Critique my powerclean form, thanks (vid)

I know there is a lot of work to be done as I am below standards compared to my other lifts, probably mostly in the catch, but I appreciate your input.

Here is the vid, Powerclean 2 reps at 80 kg / 176lbs:

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I'd have you practice a proper ending position:
- practice a correct front rack (don't grab the bar and have your elbows pointing straight forward instead of straight down)
- put the weight on your heels and push the hips back while arching your back
- practice some front squats incorporating the above

Then I'd have you work on power cleans from hand, focusing on proper ending position.

 

Thanks, when you say proper ending position, you mean with the elbows going forward like this:



I have great difficulty doing that, seems like there is no wrist flexibility for it?

Second, did you mean from hang* and not hand? As in hang cleans?

 

Yes, that's what he means by elbows forward.

Wrist flexibility can be a limiting factor but you also don't need to grab/catch the bar in your hands. You're really just catching it on your shoulders. For example:

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Try doing front squats but only keeping the tips of your fingers under the bar. If you check out my awesome video below you can see that I only keep my index and middle fingers on the bar when I front squat. You can start there and as your flexibility improves get more of your fingers on the bar.

Look at my hands when I unrack the first set.

 

Yes, I meant from hang, as in "hang power cleans". I suggest that to work on your receiving position, but also because instead of making a controlled first pull and then an explosive second pull you're just yanking the bar off the floor.

If you cannot get a half-decent rack position, then you can't get a half decent clean. Sometimes it's not just wrist flexibility, it's also not understanding the position. Some people can't get in a proper rack position because they tend to grab the bar with their hands and they contract their entire upper back and shoulders. Your hands and fingers need to be completely loose (you shouldn't grip the bar) and, while your thoracic spine needs to be extended ("chest out/up"), your shoulders and shoulder blades need to be relaxed and not pulled back. I'd work on that before attempting to work on my cleans.

 

Your back -- especially upper back -- on these lifts is rounded and soft, and you get hunched over by the time the bar is around your knees. You're also rowing the bar with your arms before you pop it so much that if you reduce or eliminate it, you should notice the bar popping up faster.

 

Yeah ok, DrBdan commented on the same thing. Truth is, Ive had no training in lifting and not the clean at all, so I haven't really been able to learn. I get the idea with the catch position now though and will try to work on it. As I understand it, you essentially 'let go' of the bar after the pull. In any case, I will be in a city with a proper gym with coaches in a week or two, so will try to get some coaching there.

 

The rounding of the back, yes I can see that. Do you have a link to proper form? How do you eliminate this? Is it a question of lacking strength or something else?

Also, could you expand on the rowing vs pulling point?

In any case, I'd like to continue to oly lifting, so will join a gym with a coach soon.

 

Thanks for the vid, it was helpful. I've never front squatted. I have tried to catch the bar in a sohp position, which is obviously wrong compared to that. I think I will do some front squats while waiting for coaching and then doing some hang cleans.

 

In that case, I wouldn't worry about it too much right now as an in-person coach should sort you out much more quickly and better than online help. I'd probably just do strength and mobility work until I got a coach if I were in your shoes; it's easy to end up spending more time unlearning ingrained patterns than you save by having prior experience with the lifts.

For upper back strength in the mean time, thankfully front squats take care of a chunk of the work. I like something like 6-8 triples; be sure to constantly be focused on keeping your entire trunk tight. You could also try snatch (or clean) pulls to above the knees or as deadlifts, where you make sure you keep your upper back tight (chest up) the whole time. The main thing is to practice keeping a big chest, and past that basically just try to beat the crap out of every muscle in your back.

 

http://www.allthingsgym.com/how-to-clean-tutorial-with-glenn-pendlay/