Muscle Cleans

Overview

The muscle clean is the stripped‑down cousin of the squat and power clean—no re‑bend of the knees, no dive under the bar. You accelerate the barbell from floor to shoulders using pure leg drive and an aggressive, high‑pull turnover, finishing in a tall stance with elbows locked high.

Because you must pull the bar higher and keep the torso upright, the muscle clean engrains a razor‑straight bar path, forces violent elbow turnover, and lights up the upper back without the complexity of a catch in the squat.

How to Perform

Setup: Stand with feet hip‑width, bar over mid‑foot. Grip just outside shoulders with a hook grip, shoulders slightly over bar, hips above knees, chest proud.

Execution: Push the floor away—hips and shoulders rising together—until bar clears the knees. Scoop knees forward to vertical torso and, from that power position, extend legs, hips, and ankles forcefully. Immediately pull elbows high‑and‑outside, then whip them around to front‑rack as you stand tall—no dip, no squat.

Key Tips: Cue: “Legs drive up, elbows finish.” Keep the bar within a fist’s width of the thighs the whole ride.

🏋️Coaching Cues🏋️
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➡️ “Push, extend, pull”
➡️ “High elbows, snap around”
➡️ “Bar close to body”

Technique Focus

• Vertical Extension: finish tall before using arms.
• High Elbows: bar lands in full rack, not on clavicles.
• No Knee Re‑Bend: once legs extend, they stay straight.
• Bar Close: shave thighs; distance kills power.

Common Mistakes

• Early arm bend below knee – kills leg power.
• Knees re‑bending – turns it into a power clean.
• Bar looping away – indicates shoulders behind bar too soon.

Muscle vs. Power vs. Squat Clean

Each clean variant biases different qualities:

• Muscle Clean – emphasizes upper‑back turnover and bar path; light‑to‑moderate loads.
• Power Clean – catch above parallel; middle ground for explosiveness with moderate weight.
• Squat Clean – full squat receive; maximizes loading and leg strength.

Benefits & Carryover

Muscle cleans build turnover speed and bar proximity that transfer directly to heavier power and squat cleans. The high pull destroys upper‑back and trap musculature, improving deadlift lockout and snatch turnover.

Because there’s no deep squat, they’re perfect on deload weeks to keep patterning sharp while sparing legs, or in met‑cons where fast cycling with lighter load is programmed.

Progressions

• PVC Tall Muscle Clean – train elbows fast.
• Hang Muscle Clean – start from mid‑thigh to isolate finish.
• Deficit Muscle Clean – plates under feet to increase pull height.

Programming Tips

• Use as primer: 3×3 @ 40–50 % before heavy clean session.
• Met‑con: 10 muscle cleans every minute on the minute for 7 min at 30–35 % 1‑RM.
• Volume builder: 5×5 across at 60 % focusing on perfect rack.

Mobility Focus

Tight triceps and lats slow elbow turnover—add banded tricep stretches and front‑rack lat smash pre‑session.

Wrap‑Up

Muscle cleans engrain a bullet‑proof bar path and lightning‑fast turnover—skills that make heavier power and squat cleans safer and stronger. Blend them into warm‑ups, technique days, or conditioning pieces and watch your clean efficiency skyrocket.

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