Power Clean

Move · Resistance Training · Movement, Typed Supps

You do not lift the bar to your shoulders — you throw it up and then drop underneath it.

Stage by stage

Set-up (Bar close, back set): The start resembles a deadlift, and the transition through the knee is what positions the hips to extend explosively.
The second pull (Triple extension at speed): Coordinated ankle, knee and hip extension generates one of the highest power outputs in any barbell lift, with the arms still straight.
The catch (Received above parallel): Catching in a quarter squat means the bar must travel higher, demanding more velocity at a given load than a full clean does.
Weeks later (Rate of force development): Power improves and loads climb, but the quality degrades with fatigue, which is why the lift sits early in a session and never goes to failure.

Muscles trained

Primary: glutes, hamstrings, traps
Secondary: abs, forearms, lower back, quads, rotator cuff, shoulders

Intensity

6 METs (Resistance training (weight lifting, free weight, nautilus or universal), power lifting or body building, vigorous effort (Taylor Code 210)).

Time to effect

Weeks: The first few weeks are almost entirely about timing — learning to extend the hips, shrug and pull yourself under the bar in one fluid sequence rather than three separate movements. Bar speed improves fast as the pattern locks in, well before any real strength gain.
Months: Once the technique is grooved, the weight you can move climbs steadily over 2 to 3 months as hip and trap power genuinely increase, though loads used are typically lighter than a full clean.

Related supplements

Creatine Monohydrate

Common myth

"The power clean is just a smaller version of the clean." In reality: The catch height is the actual distinguishing feature: a power clean is caught above parallel, in a quarter-squat, while a full clean is caught at the bottom of a deep front squat. Because the catch is higher, the bar has to be pulled higher and faster, which is why many coaches use it to build explosive pulling power rather than as a simplified alternative.