Bodyshop: the one-exercise workout

Men's Fitness, March, 1999 by Dan Wagman

Cut down training time with the clean and jerk

Ask: a dozen guys, "What's the best weight-room exercise ever?" and you're likely to get a dozen different responses. More often than not, somebody's idea of the best exercise just happens to be the one they can perform the best. Guys with out-of-proportion pecs swear it's the bench press, while those with drumstick-like legs live and breathe squats. Then there are the deadlift and pull-up proponents.

But beyond opinion and personal favorites lies science. And according to science, the clean and jerk is one of the most - if not the most - effective and all-encompassing lifts you can perform. With a floor-level starting position, mid-level "racking position" and an overhead finish, the C&J is rivaled only by its Olympic-lift brother, the snatch, in terms of physical and mental demand. Studies have shown it increases your strength, size, power, speed, coordination, vertical jump, muscle endurance, hormone output, bone strength and physical ability to withstand stress.

The clean and jerk is a very difficult movement to learn, however, so we've broken it down into six exercise components. As you perfect each one, you'll be working your body in a new and highly results-oriented manner. And before long, you'll master the clean and jerk - the true undisputed heavyweight champion of the weight room.

Men's Fitness contributing editor Dan Wagman, PhD, CSCS, is a three-time national powerlifting champion and two-time world champion and has held the American and world records in the bench press.

Deadlift

Muscles involved: Traps (upper/lower fibers), lower back, glutes, hamstrings

Tip: This exercise teaches proper pulling position off the floor and strengthens your lower back. As you get stronger and better at this exercise, you may need to use wrist straps to maintain a firm grip.

1. Stand upright with a barbell resting over the bridge of your feet.

2. With your knees slightly bent and feet shoulder-width apart, bend down and grab the bar with an overhand/underhand grip.

3. Keep your back slightly arched by sticking your chest out and pulling your shoulders back.

4. Look straight ahead or slightly up and keep your shoulders over the bar (position A).

5. Keeping your arms straight (pretend they're hooks), "push" the floor away from you with your feet and stand upright (position B).

6. Don't exaggerate the lockout; simply stand erect.

7. Lower the bar to the floor in a controlled manner and repeat.

8. Breathe in before you pull, and start to exhale once the bar is over your knees or once you're standing upright.

Power shrug

Muscles involved: Lower back, traps (upper fibers)

Tip: You'll learn how to shrug your shoulders high and powerfully as you move the bar through the section known as the second pull. Unlike the standard barbell shrug, this is an explosive movement. Don't be afraid to let it rip.

1. Lift the bar off the floor with an overhand grip and stand upright.

2. With your back slightly arched, bend at the waist and knees, allowing the bar to slide down your thighs until it's about two or three inches above your knees (position A).

3. Keeping your feet flat on the floor and your arms locked, thrust your hips forward and extend your knees.

4. As your hips and knees approach lockout, start shrugging your shoulders powerfully toward your ears and allow your heels, not your feet, to come up off the floor (position B).

5. Lower the bar to the starting position and repeat.

6. Breathe in before you pull, and start to exhale once your shoulders are at their highest point.

Hang pull

Muscles involved: Lower back, traps (upper fibers), biceps

Tip: The purpose of this exercise component is to teach you how to get the bar as high as possible before racking it high on your chest and across your shoulders.

1. Repeat steps one through four of the power shrug (positions A and B).

2. Once you reach the top shrug position, pull the bar high with your arms, keeping your elbows pointing outward.

3. Keep pulling until the bar is at neck level, allowing your wrists to bend (position C).

4. Breathe in before you pull, and start to exhale once the bar nears its final position.

Hang clean

Muscles involved: Lower back, traps (upper fibers), biceps

Tip: Racking the bar refers to pulling it to neck height, then flipping your elbows and wrists under the bar so it comes to rest high across your chest and front delts. Technically, this is the most critical part of the clean and jerk.

1. Repeat steps one through three of the hang pull (positions A and B).

2. Once the bar reaches neck level, rotate your elbows under the bar and hyperextend your wrists.

3, This is the rack position; your elbows should be facing as high as possible, or your upper arms should be parallel to the floor.

4. As you rotate your elbows underneath the bar, flex at your hips and knees to absorb the weight (position C).

5. Breathe in before you initiate the pull, and start to exhale once you reach the sticking point or neck level.

Power clean

Muscles involved: Lower back, traps (all fibers), hamstrings, biceps