Accessory Lifts to Fix a Faulty Power Clean

Clean Pull: Finish in triple extension with a shoulder shrug. (use 110% of
(X)RM where X is the
number of reps in that particular set) Starting position is
determined based on the
weakest aspect of the athletes clean. From: the Floor, the Hang,
Blocks
Front Squat: if struggling to rack the weight the front squat is really
important.
RDL: Hamstring/Glute strength is needed at the sticking point around the
knees before the
second pull. RDL exercise finishes with bar just at or below the knee.
Clean Lift Of: When struggle off the floor only. Exercise is from the floor
until bar reaches
knee height and then return to the floor under control.
Straps: Not during power cleans grip strength is essential, and ability to
drop the weight
between reps is hindered by straps. Are Ok during lifts from the
hang position since
weight is not being released between reps.
Weightlifting Belts: Never for someone with poor technique as belt makes
them brave to add
more weight. If athlete has great technique and can with
neutral spine off
the floor, belt is unnecessary even at higher weights.
Shoes: Least recommended for Olympic lifts would be running type shoes
with high rubbery
soles, allow for power to leach out during pull, and for a lack of
stability in receiving
position.

Quick tips to make the Olympic lifts better for your athletes
By Wilson Fleming
The Olympic lifts are the most complex moves to do in the weightroom. Great lifters spend years
and years on technique and train exclusively in this sport. For most of the athletes that I work with,
this is not the case, they Olympic lift (Clean, Snatch, Jerk) with me 2-3 times a week and if they are in
a high school program they may do the clean 1-2 times a week as well. With a basic program they are
getting possibly 15 sets of Olympic lifts per week. While this is a decent amount of volume, it is not
quality volume. Time spent with me then is aimed at working on developing proper technique to apply
either at their high school or down the road in their training with me.
I use a lot of coaching points to have my athletes get better at the lifts but I wanted to make a list, so
here are my top 6:
1. Turn your elbows out.
When holding the bar at the start position, in the hang or on the floor have the athlete turn their elbow
straight to the outside. The natural way to hold your elbows will be facing backwards, this becomes a
problem during the fast pull above your knees, as this natural position will keep the bar away from
their body. Elbows behind the bar will make the bar get away from your body. By turning your elbows
out you will be able to keep the bar close to your body during the pull. The goal of the pull portion of
the clean is to be efficient and powerful, elbows out handles the efficient part.
2. Go Slow off the floor.
To get the most out of your cleans athletes have to go slow off the ground. The temptation when
pulling from the ground (in a clean or snatch) is to pull the bar quickly and be aggressive from the
start, instead of helping you lift more weight this actually makes it more difficult to pull the bar fast
when above the knees. When an object is moving at a fast rate it is harder to put more force into it,
so if the bar is travelling quickly from the start it will be difficult to make it go faster above the knees.
Basic physics type stuff, but so often this is not applied. So be patient and go slow from the ground,
when the bar gets above your knees then try to move it quickly.

3. Draw it out.
A big problem for most athletes is the position that they catch the bar. When weight gets on the bar
athletes have a tendency to revert to the first form they ever thought of, in a lot of cases this means
feet wide and hips forward of the bar. To combat a bad catch position I like to draw the proper foot
positions on the floor. Basically, it is 2 intersecting rectangles that mark the foot position at the start
and the foot position at the finish. Lifts where the feet finish in the wrong position mean that the
athlete has to go down in weight This visual cue is perfect at giving the athlete almost immediate
feedback about the quality of the lift.
4. Practice parts of the movement.
A lot of coaches program pulls of some sort or another usually ending in an explosive shrug at the top
(these are great) or (gasp) a high pull, but I like to program specific portions of the movement that
give athletes trouble. Specifically Clean pulls to the knee.
Coming off the floor is usually a trouble spot for most athletes, it is definitely a time that the bar can
easily get in the wrong position. Doing a clean pull to the knee can help athletes learn the right
pattern to coming off the floor i.e. extending the knees while bringing the chest up at a similar rate.
Dont be fooled, coming off the floor with a deadlift is not the same as bringing a bar off the floor in a
clean or snatch.
5. Do lift combinations
When working on an aspect of the technique of cleans consider doing lift combinations.
Combinations are things like: one clean pull followed by one hang clean or one Romanian deadlift
and one hang clean. These types of lifts can make sure athletes get in the right position and reinforce
good technique. By doing one portion of the lift followed by the entire lift athletes are able to repeat
the pattern and focus on something, hip extension, proper start position. One thing to be careful of is
to keep the repetitions low on combinations, athletes are really doing 2x as many reps as it says on
your workout!
6. Catching snatches
It typically takes a leap of faith on the part of the athlete to catch the snatch overhead. We are
asking them to connect the dots in a way that they have never before. A great drill to improve your
athletes snatch is the Snatch Balance. The snatch balance is great at getting athletes accustomed
to the timing of an aggressive punch overhead while simultaneously re-setting their feet to an
appropriate width.
The snatch is all about timing andPractice. Snatch balance is a great tool to practice one of the
most difficult aspects of the snatch.

Adding each of these pieces will help to get your athletes better at the Olympic lifts. Be careful not to
overwhelm your athletes with new parts and technique points, 1 thing until perfected is much better
than a lot of things done just okay.

Loading for High School Weightlifting

Much of the time spent in the weight room will be dedicated to the coaching of athletes on the proper
movements, positions, and providing general technical info needed to safely complete the movements
with maximal return on the time invested. The other portion of the time of the strength coach will be
spent on determining and helping to select the weights that athletes use.
The beginning stages of the high school athletes career in the weight room should be spent teaching
athletes the right way to lift and train, cueing the right movements, and ensuring technical proficiency.
Building these foundations with minimal external loading is extremely important.
Movements, and more importantly, proper movements form the foundation of a good program. Gyms
and weightrooms with individuals moving poorly, will limit athletes from getting stronger and staying
healthy.
Once the movements have been taught, drilled and perfected, it will be time to load the movements to
create more strength. I will outline two effective strategies to do just that. One will be quite intuitive

and allow for novice lifters to get great benefit from your program. The second is based on the
athletes 1RM and require careful planning on your part.
The work up method
The work up method is one that can be used for any athlete for whom you do not know their current 1
RM. This method allows for great freedom in the weights used on any given day, but will always dial
into the perfect weight on a given day.
There are no specific percentages at which an athlete should be working when using the work up
method. Instead it uses the ability of an athlete on a given day to reach the proper level of difficulty.
First, work up to your best set of the given reps on any day you are training. Some days will be better
than others, but athletes should always work up to the best set that day with perfect form. Counting
their sets backwards and count any set within 10% of your best as a work set. So for instance, lets
say snatch was prescribed for 4 sets of 3 reps and the athlete snatched the following sets:
40k x3
50k x3
60k x3
70k x3
80k x3
85k x3 92%
85k x3
90k x3
92k x3 100%
On this day you would count the highlighted sets. Each of these sets falls within 10% of the highest
load on the snatch that day.
If for instance an athlete did the following sets on a snatch workout you may have to add another set
below your highest weight to get the right number of work sets in.
40k x3
60k x3

70k x3
80k x3 86% (do not count)
90k x3
92k x3 100%
Because only 2 sets were within 10% of your best on that day you could do the following to get the
appropriate number of work sets.
85k x3
85k x3
The work up method allows for high intensity training at the best level an athlete can reach on any
given day. For large groups of athletes with varying levels of confidence and competence in the
strength training this is an ideal method to use.
This method of loading is similar to the idea of rate of perceived exertion (RPE), or the Borg scale,
that is typically used for aerobic training. While the Borg scale uses values from 6-20 (correlating
roughly to heart rate when multiplied by 10), an RPE scale for strength training can be used in a 1-10
range (correlating to percentage used when multiplied by 10).
An RPE scale for strength training based on 1-10 would look something like the following.
10 Maximal.

No possibility of more reps completed.

Not to failure

Last repetition is extremely difficult

Bar speed decreases, several reps could

be completed afterwards

Weight moves quickly when maximal

force is applied to the weight

Light speed work. Moves quickly with

moderate force

Most warm-up weights

Recovery.

<4

Rarely used in training

Modified from Tuchscherer, Michael (2008). The Reactive training manual.

For training in the work up method using weights on a given day that are between 9 and 10 will
ensure the maximum training effect. Lifts in the 9-10 zone for a given rep scheme, will challenge
athletes no matter the day.
In line with our need to promote recovery, on some weeks it will be important to coach athletes to train
with the work up method, in the 6-7 zone. This will ensure complete recovery prior to a more difficult
week of training.
The percentage method
The percentage method is most commonly used with higher level athletes. This method uses known 1
repetition maximums and specific percentages to prescribe training loads.
In a given training period the goals for the completion of the training cycle should be known. That is,
what numbers would the coach and athlete like to hit by the end of the cycle. From these numbers all
weights will be based.
The model for both linear periodization and undulating periodization both use percentages to estimate
the appropriate load to be used on a given day. In that way the percentage (%) method is the most
studied and established way of determining loads.
Prilepins table, designed by former Soviet weightlifting coach A.S. Prilepin can be used to closely
predict the sets and reps used at differing levels of intensity.
Prilepins Table
Percent Zone

Rep Range per Set

Total Reps

70-75%

3 to 6

18

80-85%

2 to 4

15

90% +

1 to 2

10

Loading the Olympic lifts in these 2 ways will allow you to accommodate nearly all athletes that walk
into your training facility. One in a very intuitive way, and the other in an exacting and specific manner.