Clean and jerk

Muscle group
Legs
Equipment
Barbell
Primary muscles
Front delts, Glutes, Quadriceps
Secondary muscles
Calves, Hamstrings, Lower back, Triceps, Upper back
  1. Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and grip the bar outside your knees; pull the bar upward by driving through your heels.
  2. Explosively shrug and drop under the bar, catching it on your shoulders in a front rack position with elbows high.
  3. Stand up from the catch, then slightly bend your knees (dip) to prepare for the overhead movement.
  4. Drive the bar upward while jumping your feet into a split position (one foot forward, one back), catching the bar with locked arms.
  5. Bring your feet back together to a stable standing position before lowering the bar to the floor.

Tips

  • Keep your elbows as high as possible when catching the bar on your shoulders in the front rack position, so the bar rests on the shelf created by your front delts rather than hanging from your hands.
  • During the jerk dip, keep your torso upright and bend only at the knees, then drive straight up through your heels to transfer force into the bar.
  • When catching the bar overhead in the split position, lock your arms out fully before absorbing the load, and make sure your front shin is roughly vertical and your back knee is slightly bent.

Common mistakes

  • Pulling the bar with the arms too early in the clean, before the legs and hips have finished driving, shortens the upward path of the bar and makes it harder to get under it in time.
  • Letting the elbows drop during the front rack catch causes the bar to roll forward onto the wrists and fingers rather than sitting on the shoulders.
  • Dipping forward at the torso during the jerk dip, rather than staying upright, sends the bar forward off the ideal overhead path when you drive.
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