Cfj Starr Fullcleans

7/28/2019 Cfj Starr Fullcleans

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J O U R N A L A R T I C L E S

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Learning How to Do Full Cleans

Bill Starr

Full cleans can get complicated, but Bill Starr simplies the movement intoa power clean and a ront squat. Get comortable with the movements,

then start rening the clean by adding speed and power.

Full cleans are one o the very best exercises or any strength athlete.

They are benecial because they involve so many o the large muscles o the body in a dynamic ashion.

When perormed correctly, ull cleans work the hips, legs, back, shoulders and arms. And while these

groups can be strengthened with other exercises, none do so in the same manner. Primarily, ull cleans

orce the nervous system to work much harder than any other exerciseexcept or ull snatches. Snatches

will be the topic o an upcoming article in the CrossFit Journal.

SusannahDy/CrossFitJournal
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Full Cleans ... (continued)





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Start Simple

An athlete needs a high degree o concentration when

he does ull cleans, and this process o having to think

intently through each phase o the lit means that the

nervous system ends up getting as much o a workout

as the muscles and attachments. Ater a strenuous

session o ull cleans, most athletes are completely wornout. Thats because tapping into the nervous system is

much more atiguing than just stimulating the muscular

system.

Another reason I include ull cleans in my strength

programs or athletes is that they require not only

undivided ocus but also a large measure o coordi-

nation, timing and oot speed. Its a high-skill movement,

and when done with demanding amounts o weight, it

enhances skills that are then available or a wide range

o sports. Full cleans are certainly helpul to those in

contact sports because they build lots o strength in the

hips, legs and lower back, but theyre also most useul tothose who participate in sports such as tennis, volleyball

and baseball. And, o course, theyre really benecial to

throwers in the eld events.

Combo exercises seem to be big in strength training right

now, and ull cleans are the ultimate combo movement:

a heavy pull ollowed by a ront squat. So why isnt this

exercise included in a great many programs? Basically,

because whoever is in charge doesnt know how to do it

and is thereore unable to teach it to the athletes.

Many shun it since they believe its ar too compli-

cated. In act, it isnt complicated at all. Its no more

than a power clean and a ront squat done in a smoothmanner. It really is a natural movement. Young athletes

pick up the orm right away. I think humans have been

perorming ull cleans ever since one o them ound that

the mastodon bone he was trying to lit to his shoulders

was heavier than he thought, so he simply squatted

down under it.

Ive also watched coaches give the athlete ar too many

things to think about when doing ull cleans, and this

does nothing but conuse him. A great many coaching

points are not necessary to learn how to do the lit. As

the numbers start to climb, orm has to be constantly

rened, but in the beginning simplicity is the ticket.

As the numbers start to climb,

orm has to be constantly refned,

but in the beginning simplicity is

the ticket.

jontunn/Creative

Commons

The clean is the ultimate combo movement,and it doesnt have to be complicated

i you break it down into pieces.
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Rack It Right

Simplicity is the key, but there is one prerequisite to

ull cleans: the athlete must have enough fexibility in

his shoulders to enable him to rack the bar across his

rontal deltoids so that his triceps are parallel to the foor.

Otherwise, hes not going to be able to do a ront squat,

and i he cant ront squat correctly, theres no way hesgoing to be able to do ull cleans.

This is not an insurmountable problem. Tight shoulders

can be made fexible, usually in a short period o time.

Naturally, an older athlete will have more diculty than

his younger counterpart, but i a person is willing to

spend the time enhancing the fexibility in his shoulders,

he can usually do so.

This, then, is the rst step in the process o learning how

to do ull cleans. You can do it alone, although having

a training mate assist you is more eective. Load up a

bar in a squat or power rack. Rest the bar across your

rontal deltoids. Dont let it lie across your collarbones.Not only does that hurt like hell, but i you repeatedly

rack a clean on the clavicles, you will damage them. Grip

the bar rmly with one hand and elevate your elbow

upward as high as you can, then have a training partner

apply pressure to extend it even higher. Once it reaches

the point where it can go no urther, keep it there or a

count o 10. Now do the same thing or the other arm.

Relax a bit, then grip the bar with both hands and have

your helper push up against both arms at the same time.

Again, hold at the apex or a count o 10 (longer i you

can handle it).

Be sure to keep your torso upright throughout these

stretching moves. The tendency is to curl the hips

orward to ease the discomort, but this does nothing to

help your cause. In addition to these stretches, you can

spend time just liting your elbow up by using your other

hand and holding it there or as long as you can. This

can be done while watching TV or waiting in line at the

grocery store. Sure, you may get a ew odd stares, but

thats a small price to pay or better shoulder fexibility.

Once youve achieved sucient fexibility to rack the bar

rmly across your rontal delts, you can do ront squats.

Because the wrists are placed under a great deal o stress

in both the ront squat and clean, I suggest you wrap

them using trainers tape. I you can nd leather wriststraps, use them as well. The wrists are small joints and

can be easily dinged. When they are, it takes long rehab

to get them back to normal, so its smart to protect them

rom the very onset. With improved shoulder fexibility

and wrapped wrists, youre ready to learn how to do ull

cleans.

Whether perorming a clean or a ront squat, its critical to lead with the elbows when moving out o the bottom.

SusannahDy/CrossFitJournal


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Start With the Front Squat

Start by power-cleaning a weight, then ront-squatting

it. Concentrate on nding the correct line o pull on the

power cleanwhich is extremely close to your body

and giving the bar a snap at the nish. A strong top

pull is essential when cleaning a heavy weight. At the

completion o the pull, skip your eet rom their startingposition to a slightly wider stance. They need to be

wider than shoulder width to allow you to go into a deep

ront squat. Plus, you will need to move your eet when

perorming a ull clean, so get used to it.

Make sure your rack is solid, with the bar squeezed down

into your rontal deltoids. I you eel the bar touching your

clavicles, elevate your entire shoulder girdle until youre

able to move the bar o the bones. Keep your elbows up

so that your triceps are parallel with the foor, and ensure

they stay that way throughout the ront squat. Pull

yoursel to the deep bottom position in the squat. Stay

very tight and go down rather quickly. I you attempt tolower yoursel slowly, when you get to the middle, you

will invariably lean orward, and you dont want that.

Your torso has to remain perectly erect throughout the

movement. Any leaning, no matter how slight, puts a

huge amount o additional stress on your wrists. Should

it be excessive, the bar will crash to the foor.

Your rst move out o the bottom is quite dierent in

the ront squat than it is in the back squat. In the back

squat, your hips drive up and back, but in the ront squat,this same move would cause you to lean orward and

carry the bar ar out o the proper line. When you start

out o the bottom in the ront squat, think elbows up.

That allows you to stay in an upright position and keeps

the weight over your power pack. As soon as you drive

upward, stand right up. No hesitation at all. You need

to explode upward and glide right through the sticking

point. Should the bar stall, once again think elbows and

lit them skyward to keep the weight over your powerulhips and legs. Lower the bar back to the foor, take a

deep breath and repeat the sequence: power clean, ront

squat.

In the back squat, your hips drive

up and back, but in the ront squat,

this same move would cause you

to lean orward and carry the bar

ar out o the proper line. When

you start out o the bottom in the

ront squat, think elbows up.

Low elbows are sometimes the result o a poor line o pull. I thebar is too ar away rom you, its hard to get the elbows around.I you keep the elbows high throughout the lit, your chances o

success increase dramatically.

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Learning the Drill

Once youre comortable with these moves, youre

ready to do ull cleans by using the Drill. I learned this

rom Morris Weissbrot, the long-time coach o the

Lost Battalion Hall in New York City and one o the top

ocials in AAU Olympic Weightliting in the 60s. We

worked a clinic together at Rutgers University, and hedemonstrated this technique. Within a very short time,

he taught a group o ootball players how to do ull

cleans, a lit none o them had ever tried beore. I was

duly impressed and have utilized the Drill since then. Its

extremely simple and eectivetwo reasons why I like

it.

My version isnt identical to how Morris taught it, yet he

deserves the credit nonetheless.

Beore teaching the Drill, I make sure the athlete has

warmed up his abs and lower back and spent some time

stretching out his shoulders in preparation or racking

the bar. Then I have him do some light power cleans to

warm up the muscles that are going to be called upon

presently, and also to establish the line o pull in theclean.

The Drill consists o three parts perormed in succession.

Most nd this a tad conusing at rst because they arent

accustomed to doing multiple steps in a single set, but

they usually get the hang o it rather quickly. Obviously,

the more athleticism one possesses, the aster he will

learn the Drill.

The rst part is the easiest because the athlete has

already been doing it: a power clean quickly ollowed

by a ront squat. Step 2 is a bit harder. Its a hang clean,

which is immediately ollowed by a deep ront squat.

This is really the most important step in learning how to

do ull cleans. Lower the bar to just above your knees and

clean it. As soon as its racked on your shoulders, lower

into the bottom o a ront squat. It needs to be done in

a fuid motion, not with hesitation at any phase. Fluid

motion isnt going to happen right away. Thats why its

called the Drill. You must work the three segments until

they all fow together smoothly.

Youll quickly fnd out that whenyou give a nice pop to the top o

the pull, its much easier to slip

under the bar.

Susa

nnahDy/CrossFitJournal

Maintaining good orm on cleans during a chipper is tough, but experienced athletes know good technique makes or efcientmovement. Jolie Gentry keeps the elbows high during the fnal WOD at the 2009 CrossFit Games.


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Youll quickly nd out that when you give a nice pop to

the top o the pull, its much easier to slip under the bar.

With the short stroke o the hang clean, you are orced

to move ast in order to rack the weight and get to the

bottom o the squat. Thats exactly the point. When you

attempt to clean a maximum poundage, the nal snap

at the top o the pull has to be strong so the bar jumps,allowing you the time to drive to the bottom and rack

the weight.

The nal step is to place the bar on the foor, pull it as

high as you normally do in power cleaning, then drive to

the bottom once again. By starting rom the foor, youre

going to have a much stronger pull than you did rom

the hang, and this gives you more time to jump to the

bottom and rack the weight. In other words, the nal

stage o the Drill is a ull clean. The rst two moves are

merely set-ups or the nal one.

The act that you have to do three dierent movements

back-to-back with no break in between orces you toocus intently on what youre doing, which is good

because thats what you must do when perorming a ull

clean with a taxing poundage. Plus, the hardest part o

the Drill is at the end. This means youre going to have to

lean into the pull more and really drive into the hole with

determination. Again, what this teaches you is directly

transerable to a heavy ull clean.

When an athlete gets the eel o what hes trying to

accomplish, he masters the Drill, sticking that third

segment solidly. Once this is done, he can cease using

the Drill and move on to just doing ull cleans. However,

Ive had several liters who continued to use the Drilleven ater they were winning medals at competitions.

Some used it as a warm-up beore proceeding to a ull

clean workout.

Keep in mind that the weight used on the Drill has to be

light enough so the various moves can be learned, yet

heavy enough so that the athlete has to extend himsel

ully. In order to handle much weight in the Drill and in

the ull clean itsel, you must learn to use the hook grip.

You cannot use straps because you have to be able to

release the bar i you ail during the execution o the

Drill or a ull clean. Being locked onto the bar would spell

disaster with a large load.

Be orewarned: initially using the hook grip is painul.

Oddly enough, you soon get used to it. When I was

still competing in Olympic meets, I would nd mysel

hooking the steering wheel in my car. It had become

second nature. To ease the discomort, wrap strips o

training tape around your thumbs at the joints below the

ones with nails. A hal strip is about right or most, and

only wrap it around twice. More than that causes the

tape to bunch up, which only makes matters worse.

Bring your thumbs under the bar and lock them down

with your index and middle ngers. Some who possess

chubby ngers can only manage to hook with their indexngers. Thats better than nothing. Start hooking right

away so that you get used to it beore attempting to

clean anything heavy. I youre serious about cleaning a

As you reverse your keys rom

pulling to moving down into thehole, pull the bar down with you

and guide it into the proper rack

on your shoulders.

Full extension is critical to getting under a heavy load.

Staff/CrossFitJournal


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considerable amount o weight, you have to hook. I also

ound it more benecial to hook than to use the reverse

grip when deadliting. With the hook, I was able to bring

my traps into the mix much more readily. The hook

grip is only bothersome or the rst ew weeks, then it

becomes a matter o course.

The Finer Points

Now that you understand the undamentals o doing

a ull clean, you have to start paying attention to the

various orm points.

No. 1 on the list is line o pull. I the bar is pulled too ar

away rom your body, youre not going to be able to rack

it properly, and in most cases it will crash to the foor. I

you pull it too ar back, youll nd yoursel on your butt.

The biggest concern most beginners have about doing

a ull clean is that it will knock them back and the bar

will all on them. As it so happens, this will most likely

occur. Its like learning to ride a bike: youre going to all.

The thing to know is i you nd youre going to end upon your backside, relax and dont ght the descending

weight. You will t easily under an Olympic bar.

Do ull cleans in sets o three reps in the beginning. As

you become more advanced, the reps can be lowered

to twos and even singles, but triples work nicely early

on. The sequence o the pull must be precise in the ull

clean. Mistakes can be overcome in the power clean, but

not in the ull movement. In order to help accomplish

this, start the bar o the foor slowly, then pick up speedthrough the middle and have the bar fying at the top. All

the while, its snug to your body. Once you eel the ideal

line o pull, try to hit it on every rep.

Most beginners ail to ully extend beore moving to the

bottom, earul that they arent going to get there in time

to rack the weight. But because they dont ully extend,

they dont provide that nal, critical jolt to the bar, and

that jolt is needed to allow them time to jump into the

bottom. In addition, when the pull is cut short, the body

is leaning orward slightly, and this is not what you want.

It costs time or you to return to the upright position.

Otherwise, youll be leaning orward when you rack the

bar, and this usually results in the bar being bumped.

Knowing when to bring the traps into play and when to

bend the arms are the two most dicult parts o the pull.

Bring the bar o the foor smoothly in a tight, controlled

line. When the bar passed your knees, drive your hips

orward orceully and immediately contract your traps.

All the while, your elbows are locked and arms are

straight. But once you activate your traps, bend your

arms and drive your elbows up and out to provide that

nal bit o impetus to the upward-moving bar.

At that same instant, you should be high on your toes.

This latter point is extremely important or a couple o

reasons. The calves help to elevate the bar a bit higher,

At the very instant you provide

that fnal bit o power to the bar

at the top o the pull, you must

move. Any hesitation will give

the bar the edgeand it will beat

you to the bottom.

Staff/CrossFitJournal

I you cant ront squat, you cant do a ull clean.Note the vertical torso and high elbows, as well as

the position o the baron the deltoids, not the clavicle.


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and quite oten that bit is the dierence between success

and ailure. You can also move to the bottom aster when

youre on your toes than when youre fat-ooted. When

your body is perectly vertical with your elbows up and

out and you eel the bar jump, thats your cue to drive to

the bottom.

However, you dont just want to give a hard pull, moveinto a ront squat and let the bar crash down on you in the

bottom. While some o the greatest liters in the history

o Olympic lits did thisthe most notable being Bob

Bednarskiits not tting or many others. Barski was

tremendously strong and was rock solid when the bar

hit his shoulders. For those just learning the lit, the bar

will simply bounce o or drive the athlete o balance. As

you reverse your keys rom pulling to moving down into

the hole, pull the bar down with you and guide it into

the proper rack on your shoulders. Should you meet the

bar high, which is oten the case, just ride it on down to

the bottom, staying extremely tight the whole time. Any

relaxation rom your ankles to your shoulders will cause

problems.

When you have the bar racked and under control in the

bottom, stand up. Dont hang around down there any

longer than you have to. When you hit things just right,

youll be able to get a slight recoil out o the bottom,

which is a tremendous plus to aid you in recovering with

the weight on your shoulders.

Because oot placement at the bottom o the ull clean

is so crucial, time must be spent practicing this part o

the lit. I have my liters use chalk to mark where they

want their eet to land, and ater each rep they check tosee how close they came to the marks, Not only must

they land in the same spot each time, but the eet also

have to be slammed into the foor. At the very instant

you provide that nal bit o power to the bar at the top o

the pull, you must move. Any hesitation will give the bar

the edgeand it will beat you to the bottom.

The King of Lifts

There is a coordinated rhythm to the ull clean, and when

everything is done precisely, the bar will seemingly foat

upward eortlessly and drop in the slot on your shoulders

like magic. The clean and jerk has been called the King

o Lits or good reason. The athlete who can clean andjerk the most weight is considered the strongest. Re-read

my article Mastering the Jerk so you can combine these

two high-skill movements.

Anyone with athletic attributes can learn how to do ull

cleans. Take the time to gain more fexible shoulders,

wrap your wrists and thumbs, practice the Drill until

youre procient, then start attacking some bigger

numbers in the ull cleanand ollow that with some

jerks. Once youve done that youre well on your way to

achieving success in the sport o Olympic liting; that is,ater you learn how to do ull snatches, which I will cover

next time.

F

About the Author

Bill Starr coached at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City,

the 1970 World Olympic Weightliting Championship

in Columbus, Ohio, and the 1975 World Powerliting

Championships in Birmingham, England. He was selected

as head coach o the 1969 team that competed in theTournament o Americas in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico,

where the United States won the team title, making him

the frst active liter to be head coach o an international

Olympic weightliting team. Starr is the author o the books

The Strongest Shall Survive: Strength Training or Football

and Deying Gravity, which can be ound at The Aasgaard

Company Bookstore.

JodyForster
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