Barbell Clean And Press
Full-body lift that takes the bar from the floor to overhead in two phases — power, posture, and pressing strength in a single rep.
How to do it
- Stand with your feet hip-width apart, the bar over mid-foot, a grip slightly wider than your knees and a flat back.
- Push through the floor and pull the bar up along your body, keeping it close as your hips and knees extend.
- Drop under the bar quickly and catch it on the front of your shoulders with your elbows pointing forward.
- Stand fully upright with the bar on your chest, brace your core and reset your breath before the press.
- Press the bar straight overhead, driving through your shoulders and triceps until your arms lock out.
- Lower the bar back to your shoulders, then to the floor with control to reset for the next rep.
Key technique cue
Pull with the legs, not the arms; catch the bar with elbows high.
Common mistakes
- ✕ Yanking the bar early with the arms instead of driving with the legs and hips first, which kills the power.
- ✕ Catching the bar with low elbows, which collapses the rack position and loads the wrists.
- ✕ Pressing the bar out in front of the head instead of straight up, which loads the lower back and shoulders.
- ✕ Rounding the back on the pull from the floor, putting the spine in a weak, risky position.
Benefits
- ✓ Builds full-body power from the floor to the shoulders.
- ✓ Trains coordinated strength across the legs, back and pressing muscles.
- ✓ Improves overhead stability and tension under a moving load.
Progression: from easier to harder
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Step 1 -
Step 2 You are here - Barbell Clean And Press
About the exercise
The barbell clean and press is a full-body strength and power exercise. The bar travels from the floor to the front of the shoulders in one explosive movement, then gets pressed overhead. It builds the lower back, glutes and front delts together and trains the kind of coordinated power that pure isolation work never touches. It's a signature exercise in strength and conditioning, athletic prep and CrossFit-style training. It serves as the centerpiece of full-body conditioning blocks and as a teaching reference for two-phase lifts. Pair it with the snatch and the overhead press.
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