Muscle Clean
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The Muscle Clean is a bodyweight strength exercise that mimics the initial pull phase of a power clean, focusing on explosive hip and torso drive to build pulling power without external loads. It primarily targets the glutes and back muscles, enhancing posterior chain activation and coordination. Athletes seeking to improve Olympic lift technique, explosive strength, or body control, especially beginners or those without barbells, benefit most from its scalable, no-equipment demands.
How to Perform Muscle Clean
- 1Stand tall with feet shoulder-width apart, knees soft, core braced, and arms relaxed at your sides, palms facing your body.
- 2Hinge at your hips to lower into a quarter squat, pushing glutes back while keeping your back flat and chest up.
- 3Swing your arms back forcefully behind your torso to build momentum, like pulling a rope.
- 4Explosively drive your hips forward and squeeze your glutes to thrust your arms upward, shrugging your shoulders toward your ears (inhale before the drive).
- 5As your arms reach full extension overhead, quickly drop into a deeper squat by bending your knees and hips, catching your body under the "weight" of your arms.
- 6Exhale as you stand up tall from the squat, pressing through your heels with arms locked overhead.
- 7Lower your arms controlled to the starting position, hinging at hips to repeat.
- 8Key form tips: Keep your core tight throughout to protect your back; avoid overarching your lower back during the catch—maintain a neutral spine. Common mistakes: Using arm strength alone (power comes from hips/glutes); rounding shoulders forward. Perform 3 sets of 8-12 reps.
