How To Fix Back Rounding At The Bottom Of Heavy Cleans
Every week I answer questions submitted by you on my podcast, The Last Set Best Podcast which you can find on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts! This weeks question comes from @shiv
“While catching a heavy clean my back goes rounded forward at the bottom/squat position. How can that be improved?”
If you’ve ever tried a heavy clean before, you’ve probably experienced this at least once. There’s a few potential causes of this, so let’s dive in.
Tip #1: Assess Your Front Squat
Does this same rounding happen on your heavier front squats?
If so, then it may be a good idea to lighten the weights up and work on posture and position at the bottom of the front squat. At the bottom of the front squat you want your torso as upright as possible. The further you lean forward, the further the bar moves away from your midline, making it harder to support.
If you cannot keep your posture on your moderate weight front squats, you definitely won’t be able to on your cleans. Make sure to be as intentional as possible with these front squats, working to keep your chest up and elbows high throughout the movement. Tempo Front Squats with a slow eccentric can be a great way to work on this!
P.S. My free Mobility101 Guide can help you if you struggle with front rack mobility, click here to get your copy!
Tip #2: Assess Your Technique
If this issue doesn’t happen in your front squats, then you are likely experiencing a technique issue called “bar crash”.
At no point in the clean should the bar be higher than your shoulders. Take a few videos of your lifts and look for a gap between the bar and your shoulders. If you have one, then the bar is likely landing on you at the bottom of the squat. Your back is strong, but it’s much less strong when you are dropping weight on it.
Try to maintain constant tension on the bar. One of the main things I talk about in my free beginner program is that your legs should do the work to launch the bar up, but the moment the bar is launched, your arms should do EVERYTHING to pull you under the bar. One key distinction here - the goal isn’t to get to the bottom of the squat fast, it’s to get to the bar fast. The first is what happens when you focus on “dropping”, the second is what happens when you focus on “pulling under”.
Drills like tall cleans can help you learn how to pull under the bar faster, so try them out in your warm up for 3-5 sets of 3-5 reps with light weights.
Tip 3: Core Strength
If your core is weak, then you may have great technique but you’ll still end up rounding forward.
It’s also generally a good idea to keep core work in your programming all year round. It’s one of the most important muscle groups for weightlifting. Check out this video where I break down my Top 5 Core Exercises for Olympic Weightlifting.
Some of my favorites for the clean and front squat position are…
Front rack carries with sandbags, kettlebells, or dumbbells.
GHD Sit-Ups with a slow eccentric
GHD Back Extensions with weight
In my opinion you should keep one core or lower back exercise in your training daily so that you can make sure it’s not a weakness.
Hopefully you found this article useful! You can find the full episode of the podcast linked below as well as on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. If you have a question you’d like to submit for the podcast, click here!
If you’re new to the olympic lifts, then check out my free Weightlifting101: Beginner Guide + 6-Week Program here.
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