Limbo Clean

Take a moment to consider the angle of the back during a front squat. At the rock bottom of the squat, unless the student has amazing mobility, the back is angled forward. At the top of the squat, the student is standing straight up. At no point during the squat, regardless of the student’s mobility, is the angle of the back… backwards.

I’m going to make a leap from this vague analysis of the front squat and say that once you’ve caught the clean (and as you catch it) your back shouldn’t be angled backwards either. Now there definitely can be a moment during the clean where the back IS angled backwards. When the bar hits the top of the thigh and the hips extend violently, the back can be angled backwards so that the bar can move as straight up as possible.

After this movement of the hips and the back, it is important to tilt the torso at least back to neutral (and probably to tilted forward if the bar is caught at the bottom of the squat). Why is it important to not have the barbell in the rack position with your back angled backwards? Because it places a heavy demand on your low back instead of where it belongs, on the glutes and hamstrings.

So why do people catch that way? The same reason you can limbo under a stick – it gets you lower. However, in limbo you aren’t bearing a barbell. In the clean you are. Don’t limbo the clean. The limbo is not a movement for carrying load. Limbo low… yes. Limbo load… no.

In Group Bias
Part 1: Barbell Gymnastics
Every 40 seconds for 4 minutes
Power clean
Rest 2 minutes
Every 40 seconds for 4 minutes
Clean
Part 2: Metcon
For time:
1 minute handstand hold
3 rounds
15 toes to bar
15 push ups
3 rounds
1 lap bear walk
1 lap broad jump
Then finish with 1 minute of handstand hold

Check the whiteboard for numbers.