Strength Training · Olympic Weightlifting · Functional Fitness
Hang Power Clean
The hang power clean is an explosive barbell lift from above the knees to the front shoulders, caught in a partial squat. It trains leg and hip power plus full-body coordination.
Higher injury risk. Read the safety notes before adding weight.
- Advanced
- Compound
- Higher injury risk
- Rest 3 min
How to do it
- Grip the bar just outside your legs with your feet hip-width apart.
- Lift the bar from the floor to standing with a neutral back.
- Hinge your hips back to lower the bar just above your knees, with your knees slightly bent.
- Extend your legs and hips explosively to drive the bar upward.
- Pull yourself under the rising bar.
- Receive the bar on your front shoulders in a partial squat, with your elbows forward and hips above your knees.
- Stand upright with the bar supported on your shoulders.
- Lower the bar under control to the platform.
Form cues
- Brace before the drive.
- Keep the bar close.
- Keep arms long until your legs extend.
- Land with your knees tracking your toes.
Common mistakes
- Swinging the bar outwardDrive upward rather than thrusting your hips into the bar.
- Catching the bar in your handsTurn your elbows through quickly so your shoulders, not your wrists, support the load.
- Landing with feet excessively wideMove your feet only to your normal squat width as you move under the bar.
- Bar crashing onto the shouldersMeet the bar at its rising height rather than waiting for it to drop onto you.
Safety
A missed catch can strain your wrists or shoulders, or cause a fall with the bar. Excessive load or fatigue can also overload your lower back during the explosive pull.
- Practice with an empty bar before adding weight.
- Secure the plates with collars.
- Keep the platform clear and learn to release a missed lift forward while moving away from the bar.
- End the set when speed, balance, or catch control deteriorates.
If you have wrist, shoulder, back, or knee pain, or cannot comfortably support the bar on your front shoulders, get advice from a physiotherapist before loading this lift.
Muscles worked
Primary muscles
Secondary muscles
Equipment
- Barbell Collar
- Bumper Plate
- Knee Sleeves (optional)
- Lifting Belt (optional)
- Olympic Weightlifting Barbell
- Weightlifting Platform
- Wrist Wraps (optional)
Sets and reps
- Sets
- 3–5
- Target
- 2–3 reps
- Rest
- 3 min
Use a light load that lets every repetition stay fast and consistent, resetting from the floor between reps.