Strength training and power training are critical components to the success of any athlete competing in sports that rely on speed and power for success. More specifically, the proper uses of the Olympic lifts (the snatch, clean and their variations) facilitate improvements across a variety of modalities. When learned and executed correctly, Olympic Lifts increase and improve strength, power, speed, coordination, balance, flexibility, as well as overall conditioning. As a coach, you understand the role that all of these functions play in developing competitive and successful athletes.

However, the Olympic Lifts require extreme focus on the part of both the coach and the athlete in order to take advantage of the many benefits that these movements provide. If these lifts are not performed correctly, athletes drastically increase the likelihood of sustaining potentially serious injuries. For this reason, if athletes have not learned the correct way to perform the exercises they should not attempt to execute the exercise at all.

Fortunately, the Olympic Lifts can be taught and learned easily by following progressions. During instruction, each lift should be broken down into simple movements that athletes should master before progressing to more complex movements. With the number of exercises available, athletes of every level will be able to quickly learn and execute the movements. Therefore, you will be able to improve the efficiency and explosiveness of your athletes the very next time you step into the weight room.

When learning any Olympic Lift, it is critical that emphasis is placed on learning proper explosive technique by using light weights. Most of the time, athletes employ the 'more is better' philosophy, thinking they will see greater benefits by using as much weight as possible. This will only lead to injury. The goal is to increase power output and that comes from moving the weight quickly. If the weight is heavy, the weight will move slowly the athlete's technique will suffer and injury potential is increased. Mastery of technique must be emphasized in order to reap the full benefits of these exercises.

Here are some great progressions to start with before you introduce the entire Clean:

Clean RDL
Stand with barbell in hands, feet at hip width, shoulders back and chest up. Keeping arms straight and eyes fixed straight ahead, lower bar by moving the hips backwards while maintaining a slight but fixed bend in the knees. Stop once the bar reaches the top of the knees or when the flexibility in the hams runs out. Quickly return to starting position by moving hips forward and standing up straight.

Clean RDL to Power Shrug:
Stand with barbell in hand, feet at hip width, shoulders back and chest up. Keeping arms straight and eyes fixed straight ahead, lower bar by moving the hips backwards while maintaining a slight but fixed bend in the knees. Stop once the bar reaches the top of the knees or when the flexibility in the hams runs out. Quickly move the hips forward, as the hips extend explosively, shrug shoulders and rise on toes.

Clean RDL to High Pull:
Stand with barbell in hands, feet at hip width, shoulders back and chest up. Keeping arms straight and eyes fixed straight ahead, lower bar by moving the hips backwards while maintaining a slight but fixed bend in the knees. Stop once the bar reaches the top of the knees or when the flexibility in the hams runs out. Quickly move the hips forward, as the hips extend explosively, shrug shoulders and rise on toes. Continue to elevate the bar to mid-chest height by bending elbows and continuing the upward movement of the bar. Be sure to lift elbows up and keep the bar close to the body.

Muscle Clean:
Standing erect with barbell in hands with a clean grip and feet at hip width, slide bar upwards almost along the body to near shoulder height. Once at shoulder height rotate elbows underneath the bar, releasing the hook grip and letting the bar fall onto the shelf created by the shoulders. Return bar to starting position the same way it got there.

Power Clean:
Stand with barbell in hand, feet at hip width, shoulders back and chest up. Keeping arms straight and eyes fixed straight ahead, lower bar by moving the hips backwards while maintaining a slight but fixed bend in the knees. Stop once the bar reaches the top of the knees or when the flexibility in the hams runs out.

Quickly move the hips forward as the hips extend explosively shrug shoulders and rise on toes. Continue to elevate the bar to mid-chest height by bending elbows and continuing the upward movement of the bar. Be sure to lift elbows up and keep the bar close to the body. Once at shoulder height simultaneously rotate elbows underneath the bar, releasing the hook grip and letting the bar fall onto the shelf created by the shoulders while falling into a squat. The squat should be reached at the same time the barbell is received on the shoulders.

I have found that teaching the clean is much easier if you first break down each of the movements and teach them as partials or stages of the entire lift. Once your athlete has perfected each individual movement, they will find performing the whole snatch a much simpler task. Also, if you have an athlete struggling with a particular stage of the lift, you can use these exercises to 'Clean Up' their form.

Apply these exercises and techniques to your athletes and clients and they will be performing the complicated Olympic Lifts with perfect form in no time.