How To Fix Getting Stuck At The Bottom Of Cleans
If you’re constantly getting stuck at the bottom of your clean, then you’ve probably been told that you need to work on your front squat.
While this might be true, there are a few technique errors you can likely clean up (excuse the pun) that may unlock a couple of extra pounds on your max.
Now, improving your squat is NEVER a bad idea, so check out this squat program if you’ve got a case of the chicken legs.
Timing
Timing is the most common issue people have when it comes to getting stuck at the bottom of the clean. If you perform the pull correctly, especially the third pull (transition from extension to the bottom of the squat), ideally the bar will reach its peak height and YOU will begin to pull yourself under the bar, meeting it perfectly on the way down to the squat, and catching a big bounce to help you stand up with little to no effort.
However, most people believe that they need to catch the bar AT the bottom rather than on the way down to the bottom, resulting in a big crash, in which the bar reaches maximum height, well above your shoulders, and then lands back on top of you at the bottom of the squat. Now, I don’t remember much from high-school science class, but I do remember that the weight plus the downward acceleration makes the bar feel much heavier.
If you’re not sure if this is something you struggle with, then take a video of your clean, and look for the distance between the bar after its peak height and your shoulders. If it’s more than an inch, it’s too much crash and can be fixed.
The key to fixing this is in your third pull and using your arms correctly. First, make sure your arms are relatively relaxed for the majority of the lift. This will make it easier to use them correctly and more aggressively later. Second, make sure that after your legs have finished extending you start to pull hard with your arms. This functions both as a way to keep your bar close to you and helps you move down to meet the bar. A good cue for this is “high elbows” or “big finish with the arms”, both of which I use when working with athletes to fix this exact issue. A good drill you can use if you need help feeling the pull-under is the Tall Clean, which isolates just the pull-under phase of the lift and can be very helpful when done as a movement primer before cleans!
Pull Strength
If you do a good job of timing your cleans but still struggle with getting stuck at the bottom, or barely getting to the bottom of the clean in time, then you might not have a timing problem, you might just have a pull strength problem.
If you initiate the pull and it feels slow or looks slower compared to other people's lifts, and you have a hard time getting the bar to move faster past the knee, then this is probably for you.
This is a really simple problem to fix. Start doing Clean Pulls after every clean workout. Pulls are one of the most common exercises you’ll see in a weightlifting program, however, they are often skipped because, well, they suck ass, and people don’t want to get better, they just want to feel like they’re getting better. 2-5 sets of 2-5 reps with 10-20lbs more than you clean, focusing on accelerating fast past the knee and your pull should improve dramatically after a few weeks.
Squat Strength
The final piece to the puzzle is improving your squat.
If you have great timing and great pull strength, but simply can’t get out of a heavy clean, then you’ll need to work on your squat strength. There are a few different ways you might need to approach this:
1) Back Squat to Front Squat Ratio
2) Clean to Back Squat Ratio
3) Front Squat to Clean Ratio
First, we need to assess whether you should focus on back squats or front squats. The back squat is essentially your squat-pattern ceiling. If your back squat is super close to your clean, then this is absolutely where your focus should be. A good rule of thumb is that your clean should be around 80-85% of your back squat. If it is higher than that, any effort put into the front squat or clean is likely wasted effort as you are going to be capped by your strength, not by anything else.
If your clean and back squat are within a reasonable range, then the next step is to see how close your front squat and back squat are, keep in mind this can vary from lifter to lifter based on limb lengths and weight class, but generally you should front squat between 85-93% of your back squat. If you front squat less than that, then front squats should be your main priority, while simply aiming to maintain your back squat.
If your front squat and back squat are within a reasonable range, then the final step is to assess how close your front squat and clean are. Ideally, you should be cleaning around 85-90% of your front squat. If you are cleaning higher than that, and you have a big spread between your front squat and back squat, then front squats should be your main priority. If you are cleaning less than that, then you likely just need more clean practice and frequency.
That is a pretty comprehensive plan and should be your main focus if squat strength is an issue, and this will have the greatest impact on your A-Game, however, if you frequently get stuck at the bottom of cleans, it might be a good idea to also train two other exercises:
Both of these are exercises that will help you train the movement that will happen when you inevitably get stuck at the bottom of a clean again. Training these should not be your main priority, again see above, but they should be a secondary or tertiary focus, as these can help you prepare for the time when you may need it.
The Pause Front Squat can help with your ability to stand back up even from a dead stop. Try these for sets of 1-3 reps with moderately heavy weight on a secondary squat day.
The 1+¼ Front Squat will simulate what you should do if you get stuck in the bottom of a clean. Creating a bounce for you to ride will make it much easier to stand back up, and actually give you a shot at attempting the jerk. Just like with the pause squats, give these a try for sets of 1-3 heavy reps on a secondary squat day.
Hopefully, this clarified some things for you and maybe even gave you a lightbulb moment with your technique. If you ever need a free form check on your videos, you’re always welcome to join my free discord here and drop your video in the #form-checks channel.
By the way, I’ve got a free beginner weightlifting guide and a 6-week program! If you’re new to the olympic lifts, then check it out here!
And if you’re looking for a weightlifting program designed to help you set PRs, improve your technique, and get strong af, then check out a FREE WEEK TRIAL of my 3 & 5-Day OlyStrong Team at the link below!