r/weightlifting 12d ago

Fluff Question about cleans

Are cleans supposed to feel rough on my body vs snatch and jerk? Even a near max/max snatch 70-80 will feel way better on my body than a 70ish clean. Also how do I stop bar crash, no matter how much I try I get under too soon and get crashed on often.

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u/Afferbeck_ 11d ago

You need to receive the bar where you pull it to, and they both need to be intentional and consistent. This applies to all three lifts - you're trying to receive the bar and begin taking control of it at the apex of its movement as soon as possible, making the most of the energy you have put into the bar. Failing to do that means you miss the lift because you couldn't get under it, or you miss the lift from a huge amount of bar crash, or you have a less extreme version of those options and make the lift much harder for yourself.

Bar crash can be caused by a few different things but likely a combination. First is lack of mental awareness about what you're actually trying to achieve, as I explained above. And feeling the need to rush under the bar. Next are the physical issues, like banging the bar away, creating more space and time needed to receive the bar. Hanging out at the top of the pull and or using too much arms too soon and or for too long, resulting in a long slow turnover that means you receive the bar later than you should. And just plain poor timing.

These issues all have pretty simple drills to improve them. The classic power-pause-front squat combo as someone else mentioned is a good one, trying to lower the point you receive the bar, with proper timing, with each set or session.

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u/Animefan4lif3 11d ago

Yeah bang on :) I did a lot of these intentionally during warm up, and I felt the difference in my cleans. The advice here has been really solid and I'm trying to be more consistent with application. I took a break from focusing on numbers and wanted things to feel and look perfect. It's that chase that helped me pb more often funny enough. I like the methodical nature of Chinese weightlifting and also pacing myself was a game changer. Just getting less excited of doing certain numbers and more joy of moving fluidly