Barbell Split Clean

How to do it

Stand over a barbell with a shoulder-width grip, feet hip-width. Explosively extend your hips and knees, shrug, and pull yourself under the bar, splitting your feet front and back as you catch it in a front rack. Recover by stepping your feet back together and standing tall.

1. 1Drive power from your legs and hips, not your arms, to launch the bar
2. 2Pull yourself under fast and split your stance to receive the bar at your shoulders
3. 3Absorb the catch with bent knees and a braced, upright torso

Common mistakes

• ×Do not curl the bar up with your biceps
• ×Do not let your elbows drop or your chest collapse in the catch
• ×Do not lose balance in the split; keep your weight centered

Muscles worked

The barbell split clean mainly works the glutes and quads, with the upper traps, upper abs, lower abs, hamstrings, forearms, lats, lower back, calves, front delts, and side delts assisting.

• GlutesPrimary
• QuadsPrimary
• Upper TrapsSupport
• Upper AbsSupport
• Lower AbsSupport
• HamstringsSupport
• ForearmsSupport
• LatsSupport
• Lower BackSupport
• CalvesSupport
• Front DeltsSupport
• Side DeltsSupport
• TricepsMinor
• Upper ChestMinor
• Mid TrapsMinor
• Lower TrapsMinor
• ObliquesMinor
• AdductorsMinor