Clean
The Clean is an explosive Olympic weightlifting movement where you pull a barbell from the floor and catch it in a front squat position. It develops full-body power, coordination, and strength, primarily targeting the posterior chain and quadriceps.
Because the Clean requires high neural drive and complex coordination, it is heavily impacted by your systemic fatigue. The AI analyzes your HRV and sleep data to determine if your central nervous system is primed for this explosive movement or if a regression is safer for the day. Additionally, by tracking your RPE and bar loads over time, the app prevents you from plateauing by ensuring you are progressively overloading the movement only when your recovery status supports high-intensity power output.
Form Cues
- Start with hips low and chest up, bar touching your shins
- Explode your hips forward to generate upward momentum
- Keep the bar close to your body like you are zipping up a jacket
- Drop quickly under the bar into a deep squat to catch it
- Drive your elbows high and forward to secure the front rack position
- Don't pull with your arms before your hips fully extend
- Don't let the barbell swing away from your body
- Don't catch the bar with your elbows pointing down
- Don't let your knees cave inward during the squat phase
- Don't land with your feet excessively wide
Common Mistakes
- Bending the arms too early (early pull)
- Failing to reach full hip extension
- Catching the bar on the chest instead of the shoulders
- Landing with stiff legs instead of dropping under
- Rounding the back during the initial pull
Muscles Worked
The Clean is a total-body power developer that relies heavily on the glutes, hamstrings, and erector spinae to initiate the explosive pull from the floor. The quadriceps work intensely during the initial drive and the recovery from the squat catch, while the traps and upper back are crucial for the forceful shrug and stabilizing the heavy load in the front rack position.
Primary
Secondary
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