Power clean vs. squat clean

[madtownsk8r]

is that 225? if so that's extremely good for your size. im a sophomore football player i can only power clean a 45 and 35 on each side but that is the one of the best forms i've seen

[RPM11111]

Thanks for the distninction. May I use this for resistance training classes, please?

[LeijonatSOCCER]

@LincolnBrigham And yes, i learned to do clean quite decentely over this past year, and its probably my favourite lift, after squat. I never thought of combining clean and squat, probably because i'm still new to lifting. Thanks for the video... As for the swimming, at my school we have mandatory swimming lessons for P.E, and butterfly was the hardest one and i could not do it! Thanks for the vid!

[mrsupergummibear]

so which is better to do?

[sacredhuhu]

his knees were flaring out to the side, is that right or wrong?

I always thought knees should face forwards during any lift

[hhstroll]

His form was good. In a squat knees should travel out over the feet, which should be point out slightly. Facing them completely forwards puts pressure on the sides of the knees rather than in the middle.

[chipango87]

@sacredhuhu u have more power with external rotation as opposed to internal rotation. general rule of thumb is keep ur knees on the outside of ur shoe and feet as straight as comfortable

[olympicstyles]

You make a good point. However, going into weightlifting after being in gymnastics has a considerable amount of carry over. Comparing the skill progression of beginning gymnast to that of beginning weightlifter is a more accurate comparison. Also, I have taught many novice oly lifters, and I would hardly call what I can teach them in a half hour passable. In fact, I would rate the quality of the butterfly and clean to be equally as bad with a half hour of training.

[olympicstyles]

Butterfly was my favorite event when I used to swim competitively, and I would say the discus and the shot are much more complicated than the three pointer. The only sport probably parrelleling Olympic weightlifting would be gymnastics, and in fact many gymnists become olympic lifters. Melony Roach who placed fifth in bejing from the U.S (the highest placed of all men and women) would be a great example of that. I should ask her which she would consider to be a harder learning curve.

[LincolnBrigham]

I can and have taught complete novices to do a passable clean in a half an hour. Try that with the butterfly and it will turn into a class on rescue breathing in short order.

Mel became the #1 female weightlifter in the U.S. after only 4 years of training. That's not possible in gymnastics. (BTW she placed 6th in Beijing.)

Tara Nott went from being a former top level gymnast to 2000 Olympic gold medalist weightlifter. She started competing in 1996 and won the Senior Nat'ls that same year.

[FinnishCraig3]

@LincolnBrigham I think it's all relative it depends on what a person is good at. I have never watched much weight lifting, but I'm going to assume your technique doesn't have to be perfect as you get the lift without cheating. You get it or you don't. Gymnastics has judges making it completely subjective. Do you reward creativity with easier technique or more difficult technique with nothing original? I think it's unfair to compare because of the judges.

[olympicstyles]

The clean&jerk and Snatch are some of the most complicated movements in all sporting activities. Ive talked with athletes from a variety of sport avenues, and they have admitted the technical difficulty of the lifts. I have Oly lifted for 7 years starting when I was 10 and I continue to learn new ways to make the movement more efficient. There are piles and piles of research done on the technicalities of the lifts. I would reccomend simply googling the subject. There are some good sites.

[LincolnBrigham]

I've got to say that most of competitive gymnastics, the butterfly in swimming, hitting a three-pointer in a crowd, and throwing a knuckleball for strikes are WAY more complicated.

And the pole vault ain't no walk in the park either.

[NapalmNewt]

Good video, it's hilarious how many 'big power clean' videos floating around youtube are a poorly done squat clean.

[skirts365]

Pulled very high for a squat clean.

[LincolnBrigham]

Yeah, I'd agree. It's not a perfect example but it gets the point across IMO.

[XDeuce1]

so a squat clean is just basically squating all the way down? and a power clean is not really dropping below it... can anyone clear that up? further, is what some of you call the squat clean (going all the way down) the same thing as the olympic clean and jerk? and what is the difference between these and a clean and press? so many names, im not sure which one im doing.

[yoda31419]

Power Cleans force you to not squat. Having your thighs go below parallel means that you didn't do a power clean, but a squat clean. A clean and jerk is when you do a power clean, then use momentum to press the weight above your head. I think a Clean and press might be a clean and jerk without the momentum.

[juandenz2008]

@yoda31419 Did you even get a definitive answer to this? I always thought the clean and jerk was the classic (squat) clean, followed by a jerk.

[mike7ace]

I think the full clean puts little to none pressure on the knees but a lot on your lower back, the only time your knees experience any pressure is when the bar is received in the squat position but even then since the glutes and hips are below the knees those absorb most of the pressure and not the knees

[duffman23returns]

oh i never knew the difference

[Dellpodder]

great video!

[jvill16]

basically the squat clean is the power clean but should preferably be used with heavier weight or when your maxing out on that lift.

[biggametizo]

now the power clean can only be performed at a certain extend. you cant power clean 500 pounds obviously!! so thats when the squat clean comes in. but either way. BOTH LIFTS ARE GREAT AND VERY HELPFUL.

[chadcite]

ohh yes you can power clean 500lbs, only thing is very few men can pull off such a task, mainly the guys with with the 255kg+ c&j

[mailmepizza]

yeah but you have to practice the squat clean because it is a completely different movement. This guy is getting under the bar rather slowly in the squat clean (although I realize it's just a demonstration with light weight). If you see a pro lifting a heavy weight, his butt is getting down to the floor FAST. You really can't be comfortable doing that by just power cleaning, you have to actually practice the squat clean.

[jtra9977]

Thanks. I wasn't sure what the difference was. I thought that the Squat Clean was the Power Clean.

[antpaz17]

depends what you want,obviously power clean will increase speed and power were as the squat clean will focus more on strength.all olympic lifters like me will squat clean

[crezzyman]

Is either one legal for competition? As in, in a clean and jerk competition, does it matter if you do a full squat or partial squat clean? Or do you just have to do some form of clean and it doesn't matter which? Thanks for any help.

[LincolnBrigham]

Does not matter, although it's harder to be competitive with the power clean.

[scskowron]

You can lift more weight with a squat clean...that's one advantage.

[LazySniper]

here's another one, you don't have to pull as high. but the down side is that you have to be fast to you pull yourself under the bar

[LincolnBrigham]

In 20 words or less?

It depends on the athlete, his strengths/weaknesses and what the athlete is trying to accomplish.

[trance4mation]

ok you have showed us the differences, now which is better for athletic performance?