Squat & Power Clean form check

[WoncholikePoncho]

Here is the Squat & here is the Power Clean.

Thanks

-Woncho

[MikeC1]

Your squats are high. I don't think you'd be able to lift it at that weight if you were to squat below parallel, so you might consider reducing the weight significantly if you want to fix this. You also have the bar in a high bar position, I'm not sure if that's what you were going for or not, but if you're trying to low bar squat then you'll have to lower the bar down to your posterior deltoids.

The weight is also a little too heavy on the power clean, as evidenced by your lateral splot. As you land to catch the bar, try to have your feet land where they started instead of moving out.

[WoncholikePoncho]

Thanks but what's a lateral splot?

[WoncholikePoncho]

Also even when I just do the power clean the bar, I spread my feet too, I will work on this.

[MikeC1]

Your feet are going out sideways, and also splitting forward backward into not really a split. Just try to keep your feet in place, that is the simplest approach.

[RobCor]

Squat reps 2-5 are high, as Mike noted. Also, your wrists start to bend backwards under the bar. Trust me when I say that you do not want that to happen. It will cause you problems in the long run. Keep them straight. Your arms do not support the bar.

Your clean setup looks good. Everything looks extended. The pull itself isn't very explosive, but what bothers me the most is the rack. Your elbows are basically straight down when the bar racks. Like the wrist thing, this will start to hurt over time. Practice whipping your elbows around the bar.

I disagree with Mike about the feet widening. My feet widen. Dimas's feet widen. Kono's feet widen. Mendez's feet widen. My understanding is that a lateral split is more when the legs widen a lot and one moves forward relative to the other. There's a vid on youtube of some kid cleaning in a high school comp with a huge lateral split. I can't find it.

That said, there is obviously a line between your feet widening a little on landing and your feet blasting out to the sides. I've done the latter a few times. Usually when I'm completely exhausted. It's a bad habit.

From rip: http://startingstrength.com/resource...6473#post46473

The feet will stomp into their same footprints, or just a little wider. Just a little means a
couple of inches per side wider. Some people will shift their feet out to a position wider than a
squat stance. This ?spider-in-heat? position is used in an attempt to drop lower under the bar, in
lieu of pulling it high enough. You don?t get a good stomp going this wide because the angle is
not conducive to stomping and the distance covered is so great that it takes too long. Stomping is
quick, lateral splitting is not. Fix this when you do it by stomping into your correct starting
position footprints several times without the bar. And focus on this foot position during the clean
with a lighter weight that can be racked properly. A lateral split is a bad thing to choose as a habit:
it is dangerous, hard to control, and ineffective. The purpose of the power clean is pulling the bar
high ? we don?t want to make it easier to get under the bar, we want to pull the bar higher. And if
we were going to make it easier to get under the bar we would use the standard squat version of the
clean, not a weird bastardized mutation thereof.

[Gunnhild Bruno]

I disagree with Mike about the feet widening. My feet widen. Dimas's feet widen. Kono's feet widen. Mendez's feet widen. My understanding is that a lateral split is more when the legs widen a lot and one moves forward relative to the other. There's a vid on youtube of some kid cleaning in a high school comp with a huge lateral split. I can't find it.

A little bit wider is fine. And even necessary, if you like to/need to start your pull with a closer stance and frog.

The bigger issue is that it looks like that bar tends to drift out in front of you. The balance issues this causes may be responsible for the very slight split in your landing. Try to keep it in close, and don't let your balance shift forward.

[ihatemoney123]

From the angle given in this video, if no one has taught you how to power clean, this vid is impressive. Because the weight is so light, you don't even have to leave the ground much and widen your feet to create a bigger foundation for the catch phase. The point at which you explode, high on the hip, and the full extension is very good. I'm curious to see how your form displays itself with 185+ on the bar. The second rep, in particular, I can't have any quarrels with. In due time, you will gain more shoulder flexibility and the rack position will become more comfortable. I prefer to sit back when I catch the power clean, you tend to sit where you knees go forward. You can do that as well.

[Mark Edward]

There's a vid on youtube of some kid cleaning in a high school comp with a huge lateral split. I can't find it.

Is it this?




By the way, a youtube search for "power clean" is a horrifying experience. Not that my form is good or anything, but damn.

[Steve Hill]

Safety note: Your dive back into the rack is very dangerous. You should walk the bar back in. In the position you are in, if you miss the hooks, you're going to follow the bar down to the safeties. If you miss on one side, it will be even worse.