Speed is king in the clean. 

Without speed, well, you’ll be slow. Too slow. 

You won’t clean the weights you want to, and you’ll always feel like you have more in the tank if you could just “get under it a little faster”. 

Well, I’ve got news for you. It’s probably not your speed under the bar. You’re probably not accelerating fast enough. If you want to get faster, lift heavier, AND improve your technique, then you need to be using the pause clean.

P.S. If you want to learn the olympic lifts for free, then make sure to check out my free Weightlifting101: Beginner Guide + 6-week Program here!

What Is The Pause Clean?

The pause clean is a variation of the clean in which you pause mid-pull, anywhere from 1” off the ground, to the power position, before finishing the clean as normal. 

This variation of the clean has two main benefits:

1. Forcing an aggressive pull

2. Identifying and correcting incorrect positions during the pull

By pausing at any time during the pull, you will lose the momentum normally generated during a full-speed clean. While this is not beneficial for lifting the most weight possible, it helps athletes who are generally less aggressive in their pull or those who tend to be very slow or struggle to accelerate throughout the pull. 

How To Perform the Pause Clean

To perform the pause clean, set up with your clean grip, hook grip, and start position. Take a big deep breath, brace your core, and start the clean as normal. At any point during the pull, pause for at least one second, then finish the rest of the lift as fast as possible. 

There are three main areas you can pause during the pause clean.

Pause Cleans Below The Knee

Pausing your clean anywhere from 1” off the ground to 1” below the kneecap can help you…

• Feel the proper tension in your quads

• Push with your legs to create vertical leg drive

• Correct any issues in your start position and first pull

If you tend to get pulled over during the first pull, leaving your hips too high and your shoulders too low to get any good leg drive, then I would recommend pausing 1” off the ground. 

If you tend to move your knees too far back causing your balance to shift back towards the heel, then I recommend pausing 1” below the knee. 

Pause Cleans Above The Knee

Pausing your cleans 1” above the kneecap is probably my favorite variation to go heavy on. It can help you…

• Feel your hamstrings engage

• Maintain midfoot pressure at the knee position

• Increase your speed past the knee

So if you tend to lean back behind the bar too early, shift your balance away from your midfoot during the pull, or are too slow in your pull and miss cleans as a result, then I recommend using pause cleans above the knee cap. 

Pause Cleans In The Power Position

Pausing your cleans in your power position is a GREAT variation for beginners who…

• Use too much hip drive and not enough vertical leg drive

• Inconsistently make bar-body contact

• Shift balance away from the midfoot during the pull

By stopping in the power position, you get to take the extra time to remind yourself to do the extension correctly, and for those who don’t or inconsistently make bar-body contact, it’s a good reminder. It’s also a good way to check if you still have midfoot balance, and for advanced lifters, the limited time to create more power means you’ll need to be lightning-fast under the bar as well. 

How To Implement The Pause Clean

The pause clean can be used as a main variation, a movement primer, or as a lighter technique variation depending on the intensity and volume you use. 

The Pause Clean as a Main Variation

One of the biggest benefits of the pause clean is that you can still lift a fairly high percentage of your max clean.

This means that the pause clean can be used as a main variation or as a variation complex. I’ve seen many lifters hit 90% or more with a pause clean. The more advanced the lifter is, the more likely they will need the pause to be below the knee to hit those kinds of weights, while intermediate lifters will typically be able to hit 90% with the pause above the knee. I would not personally use the pause in power position as a main heavy variation, but that doesn’t mean it couldn’t work. Give it a try and let me know in my discord how it went!

The Pause Clean as a Movement Primer

Movement primers are one of the best ways to improve technique. 

By performing your warm-up lifts using a variation like a pause clean, you can improve your technique without adding extra volume to your training. Try doing a complex of a pause clean followed by a normal clean with the first 3-5 warm-up weights in your build-up to your normal working weights for the day. This ensures you get the benefits of the pause, while also practicing the normal clean with the ideal reinforced technique.

The Pause Clean for Technique Work

When using the pause clean for technique work, you should perform these with light enough weights that you can use the proper technique, but heavy enough that it is challenging to do so. 

You can even pause multiple times as I do in the Double Pause Clean (progression #2 in my beginner clean progression from WL101). You can get this FREE beginner guide and 6-week program here!

Remember, the more pauses, the less weight you can use because the time under tension is much higher. 

For one pause, I recommend performing 3-5 sets of 2-3 reps between 60-80%. 

For two pauses, I recommend performing 4-6 sets of 1-2 reps between 55-75%

If you are a pure beginner, then simply use light enough weight to hold the correct positions during the pause, while still being able to complete the lift. 

Hopefully, this helped! 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!