A Thought on cleans...

[Blaze]

Okay, here's my thought/question
As we all know, cleans are made up of several movements. I'd say roughly around 4. Now, I know if you want to clean more, you've got to do cleans more. But I was also considering these movements and what their related too. Such as: Shrugs, front squats, deadlifts, good mornings, perhaps jump squats...Can you do these excercises really heavily on the side, and count on it improving or clean, if not drastically, at least a little bit?

[Klinger]

Sure. You could train your weakest point to get a better clean. Squats, upright rows and full and partial deadlifts all should help improve overall clean strength.

[abarlament]

Those exercises will help general strength, but since the clean is a ballistic movement, you need to actually do the clean (or a portion of it, such as a high pull, or even a front squat) to make significant improvements once you become proficient at the technique.

[DaRkAnGel]

Originally Posted by abarlament

Those exercises will help general strength, but since the clean is a ballistic movement, you need to actually do the clean (or a portion of it, such as a high pull, or even a front squat) to make significant improvements once you become proficient at the technique.

Ditto to what abby says.

[techie_man]

Agreed. You wanna try something realy good for you and works ever muscle try a power clean with a pushpress. Woohooo thos are ass kickers!

[luke.w]

I agree also, high pulls, heavy pulls, front squats, and hang cleans above the knees help the "clean" tramendously!!!!

[luke.w]

oh yeah, if your not already using the "hook grip" for your "cleans" USE IT, they help alot.

[Blaze]

Originally Posted by luke.w

oh yeah, if your not already using the "hook grip" for your "cleans" USE IT, they help alot.

Hook grip? What's that...I don't know if I'm using it or not. What makes it help so much?

Hook Grip :

[Blaze]

Alright, thanks bro. That makes sense

But my next question is just out of curiousity. Does anyone know why it helps? I mean I don't get why people would have such an improved lift just my gripping over their thumb like that

Makes it easier to hold onto the bar. Just gripping it is awful tough when the weight goes over 200 pounds. This aids in keeping your grip from being a weak link.

[luke.w]

[quote=Blaze]

But my next question is just out of curiousity. Does anyone know why it helps?

yes, when you use the regular grip the bar will roll lower in the palm of your hands (towards the fingers), making the "clean" off technique. using the "hook grip" the bar stays solid in your hands and stays close to the wrist, I also find this grip helps with the quick movement with the wrists. as your about to catch the bar.

[luke.w]

I got an e-mail from an olyimpic lifter whom I know yesturday, he trains lifters at Maryland and competes in meets himself, he said he doesn't like to train the "high pull" as it's like an explosive "upright row" and the lifter looses their technique because the arms come into play (arms are not used in the clean), he says if he needs to work on his pull he'll do pulls (shrugging) keeping his arms locked and doing the pulls into locked arms starting from the floor, this does make tons of sense to me.

He also said in a begining of a cycle he'll train only the "hangclean" only from above the knees as this is the exploding part, and as he gets closer to a meet starts working below the knees.

as for me I have a strongman contest coming up on May 7th, one event is an 2"axle clean and press/push press for reps (no jerks allowed) each rep must be cleaned from the floor, the weight is 210lbs I'll weigh in at the most probalily 190lbs thats 30lbs over my bodyweight.
I'm doing as much as I can to improve my cleans and they improve every week, I'm staying with high pulls because this is a 2"axle not a reg. barbell, and it's for reps also, my arms are going to come into play no matter what 2"bars....I can't even get my thumb to touch my fingers when I wrap my hands around it. I'm also doing "front squats" as I may use the "squat clean" again or close to it on a rep or 2.

One advantage I have is I made a 2"bar out of "solid steel" the contest bar is "hollow" steel I've proved anything I can do with my bar, I can do alittle better on the hollow bar, my disadvantage is I've only been training the overhead lifts for about only 1-1/2 years. In october I competed with 180lb axle I got 5-cleans,5-presses, the 4th clean was a "squat clean" and the 5th clean was the continental clean were you pull the bar and rest it on the stomach then rack it, the first 3 were powercleans. There will be all kinds of odd cleans there from other competitors (one's who don't train with the thickbars much) like mixed grip cleans, and zercher style cleans, it will be very FUN for me win or lose, I'm in it for the FUN.

Good luck to you luke. Like you said, I'm sure it will be fun regardless of the outcome.

[abarlament]

Originally Posted by luke.w

I got an e-mail from an olyimpic lifter whom I know yesturday, he trains lifters at Maryland and competes in meets himself, he said he doesn't like to train the "high pull" as it's like an explosive "upright row" and the lifter looses their technique because the arms come into play (arms are not used in the clean), he says if he needs to work on his pull he'll do pulls (shrugging) keeping his arms locked and doing the pulls into locked arms starting from the floor, this does make tons of sense to me.

The correct form is to make it the exact same motion as a regular clean (or a snatch), just no dropping under the weight.

the weight is 210lbs I'll weigh in at the most probalily 190lbs thats 30lbs over my bodyweight.

Math is hard...

and zercher style cleans, it will be very FUN for me win or lose, I'm in it for the FUN.

What are zercher style cleans?