That lift is too hard to learn, so just don't do it.
 

Performing cleans is considered by many to be a great overall mass, and strength movement.

Performing cleans is considered to be a hard lift to learn so most people just write it off. It's too hard to teach so we'll just ignore it.


Benching has many benefits, but also has many issues that are not taken into account when performed as part of a program.

Most people bench with horrible form and don't really understand the movement, yet we just ignore this fact and keep saying, BENCH!


Seems like the attitude is, laying down and doing crappy work is preferred to getting up off your butt, and learning to do something right.



Then there's this article I found this morning on overhead pressing.

http://deansomerset.com/2011/05/31/t...ressing-sucks/

Bench is the ultimate draw for the lazy athlete. They can lay down, have someone hand them a bar, and if it's too heavy they can bounce and have their friends curl and row it up for them.

Regarding the article...

Insert shambling zombie...

Gackle, gackle, gackles, gurgle...OHP is bad! Blech, blech, sputter. It's not the bench overkill causing the problem, or lack of heavy back work. Gackle, gackle, gackles, gurgle.

http://progressivepeach.typepad.com/...fc22970b-320wi

Bill Starr would agree with the importance of the Power Clean. He actually used to program them first, before squats.
In the strongest shall survive, he basically says that if you can only do one lift, do power cleans.

And, based on my personal experience, power cleans were just as easy to learn as any other lift. I would say easier than some lifts because there is a low commitment level. If you screw up, you drop the weight, no harm no foul. You screw up on a bench press there is no where for the weight to go except down, on to you.
It takes a level of commitment to place a loaded barbell across your back and lower your body with the intention of hopefully coming back up.
Power clean, doesn't have that. You misfire, you ditch it. Simple as that.

Cleans aren't super hard to teach if 1. the teacher truly understand them and 2. they are actually with the person. Explaining it in writing is really tough. I've been doing cleans the whole time I've been training, since my introduction to lifting was on the freshman weightlifting team, and I agree that it's an amazing lift that can work a lot of your body.

Meh, I guess the person you're teaching has to have some degree of coordination as well. That can be 3.

If someone were to try to teach themself how to clean, I'd suggest the same thing I did while I was working on my own golf swing, whitch is to find sequence pictures online and try to replicate those positions. But once you learn to thrust the hips and rack the bar correctly, the rest is repetition and progression.

"If you could only do one exercise, the best would be the power clean" -Bill Starr

Not only are powercleans awesome, nothing wears me out more at submaximal loads like a set of 3 powercleans does. One of my goals prior to the end of the year is to get 300 cleaned.

gist of that article - if you are weak, then stay weak since getting stronger is hard work.

Nice! So let's see what we have there:

1) Start off with a nice Strawman argument citing a supposedly real life example to connect to the reader.
2) Amusing picture to get the reader on side.
3) Unnecessary and inappropriately used mumbo jumbo, to wow aforementioned reader.
4) Instructional video with an abnormally HIGH level of 'fruity' overtones.
5) Catchphrase summary.

I do believe ladies and gentlemen ... this article has it all!

There is so much good info in that article right up until the point where he avoids confronting the issue.

It's easier to avoid it, with less than optimal work.

NO THANK YOU!

I think I'll go out and do some shoulder work.

I started to do the p/c and later the full clean when I allready was quite strong (compared to a raw beginner that is) and learnt them by doing a shitload of light reps, bar weight or 40-50kgs. It took some months to get it up to acceptable form but it was worth it. Awesome lifts that when i started, gave my big 3 more speed and power in a matter of weeks.

It's fascinating how a few people decide that in order not to have to do a lift they will classify it as "hard/difficult", why can't they just say "I don't want to do it"; as others have said, it's not really that difficult to learn...watch vids, read, replicate, have people study your form and suggest tweaks...


...now, bicep curls, they're a whole new ball game :D