Clean
A full body Olympic lift that pulls a barbell from the floor and catches it at the shoulders in one continuous motion. It suits lifters with a coach or a solid technical background in barbell lifting.
How to do the clean
- Set up with the bar close to your shins, gripping it just outside your legs with your hips low and chest up.
- Drive through your heels to lift the bar past your knees, keeping your back angle steady.
- As the bar reaches your thighs, extend your hips, knees and ankles explosively to accelerate the bar upward.
- Pull yourself under the bar quickly, rotating your elbows around to catch it across your shoulders.
- Absorb the catch by bending your knees into a front squat position, then stand up to finish the lift.
Original library instructions (5 steps)
- With a barbell on the floor close to the shins, take an overhand (or hook) grip just outside the legs. Lower your hips with the weight focused on the heels, back straight, head facing forward, chest up, with your shoulders just in front of the bar. This will be your starting position.
- Begin the first pull by driving through the heels, extending your knees. Your back angle should stay the same, and your arms should remain straight. Move the weight with control as you continue to above the knees.
- Next comes the second pull, the main source of acceleration for the clean. As the bar approaches the mid-thigh position, begin extending through the hips. In a jumping motion, accelerate by extending the hips, knees, and ankles, using speed to move the bar upward. There should be no need to actively pull through the arms to accelerate the weight; at the end of the second pull, the body should be fully extended, leaning slightly back, with the arms still extended.
- As full extension is achieved, transition into the third pull by aggressively shrugging and flexing the arms with the elbows up and out. At peak extension, aggressively pull yourself down, rotating your elbows under the bar as you do so. Receive the bar in a front squat position, the depth of which is dependent upon the height of the bar at the end of the third pull. The bar should be racked onto the protracted shoulders, lightly touching the throat with the hands relaxed. Continue to descend to the bottom squat position, which will help in the recovery.
- Immediately recover by driving through the heels, keeping the torso upright and elbows up. Continue until you have risen to a standing position.
Common mistakes
- Pulling early with the arms instead of letting the legs and hips generate speed first.
- Catching the bar with a soft, unstable front rack position; keep the elbows up and the bar resting on the shoulders.
- Skipping practice with a light bar; learn the pull sequence before adding real load.
Sets and reps by goal
| Goal | Sets, reps and rest |
|---|---|
| Strength | 3 to 5 sets of 2 to 3 reps, 2 to 3 minutes rest |
| Muscle | 3 to 4 sets of 3 to 5 reps, 2 minutes rest |
| Endurance | 3 sets of 5 to 6 reps, 90 seconds rest |
Ranges, not prescriptions. Start at the low end and add a set or a rep when every set feels controlled.
Tips
- Learn this lift from a coach or through a progression of drills before loading the bar heavily, keeping every early session focused on technique.
- Use a lighter bar and safety pins while you are still building confidence with the catch position.
In the app: this exercise is one of 873 in GymPilot's library, with the same photos, form cues and a link back to the moment in an imported video it came from.
Questions
Is the clean good for beginners?
It is a technical lift that benefits from coaching before loading much weight, since the pull and catch both need practice to perform safely.
What muscles does the clean work?
It works the hamstrings as the primary mover, with the calves, biceps, glutes, back, quads and shoulders all contributing through the pull and catch.
