How To Master the Hang Clean for Total Body Power

Most bodybuilders strive to develop a symmetrical physique with perfect proportions. But if you want to be a better athlete, you also need to focus on building explosive power and strength. 

Power cleans, snatches, overhead squats, and other Olympic lifts can help you develop the mental and motor skills that define elite athletes. 

These complex movements can dramatically improve your strength and fitness, as well as your speed, balance, coordination, and mobility states the International Weightlifting Foundation. The hang clean is no exception. 

This explosive movement serves as a fundamental technique for more advanced lifts, such as the clean and jerk. It works all the major muscle groups, especially the back, quads, shoulders, and arms. 

Beginners may find this exercise easier than the power clean because the movement begins from just above the knees, not from the floor. The word “hang” refers to the starting position. 

When performed correctly, hang cleans can increase muscle strength and explosive power while improving your coordination. The athletic skills required for this exercise can have good carry over to the deadlift, squat, and other compound movements. On top of that, you’ll get a huge anabolic surge. 

Today we’ll show you how to safely perform a hang clean, what mistakes to avoid, how to choose the right starting weight, and more. You’ll also learn the best exercises to improve your hang clean form and build overall strength. 

Let’s dive in! 

Maximize Your Raw Strength and Explosive Power 

The hang clean isn’t a competitive lift, but it can prepare you for more complex Olympic lifts and strength exercises. Its ability to increase force and power output is backed up by science. 

Let’s start with a 2013 study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 

Scientists asked 16 female college athletes with no weightlifting experience to perform hang cleans, high-hang (mid-thigh) cleans, and power cleans. The only difference between these Olympic lifts lies in their starting position. 

All variations of the clean produced similar results in terms of force development, peak vertical force, and peak power. Although the mid-thigh and hang clean increased peak force to a greater extent than the full power clean, the difference was negligible. 

These findings indicate that hang cleans are just as effective as the power clean. Plus, they’re easier to master and less prone to technical error. 

Another study reports that hang cleans and hang snatches produce similar improvements in power, strength, and speed. 

Both movements increased vertical jump height, one-rep max back squat, and sprinting abilities. As the researchers note, Olympic lifts can enhance athletic performance and functional fitness. 

The hang clean produces nine times as much power as the bench press and four times as much power as the squat or deadlift, says Muscle & Fitness. 

This complex lift involves a series of quick, explosive movements that can help maximize your strength. Due to its dynamic nature, it elevates your metabolism and stimulates fat burning while building lean mass. 

However, this variation of the power clean can be tricky for novice lifters. Bodybuilding and Olympic weightlifting are different disciplines. No one expects you to do a perfect clean from day one. 

But that’s why we’re here. Below we’ll discuss the most important aspects of a good hang clean so you can improve your form and avoid injury. 

Find the Optimal Hang Position 

Hang cleans can teach lifters to move faster and extend their hips explosively. Over time, it may improve their neuromuscular and biomechanical efficiency, as well as their intra-muscular coordination.

This power move requires triple extension of the knees, hips, and ankles in a quick, forceful manner. The time under tension for each set is about three to 12 seconds, so you must perform the movement in the blink of an eye. There’s no time to overthink—you just go for it. 

Since so many joints are moving rapidly, using proper form is crucial. The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends practicing the hang clean with an empty barbell, broomsticks, lifting boxes, and safety racks. 

First, try to find the optimal “hang” position. Most athletes use any of these starting points:

• High-hang: Hold a barbell in front of your upper thighs
• Low-hang: Position the bar just below your knees
• Mid-hang: The barbell touches your mid-thighs
• Knee: Hold the bar in front of your knee caps

The mid-thigh position allows athletes to achieve the highest ground reaction force and rate of force development at all loads states a 2011 study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 

This version is also less technical and easier to learn compared to the full power clean, which requires lifting a barbell from the floor. 

Choose the Right Starting Weight

Next, decide how much weight you want to lift. 

Beginners should start with an empty barbell so they can practice the movement safely. As you progress, you may use these guidelines from Strength Level for reference. 

A 180-pound novice male athlete, for instance, should be able to perform the hang clean with about 154 pounds. An intermediate athlete of the same weight may lift up to 197 pounds. If you’re more advanced, aim for at least 247 pounds. 

Consider your overall workout, too. Weightlifters typically complete one to three reps on most exercises. This allows them to lift heavy (at up to 95% of their one-rep max) and build strength. 

However, this approach isn’t too effective for hypertrophy. If your goal is to build mass, try to perform more reps with a lighter load. 

For example, you may complete four sets of six reps, six sets of four reps, or five sets of five reps at 65 to 85% of your one-rep max, with one or two minutes of rest between sets. 

Remember that Olympic lifting is all about efficiency. Whether you’re performing the power clean, the power snatch, or the clean and press, you need to move the bar from point A to point B as quickly and smoothly as possible. Therefore, it’s important to choose a weight that allows you to do so. 

How to Perform a Hang Clean 

Now that you know the basics, it’s time to experiment with this power move that bridges the gap between speed and strength. Follow these steps to perform the hang clean with perfect form:

Part 1. Get in the Right Starting Position: The Hang

1. Place an Olympic barbell on the floor. 
2. Position yourself in front of it, with your feet between hip- and shoulder-width apart. Keep your head and chest up and your shoulders back. 
3. Brace your core and glutes, squat down, and grasp the bar with a shoulder-width overhand grip (or slightly wider). Maintain a neutral spine. 
4. Push through your heels to pull the weight up against the front of your thighs. 
5. At this point, you should have your arms fully extended and your knees slightly bent. Keep the barbell as close to your body as possible. 

Part 2. The Jump and Shrug

1. From the starting position, extend your hips and knees explosively to drive the weight up. Keep your shoulders over the barbell. 
2. Simultaneously extend the lower body joints and shrug your shoulder upward. 
3. Hop under the bar by rapidly flexing your elbows and pointing them out to the sides. 

Part 3. The Catch

1. Catch the barbell on your shoulders while squatting down. Make sure your upper arms are parallel to the floor. 
2. Immediately return to a standing position by driving through your heels. 
3. While in this position, your torso should be almost fully erect and your back straight or slightly arched. Keep your feet flat on the floor, your elbows flexed, and your wrists hyperextended. 
4. Lower the weight back to the starting position (barbell at mid-thigh level) in a controlled manner. Repeat. 

If you experience wrist pain, bring your elbows higher during the shrug. Drive through your feet rather than using your arms to pull the barbell up. Don’t grip the bar too tightly because it may worsen wrist pain and make it harder to lift the weight.

Hang Clean Form Tips 

The hang clean is easier to master than other power clean variations, but it still requires practice. The ACSM recommends newbies perform this exercise under supervision. 

Here are some tips to keep in mind:

• Hold your chest up and out throughout the movement.
• Keep the bar close to your thighs and avoid swinging it away from the body.
• Don’t allow your hips to rise ahead of or faster than your shoulders during the first pull.
• Keep your arms straight until the end of the second pull (when you hop under the bar). 
• Catch the barbell on the rear delts and clavicles. Keep your arms relaxed, not tensed. 
• Let your wrists bend backward and keep your upper arms parallel to the floor during the catch. 
• Keep your torso stationary and your heels elevated while landing. 
• Bring the bar back down in a vertical path. 
• Put your weight on your heels for stability and support. 
• Let your hips and legs initiate the movement. 
• Keep your chest over the bar while in the starting position. Activate your lats to stabilize the upper back and shoulders.

Muscle & Fitness advises against pulling with your arms. Instead, you should initiate the movement from your legs and hips. Perform a few reps of armless cleans to figure out the correct technique. 

Although it’s recommended to start with an empty barbell or a light load, you should gradually increase the weight. Lifting too light cancels out any potential benefits of this power move. 

Another aspect to consider is your footwear. Opt for a pair of shoes with stiffer soles and less cushion as this will allow you to better drive through your heels and maximize force production.

Best Exercises to Improve Your Hang Clean 

The ACSM recommends practicing the Romanian deadlift and other exercises before you try the hang clean. These movements can improve your strength, balance, and coordination, making it easier to master to learn proper hang clean form. 

Here are some examples:

• Hip hinge
• Goblet squat
• Front squat
• Overhead squat
• Power shrug/jump
• Kettlebell swings
• Halting clean deadlift
• Clean pull
• The Sots press

Olympic weightlifter Greg Everett, for instance, says that power cleans can improve an athlete’s ability to lift the barbell and change directions at the top of the movement. 

You may also try the halting clean deadlift, which will teach you the position from which you should initiate the second pull when performing hang cleans. See our guide on how to deadlift to perfect your form before trying more advanced variations.

Tip From The Coach

“The hang clean is one of the most basic movements you can do to build up strength and power. Because it’s an explosive exercise, it activates the muscle to nerve connection and really builds your power.

I liked using a version of the hang clean at the end of my shoulder workouts to train my traps. The normal shrug exercise with barbells or dumbbells will work the top part of the traps but the hang clean exercise develops more of the middle traps.

By pulling the bar from the bottom position to shoulder height and bringing the elbows to the rear, the middle part of the traps are brought into play. In addition, by using heavy weights for lower reps (4-6), you can use heavier weight and really develop the thickness in this part of the muscle.”

Get a Full-Body Workout and Build Explosiveness

The hang clean is an advanced move, but once you get the form right, it becomes a lot easier. This Olympic lift engages the entire body, improving your muscle growth potential. Due to its explosive nature, it’s perfect for HIIT, Tabata, and circuit training. 

Even if you prefer an old-school bodybuilding workout, you can still add this move to routine. Perform the hang clean early in your lower-body workout, such as on leg day. Complete short sets of three to five reps, recommends the ACSM. 

Note that Olympic lifting requires a lot of energy. Load up on protein and carbs around your workouts to perform at your peak. Mix one scoop of Vintage Brawn™, our premium protein blend, within 30 minutes after training and eat a full meal about one hour later. 

Give this exercise a try and then let us know how it went! If you have any questions, drop a line below. Our team will be more than happy to help.