Skip to content
Gymlab
Create your personal plan

Strength Training · Olympic Weightlifting

Tempo Clean Pull

The tempo clean pull combines a slow lift from the floor with an explosive extension, without catching the bar. It trains leg and hip strength, pulling power, and control of the clean’s starting position.

Higher injury risk. Read the safety notes before adding weight.

  • Advanced
  • Compound
  • Higher injury risk
  • Rest 3 min

How to do it

  1. Stand with your feet hip-width apart and the bar over your midfoot.
  2. Grip the bar just outside your legs with an overhand grip.
  3. Lower your hips into a starting position with your back flat and shoulders slightly ahead of the bar.
  4. Lift the bar slowly to just below your knees over three seconds.
  5. Accelerate the bar past your knees toward your upper thighs.
  6. Extend your hips, knees, and ankles powerfully with your arms straight.
  7. Lower the bar to the floor under control.

Form cues

  • Brace before the bar leaves the floor.
  • Keep whole-foot pressure until the final extension.
  • Shrug at the finish.

Common mistakes

  • Hips shooting up firstRaise your chest and hips together during the slow portion.
  • Bar drifting forwardKeep the bar close enough to lightly brush your legs rather than swinging around your knees.
  • Leaning back at the topFinish tall with your ribs over your pelvis instead of arching your lower back.

Safety

The slow start increases fatigue before the explosive pull, so excessive load can lead to loss of back position or balance. A dropped or bouncing bar can strike your feet or nearby people.

  • Practice the slow-to-fast transition with light loads before increasing weight.
  • Secure the plates with collars.
  • Keep the platform clear, with space to release the bar away from your feet if needed.
  • End the set when fatigue prevents a crisp extension.

If you cannot reach the floor position comfortably or have back, hip, or knee pain during the pull, choose a simpler variation and seek advice from a physiotherapist.

Muscles worked

Front
Back

Primary muscles

  • Glutes

Secondary muscles

  • Hamstrings
  • Quadriceps
  • Traps

Equipment

  • Barbell Collar
  • Bumper Plate
  • Lifting Belt (optional)
  • Lifting Straps (optional)
  • Olympic Weightlifting Barbell
  • Weightlifting Platform

Sets and reps

Sets
3–4
Target
2–4 reps
Rest
3 min

Let the bar settle completely between repetitions rather than bouncing into the next pull.

Variations

Easier

Harder