3rd annual "Are Power Cleans Good for Football" Debate

[madpolecat]

I believe that the thread is named

3rd annual "Are Power Cleans Good for Football" Debate

Of course, maybe they are biased, but try this link:

http://www.biggerfasterstronger.com/upl ... search.pdf

or this

http://www.biggerfasterstronger.com/upl ... Cleans.pdf

[MTSWNGRVSG]

Hit a nerve?

I have been on both sides of this issue over the years. Watched kids do the power clean, some very good some not so good. Have seen kids be out of the weightroom over the years because of the power clean. Looking back just have to wonder if the risk was worth the results? Like I said earlier, have seen good power cleaners that were not very good football players and have seen kids that were not good in the weight room that were very good football players. The main purpose is to make the young men better football players and to give them the tools to play the game as safe as possible. Will every coach agree on how to do things?-NO. So you run into the samething with this. Is one way better than the other, each will say their way is the best. The key to coaching is to have an idea of what you want to do, stay with it, and coach it hard. Would I use power cleans again-NO!

[sandman]

I do not know much about it other than that it needs to be taught, demonstrated and monitored individually if it is to be done. Athletes today, through improvements and advances in the science of lifting, are handling very heavy weights, often with poor form. This particular exercise is difficult to do correctly and at high weights could lead to some serious back and other injuries.

I agree that it needs to be done, but carefully and under supervision.. If there is a machine substitute, that is what I would like to see because they tend to force form. BTW, squats have the same problems if not performed properly.

[OVCfan32]

plyos are by far the best for improving an athlete in almost every way. . . .but god i'd rather clean and squat than broad jump 50 yards. . . i hate plyos

cleans with low weight. . you can't beat that

[boogerred]

GOd Bless the Hammer Strength Jammer!!!

[boogerred]

Nice!!!!

[jiveturkey]

If you are happy beating up on pond scum during reg season but the playoffs arent important you dont need cleans. Good teams clean and win......

[boogerred]

Pond scum, interestingly put.

[FarAwayFalcon]

Bench, Squat, and Deadlift can also be extremely dangerous lifts if done at high weight with poor form. As a matter of fact, I can't think of any lift that is "safe" with high weight and poor form, and still yet we insist that football players lift wieghts. It would be a shame to see a player get injured lifting before the season ever starts though. This is where coaches have to have enough knowledgable people around them to help monitore the weight room during lifting sessions.

[Boonedawg]

I'd venture a guess that bench injures more kids than any other lift.

[air4ce1]

hang cleans should be done, but at low weight starting out until the proper form is created first. and i would like to say that deadlift, if not done right can be very dangerous as well...ive bn out of lifting for 2 weeks now because of that. and i thought i was doing everything right too.

[Philos_Finest]

Power Cleans are more dangerous than bench & squat because there isn't any good way to spot the person cleaning.

[gymratt]

Cleans are the single mos important exercise a football player (or many explosive-type athletes) can do. No one exercise is the end all be all of strength but If I could only do one exercise that would be it. What do tackling, blocking, and running all have in common...EXPLOSION. Who cares if a player can Bench 300 Lbs. if his lower body doesn't have the explosion to put a force behind it. Cleans and PARELLEL squats are the 2 most important exercixes for football players with everything else WAY WAY behind. Also, IMO, Deadlift probably hurts more highschool athletes than any other exercise. That is one lift I would get rid of if I were a strength coach or Head coach at a High School.

[gymratt]

Oh Yeah.

The Hammer Jammer is SWEET!
I think of it as the perfect tackling exercise. If you look at the motion of the exercise it is almost exactly how a form tackle should look.

[FarAwayFalcon]

Cleans are the single mos important exercise a football player (or many explosive-type athletes) can do. No one exercise is the end all be all of strength but If I could only do one exercise that would be it. What do tackling, blocking, and running all have in common...EXPLOSION. Who cares if a player can Bench 300 Lbs. if his lower body doesn't have the explosion to put a force behind it. Cleans and PARELLEL squats are the 2 most important exercixes for football players with everything else WAY WAY behind. Also, IMO, Deadlift probably hurts more highschool athletes than any other exercise. That is one lift I would get rid of if I were a strength coach or Head coach at a High School.

I agree completely with this, as one of my coaches used to say, "Bench Press can't really be used until you're flat on your back, and then it's kinda too late".

[madpolecat]

Maybe it just has to do with the way I am built (wingspan is 6-4 and I am only 6-0, kinda long-armed), but I stopped messing around with heavy benches and went over to dumbells and push-ups, and my shoulders stopped hurting.

[cadmus sasquatch]

power cleans

they may have there place as another compound lift for conditioning, I do not think they are the best thing to do.

"To all strength coaches: the next time you have your athletes do Olympic squats, ask yourself why. The joint angles are not advantageous for the stretch reflex. If a lineman were to use that position on the field, he would easily be pushed backward. The Olympic lifts require flexibility. Everyone thinks the Olympic lifts are so quick. While your cleans at 60% look fast, so does box squats at 60%. The Athlete who can clean 400 uses 240 lbs (60%). The lifter who can Squat 800 uses 480(60%) Who do you really think would be faster and stronger? Compared to a Powerlifter, an Olympic lifter can't squat with the Sunday paper. A kid that can hang clean 400 would look frail to an 800 squatter, and don't forget in Olympic lifting, as the bar is raising, the lifter is lowering himself, making it appear that they are moving the bar at great speed. OLYMPIC LIFTING IS THE BIGGEST BUST IN THE THE UNITED STATES. we have not placed a single lifter on the "A" list, yet alot of strength coaches still advocate the Olympic lifts."

and for the person who said, that the Bench Press is only good if you are on your back, WOW! what a statement, I do not know about everyone else but when I played I would punch, and as a coach I teach players to punch. I think a bench Press helps in that area, close grips even better.

[jiveturkey]

OK, enough of my clowning around. Here is what I think (Remember: With my opinion and a quarter you cant even make a phone call!)

1. Strength Training demands close supervision from the coach. Athletes should not be allowed to sacrifice technique for pounds.
2. Cleans, done well, are an excellent lift.
3. I prefer the incline bench over the flat bench. I think the incline more closely replicates movements made in the game and they seem to stress the shoulder capsule less.
4. Deadlifts are a waste of time in the strength room due to the potential of serious injury.
5. If you are gonna squat, be parallel! No higher, no lower! This takes work on the part of the athlete and the coach in the perfection of technique.

Just my thought, guys!

[boogerred]

I doubt the 800lb squatter can reach his backside after taking a crap to wipe himself!
I would definitely say a guy with a 400 lb clean is faster and more athletic than an 800lb squatter.