for basketball and volleyball players.

Starting Position

·        Stand with your feet between shoulder and hip-width apart and your toes angled slightly outward so that your knees will track directly over your toes.

·        Squat down with your hips lower than the shoulders and grasp the Olympic bar with a pronated (wrists facing backwards) grip.

·        Grip width should be even and approximately shoulder-width.

·        The actual grip can be a closed or a hook grip. A closed grip is the traditional grip of the thumbs wrapping over the fingers.  For the hook grip, place a pronated hand on the bar and wrap your thumb around the bar FIRST, then close your four fingers over the thumb. Your first 1 or 2 fingers should cover your thumb. The hook grip is suited for maximal or near-maximum lifts, but initially can be a bit uncomfortable. Try wrapping your thumbs with athletic tape, as this will help minimize friction and pressure when using the hook grip.

·        Your arms should be extended and outside the knees.

·        Your feet should be flat on the floor and your elbows rotated to point out to your sides.

Position your body so that the bar is approximately 1 inch in front of your shin bones and over the balls of your feet.

Before lift-off, check these seven preparatory pointers:

• your body weight is positioned between the middle and balls of the feet, but your heels remain in contact with the floor
• your back is flat or very slightly arched (low back)
• your chest is held up and out, your shoulder blades pinched together (adducted)
• your head is in line with your spine or slightly hyperextended
• your shoulders are in line with or slightly in front of the bar
• your gaze is focused straight ahead or slightly above
• you take a breath and hold

Your own torso, hip, knee and bar position will depend on factors such as segment lengths and lower body joint flexibility. If you are inflexible, and attempting to assume the correct starting position of the power snatch, calf tightness may make it difficult to grip the bar with your elbows extended while keeping the heels on the floor.

If you find that you cannot achieve the preparatory pointers for the starting position, the hang clean may be a better alternative, since it does not require you to begin with the bar on the floor and begins rather with the bar above the knees.  You may also try using lifting stands that hold the bar a specified distance off the floor.

From the starting position, the power clean involves lifting the bar from the floor and catching it at about shoulder level with slightly flexed knees and hips - all in a single movement.

Although the lift consists of four separate phases, the upward movement of the bar occurs in one continuous, uninterrupted motion.

Phase 1: The First Pull

This phase of the upward movement from the lift-off position to where the bar is just above the knees and is called the “first pull.”

• Lift the bar off the floor by forcefully extending your knees and hips.  It is important that these joints extend at a similar rate to keep the back/torso angle constant relative to the floor and to allow the knees to “get out of the way” of the vertical path of the bar. Do not allow your hips to rise faster or higher than the shoulders. Slowly shifting the body weight from over the middle of your feet toward the heels while maintaining the flat back position will help retain a consistent torso angle.
• Your elbows should remain be fully extended, your head neutral in relation to the spine and your shoulders over or slightly in front of the bar.
• As the bar rises, keep it as close to the shins as possible; shifting your body weight slightly back toward your heels will help ensure the proper path of the bar.
• Continue holding your breath. This is important because the intra-abdominal pressure generated by the “fluid ball” helps support the spine internally - reducing stress on the intervertebral disks and ligaments and risk of injury.

Phase 2: The Transition or “Scoop”

This phase of the upward movement from the first pull position to where the knees and thighs move forward under the bar and is called the “transition” or “scoop”.

• As the bar rises to just above your knees, thrust the hips forward and slightly re-flex the knees to move your thighs against, and your knees under the bar.
• During the second knee bend, your body weight shifts forward toward the balls of the feet but your heels should remain in contact with the floor or lifting platform.
• Maintain a flat or slightly arched back, elbows fully extended and pointing out to the sides and your head in line with your spine.
• Your shoulders should remain in line with the bar, although they will have a tendency to move backwards as your thighs and knees are scooped under the bar. At the end of this phase the body is in what is termed the “power position”.
• Continue holding your breath to maintain intra-abdominal pressure and trunk stability.        

Phase 3:  The Second Pull (“Power Phase”)

This phase of the upward movement from the power position where the bar is at the mid-thigh and close to the trunk, to a position where the joints of the lower body are fully extended and the bar has reached its maximum speed and momentum is called the “second pull” or “power phase”.

• The bar should be very close to, or in contact with the front of your thighs above the knees. Attempt a fast, upward jumping motion by quickly extending (straightening) the hips, knees and ankles (plantarflexing).
•  The bar trajectory should remain as close to the body as possible.
• Maintain your torso with your back flat or slightly arched, your elbows pointing out to the sides and your head in line with the rest of your spine.
• Ensure that your shoulders stay in line with the vertical trajectory of the bar and that your elbows remain extended for as long as possible while your hips, knees, and ankles extend.
• As the joints of the lower body reach full extension, shrug your shoulders rapidly and powerfully upward, keeping your elbows extended and pointing out to your sides.
• As your shoulders reach their highest elevation, flex your elbows to begin pulling your body underneath the bar. The movements of the upper body closely resemble those of the upright row exercise, only with a wider grip. Your elbows will move up and out to the side.
• Continue to pull vertically upward with your arms as high and as long as possible.
• The jumping action of the lower body and the pulling action of the upper body, may cause your torso to be erect or slightly hyperextended, your head tilted slightly back (hyperextended) and your feet may rise off the floor.
• Keep holding your breath as before.

Phase 4:  The Catch

The action of receiving the bar on the anterior deltoids is termed the “catch” phase of the power clean.

• Once the joints of your lower body have fully extended and the bar’s trajectory has reached near maximal height and momentum, pull your body under the bar by rotating the arms and hands around and under the bar and by flexing your knees and hips to a quarter-squat position.
• Typically you will regain foot contact with the floor in a stance slightly wider and with your toes pointed out slightly further than your starting position.

Catch the bar on the anterior deltoids and clavicles with your:

• neck and head neutral, facing forward
• torso erect/tight with a flat/slightly arched back
• elbows fully flexed
• wrists hyperextended
• shoulder flexed to 90 ⁰ (upper arm parallel to the floor)
• knees and hips slightly flexed (quarter squat)
• feet flat
• body weight over the mid-foot

It is ideal that you catch the bar with the torso near vertical and the shoulders slightly in front of the buttocks.  This position resembles the initial descent of the front squat and allows for the bar to be directly over your center of gravity.

Avoid catching the bar with the trunk too erect as the bar’s momentum may force the shoulders backward and cause your low back to hyperextend (curve inwards) excessively.  Hyperextension of the low back increases the risk of injury to the soft tissue (intevertebral discs and ligaments). 

Once you gain control and balance of the bar, stand up to a fully erect position by extending your hips and knees. Exhale and breathe normally. Keep in mind that the entire lifting movement requires the breath to be held for only about one second.

Downward Movement

If you are performing maximal or near maximal lifts and you are using rubber bumper plates, you can return the bar to the floor bar by dropping it in a controlled manner; make sure to control the bounce of the bar and plates with the hands on or near the bar.

Alternatively you lower the bar from the shoulders in a two-stage movement by slowly decreasing muscular tension in the upper body to allow a controlled descent of the bar to the thighs. Next, flex your hips and knees simultaneously to cushion the impact of the bar on your thighs. Lower the bar down to the floor with a squatting movement.

If you are performing multiple repetitions, reposition the bar and your body in the initial starting position.

Video comments:  In the video my head is probably a little too hyperextended at the end of the second pull.  I welcome any other pointers from experienced lifters.

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