I love to clean — but don’t hand me the mop and bucket, pass the barbell! Cleaning is the exercise you never knew you needed, until now. But what is a clean in the gym?
The gym “clean”
According to CrossFit, “the clean is used to lift a load from the ground to the shoulders, where frequently the object is being readied for lifting overhead.” There are many variations of the clean — the power clean, squat clean, hang power clean and hang squat clean. You can clean just about any object. In the gym setting, barbell and dumbbell cleans are the most common. However, you may also see medicine ball cleans, sandbag cleans, kettlebell cleans and others. In everyday life, we often have to clean large, heavy or oddly shaped objects such as large bags of dog food, bags of mulch, a heavy or awkward box or even the office water cooler. Regardless of what object you use, the mechanics if this movement are the same.
How to clean
When the clean is taken from the floor (versus the hang position), there are three pulls. The first pull is from the ground to just above the knees. The second pull comes when the lifter fully extends the hips and knees in an explosive movement to get the bar high. The final pull comes when the lifter drops their body underneath the bar in a partial squat to receive it at the shoulders and then stands in full extension with elbows pointing forward and bar racked on the front of the body.
The hang version of the clean eliminates the first pull from the floor. This movement starts with the bar (or object) somewhere between the knee and the hip and ends in the same final position. In the squat clean and hang squat clean, on the third pull, the lifter drops their body entirely under the bar into a full squat, with hips dropping below parallel, before standing to full extension.
The clean is the first part of the Olympic lift called a clean and jerk, which are two distinct movements but are often combined for this complex. A jerk involves taking the bar from the shoulders to overhead.
What are the benefits of cleans?
According to the American Sports and Fitness Association (ASFA), there are many benefits to performing the clean. This is a full-body exercise that works multiple muscle groups. This makes it an efficient choice to work many body parts at once. Because the clean is a technical movement, it stimulates neuromuscular coordination and balance.
The clean builds bone and muscular strength, helping with posture and overall physical prowess. Strengthening these muscles can also help prevent injury by creating a stable base. Due to the explosive nature of the movement, it is also beneficial for increasing power. For this reason, clean variations are included in almost every strength and conditioning program of higher level athletes. This power and explosiveness proves useful on the field, court, track or other situations for enhanced sports performance. In addition to building strength, cleans can help improve cardiovascular fitness. This one movement has a multitude of benefits!
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