Written by Paulina Kairys | BSKin & EX.Sc., NASM CPT
Fact checked by Kirsten Yovino, CPT Brookbush Institute
FACT CHECKED
Level-up your kettlebell training by learning the kettlebell clean! It's one of the foundational kettlebell movements.
The kettlebell clean trains explosiveness and power, develops the posterior chain, and hits multiple muscle groups at once. The best part is once you build a strong foundation of this exercise, there are a variety of kettlebell clean movements to play around with.
Below, you will learn how to perform the kettlebell clean, why it is worth supplementing in your fitness routine, and the many variations you can do.
WHAT IS A KETTLEBELL CLEAN
A kettlebell clean is an explosive, full-body exercise that takes the kettlebell from the ground into a front rack position. The clean requires a strong foundation of each part of the movement. Once a solid foundation is built, a variety of clean stances and sequences are possible. Depending on your kettlebell experience and training goals, training with one or two kettlebells can impact your workouts in different ways. Expect your first few attempts of the kettlebell clean to be challenging, it will take time and practice to build a proper kettlebell clean. Now, let’s learn how to clean!
HOW TO DO A SINGLE KETTLEBELL CLEAN:
This how-to is based on a dead-clean position (starting from the ground) with one kettlebell:
- Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart. Place the kettlebell right underneath you, in between the feet. With one hand, grab the top of the handle of the kettlebell with an overhand grip. Lower your body in a braced, squat stance. Straighten out your arm, load the back of your body and open up the chest in a “proud” stance with your gaze facing forward. Have your opposite arm braced and extended at your side.
- In one, synchronized movement, extend the knees and push the hips forward as you pull the kettlebell off the ground. Bend through the elbow and allow the momentum of the kettlebell to follow the midline of your body. Drive your elbow straight back and pull your hand close to the midline of your body, as if you were zipping up a jacket. Catch the kettlebell in a front rack position; the hand is positioned at collarbone level, the forearm and elbow cradle the kettlebell and the elbow stays packed and close to the body.
- Unravel the front rack by sending the kettlebell over the forearm. Hinge from the hips and bend through the knees as you straighten out the arm to lower the kettlebell in the start position. Make sure the kettlebell stays close to the body and lands right between your feet before you initiate the next repetition.
Common Mistakes:
- The kettlebell slams into the forearm. When first learning the clean, it is inevitable that the kettlebell lands onto the forearm with a lot of force. One useful tip is to think about moving the forearm under the kettlebell so that you create a cradle position to catch the weight with less impact. When the kettlebell slams into the forearm, it usually means that the kettlebell is traveling over the forearm which results in a crash landing. The key is to slow the momentum of the kettlebell by swiftly moving your arm underneath the weight.
- The kettlebell lands in an unstable front rack position. Building a strong, foundational front rack helps the body position the kettlebell in a more stable clean stance. One way to improve the stability of the rack position is to keep the kettlebell close to the body throughout the movement. Once the body is reaching a fully extended position and the arm starts to bend, drive your elbow back then think about zipping up a jacket to get into the clean. When the elbow drives back, keep it close to the body. More on how to build a strong front rack below!
- The upper body quickly burns out. The kettlebell clean is a full-body movement and requires coordination of the lower and upper body. The momentum of the clean comes from legs, especially when the hips snap forward to bring the body in a standing stance while the kettlebell travels up the body. If your arm is extremely fatigued, try connecting your legs to the initial portion of the clean, use the power of your legs to move the weight.
HOW TO DO A DOUBLE KETTLEBELL CLEAN:
This how-to is based on a dead-clean position with two kettlebells:
- Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart. Place both kettlebells (vertical handles) right underneath you, in between the feet. Grab the handles of the kettlebells with an underhand grip. Lower your body in a braced, squat stance. Straighten out your arms, load the back of your body and open up the chest in a “proud” stance with your gaze facing forward.
- In one, synchronized movement, extend the knees and push the hips forward as you pull the kettlebells off the ground. Bend through the elbows and allow the momentum of the kettlebells to follow the midline of your body. Drive both elbows straight back and pull your hands close to the midline of your body, as if you were zipping up a jacket. Catch the kettlebells in a double front rack position; the hands are positioned at collarbone level, the forearms and elbows cradle the kettlebell and the elbows stay packed and close to the body.
- Unravel the front rack by sending the kettlebells over the forearms. Hinge from the hips and bend through the knees as you straighten out the arms to lower the kettlebells back into the start position. Make sure the kettlebells stay close to the body and land right between your feet before you initiate the next repetition.
KETTLEBELL CLEAN MUSCLES WORKED
A big benefit of incorporating kettlebell cleans in your workout is the amount of muscles that are used in the movement. The kettlebell clean is truly a full body exercise:
- Glutes and Hamstrings: In the starting stance of the kettlebell clean, the posterior chain of the body is braced and loaded. The initiation of the clean requires a “snappy” thrust of the hips and recruits both the glute and hamstring muscles. These muscles work together to move the kettlebell from the ground into the front rack of the clean. The heavier the kettlebell gets, the more power recruitment from the glutes and hamstrings is required.
- Quadriceps: In certain variations of the clean, the starting stance is more of a squat and recruits the quadriceps along with the glutes and hamstrings to initiate a powerful hip extension. Other variations, like the swing clean, recruit the quadriceps on the descent of the clean where their job is to help lower the kettlebell with control and reset the body back to the starting stance.
- Core: Just like many functional, full-body exercises, the core is a big component to assist proper form and safe movement execution. The core has an important role to stabilize the lower back as the kettlebell loads the posterior chain. Once the kettlebell pathway comes in front of the body and is caught in the clean position, the core then stabilizes the weight so the spine is protected from any movement compensations. With single kettlebell cleans, the core is challenged to resist rotation and works in an offset position. With double kettlebell cleans, the weight is typically heavier and tests the low back to resist any spinal flexion or extension.
- Upper and Mid Back: Catching the kettlebell in a stable, front rack position requires a strong connection with the upper and mid back. The upper back is an assistor muscle to the upper body pull that is required to guide the kettlebell into the front rack position. Once the front rack position is found, the mid back stabilizes and holds the kettlebell before it is reset to the ground.
KETTLEBELL CLEAN BENEFITS
- Full-body Movement. The kettlebell clean incorporates multiple muscle groups in one, cohesive movement. This is a great exercise for fat-burning principles and building full body strength. This movement is categorized as functional and can benefit different goals depending on how it is utilized in a fitness program.
- Development of the Posterior Chain. Most novice gym-goers tend to neglect training the posterior chain. The kettlebell clean is a great movement to start connecting the backside of the body and to unlock potential muscle imbalances.
- Training Explosiveness. The inherent explosiveness of kettlebell training is a variable that can be directly translated to athletes. Building more awareness in the hip hinge and posterior chain can help improve athletic movements like jumping, sprinting and directional change. Training explosiveness is not only great for athletes, it can boost the average gym goer’s strength, coordination and power.
- Gateway to more KB Exercises. The clean is a fundamental kettlebell movement that segues into many variations and movement sequences. Most advanced kettlebell exercises, like the snatch and high pull, have similar movement patterning to the kettlebell clean. These advanced exercises become more attainable when the foundations of the clean are solidified. More on Kettlebell Clean Variations below!
KETTLEBELL CLEAN PREREQUISITES
The kettlebell clean is a complex movement that may take some time to learn. Developing a strong foundation prior to executing the kettlebell clean can expedite the learning phase. Below are foundational movements for each part of the kettlebell clean and which exercises to incorporate if you are struggling with a certain part of the clean.
- Positioning in the Front Rack: A proper kettlebell front rack is a stable position that activates the upper and mid-back muscles along with the core. In the front rack, the handle of the kettlebell runs in a diagonal position through the hand, starting from the space between the thumb and index finger to the heel pad of the hand. The handle makes contact with the body, close to the midline of the chest, right below the collar bone. The wrist remains straight, the forearm and elbow cradle the kettlebell while the elbow stays close to the body.
- Front Rack Static Hold: In a neutral, standing stance find your solid front rack position and hold this stance for :30-:60 seconds while bringing awareness to your back and core muscles. Start with a single kettlebell variation then introduce a double kettlebell rack when you’re confident with your form.
- Front Rack Carries: Position your body in a stable front rack stance. Pick a distance and walk while holding the kettlebell in a front rack form while connecting to the back and core muscles. Make sure to avoid leaning back with the weight. Keep tension through the lower core and low back to prevent the spine from compensating. Single arm front rack carries work the load in an offset while double front rack carries challenge the total weight. Try both variations and choose a distance where you are able to perform the carry with proper form.
- Front Rack Marches: A progression to the front rack carry, front rack marches incorporate a high knee drive as you walk forward. The high knee drive adds a balance and core component that may help you identify any potential weak points in your front rack form. When you drive your knees up into the march, stop the drive around hip distance: your knee will be level with your hip. Think about driving your legs up fast and placing them down to the ground with control. Focus especially on bracing the lower core to keep balance as well as tension in the front rack position.
- Proper Hinging/Deadlift Pattern: Hinging patterns like the deadlift are important to understand especially when it comes to working with kettlebells and kettlebell movement variations. Maintaining tension through the body while keeping a neutral spine in the deadlift translates directly to more advanced patterns and clean variations. With multiple moving parts in the clean, it is easy to compensate and utilize mostly the upper body to pull the weight into position. Ensuring that your legs are moving in the correct pattern can help build stronger connections with the kettlebell clean.
- Kneeling Deadlift: From a kneeling position, make sure your legs are about shoulder distance apart. Position the kettlebell behind your body with both hands holding the handle in an underhand grip. The bell of the kettlebell is positioned at the glutes. From here, keep your chest proud and send your hips backwards. Lower your torso until you feel a stretch in your glutes and hamstrings. Make sure to keep your spine neutral and the lower abdomen engaged. Repeat anywhere from 10-12 repetitions with moderate weight to build awareness in your hip hinge position.
- Sumo Deadlift: Sumo deadlifts are a great way to train the hips to open up and to start recruiting the quadriceps as assistor muscles to the glutes and hamstrings. Similar to a standard deadlift, open up your standing stance to a little wider than hip-distance apart. Angle your feet out to 45 degrees and set up in the bottom of your deadlift. Lower your hips, keep your chest up, align your armpits with the kettlebell right under your stance. Track your knees towards your toes. Extend your knees first then drive your hips forward. Practice the sumo deadlift with one moderate to heavy kettlebell then progress to two moderate to heavy kettlebells. Stick to anywhere from 6-12 repetitions and focus on form.
- Powerful Hip Drive: A more advanced movement to familiarize the body with, a kettlebell swing, is a complex sequence that incorporates the hinge along with speed. Recruiting power from hips is necessary to complete repetitions of kettlebell cleans as well as heavy cleans.
- Vertical Jump: Start to familiarize your body with explosive movement by just using your own bodyweight. Vertical jumps are a great way to start recruiting short twitch muscles for explosive movement. Stand tall with your arms overhead. Swing your arms down and back as you brace into a squat stance. In one swift motion, pull the arms up and overhead and push your legs through the ground as you leave contact from the ground. Brace your landing in a quarter squat. Practice vertical jumps for low repetitions, 3-6 and focus on recruiting power from the lower body.
- Kettlebell Swing: Set the kettlebell two feet in front of you. Brace your body in a squat stance, extend your arms to grab the handle of the kettlebell and open your chest to the front. Pull the kettlebell to your inner thighs as you keep a hinged position. Push the hips forwards and allow your lower body’s momentum to push the kettlebell forward. Keep the arms straight with a slight elbow bend and guide the kettlebell to shoulder height. Pull the kettlebell back into your hips as you reset into the next repetition with a hip hinge. Increase the intensity by working with two kettlebells. Keep the repetitions moderate 4-8 and focus especially on driving through the hips. You can read a full in-depth guide on kettlebell swings here.
- Core Bracing: Finding a proper “brace” may be challenging especially with the complexity of the kettlebell clean. Throughout the clean, two positions that especially require a proper brace: as soon as the kettlebell is pulled off of the ground and when the kettlebell lands in the front rack position. All of the above exercises emphasize core bracing, the below movements isolate the core and bring awareness to it directly.
- Dead Bug: Laying flat on your back, stack the legs in tabletop position with the knees stacked above the hips. Have your arms straight, your wrists stacked above the shoulders. Find your core brace by breathing through the lower belly and pressing the lower back into the ground. Extend the right leg as you raise the left arm over head. Feel a stretch in the core and contract the muscles as you pull the leg and arm back to center. Alternate sides. Keep the repetitions moderate 8-12 alternating and focus especially on breathing and bracing.
- Forearm Plank: A more advanced core exercise, the forearm plank targets the alignment of the spine throughout a static position. Position your body onto the forearms with the legs together and the spine in neutral. Find your lower abdominal brace as you push your forearms through the ground and stabilize your entire body. Complete the plank for time. Build in longer time intervals as you gain strength.
KETTLEBELL CLEAN VARIATIONS:
Below are several of the most common kettlebell clean variations...
1. KB Dead Clean (single and double):
The dead clean is the most optimal starting point to learn the clean itself. The main differentiating feature of the dead clean vs. a variation like the swing clean, is the lack of momentum in the starting position of the movement. The initial position from the ground requires a large sum of power from the hips and leg muscles to propel the kettlebell into the front rack. Start with one kettlebell and advance your strength with two kettlebells once your body is ready.
2. KB Hang Clean (single and double):
The hang clean is a natural progression to the dead clean. Instead of starting from the ground, the kettlebell’s starting position is from knee height. This requires the body to control the kettlebell's descent without allowing it to reach the ground. A common red flag in the hang clean is the overexertion of the low back. Building a strong prerequisite of the hip hinge and dead clean before attacking hang cleans will ensure the recruitment of the lower body. It is a smart idea to start working with one kettlebell so you can identify the timing of the hang clean. Once you’re ready to level-up, grab two kettlebells and challenge your lower body.
3. KB Swing Clean (single and double):
An advanced progression of the clean, the swing clean, incorporates a powerful hip hinge into the movement. In the first portion of the swing clean, the kettlebell is positioned two steps in front of your starting braced stance. From the initial pull, the kettlebell is moved from the ground into the deep hinge of the hips. As the hips are extending forward and the body stacks vertically, the arm beds by driving the elbow back and aligning the kettlebell towards the midline of the body. The more complex portion of the swing is unraveling the front rack position into the next repetition of the swing. The key is to keep the kettlebell close to the body. The prerequisites of a strong kettlebell swing as well as a hang clean will come into handy when patterning both the swing and the clean together. You may start to feel your glutes light up more during the swing clean since it requires a strong hip drive.
4. KB Squat Clean (single and double):
The squat clean is exactly how it sounds, it incorporates both a clean position and a squat. With one kettlebell, it is positioned in the dead clean stance. Both hands start on the handle of the kettlebell. As the first pull of the clean is initiated, the lower body helps drive the kettlebell to the center of the chest as both hands slide to the horns of the kettlebells and the elbows pull down to the sides of the body. As soon as the kettlebell is caught in the front rack, the lower body drops into a controlled squat. With single kettlebell squat cleans, the weight can be increased for a challenge. The quadriceps are especially targeted in this variation.
As for a squat clean with two kettlebells, the variables that change are the coordination of working with two kettlebells and the front rack position of the bells cradled in the forearms (when working with one kettlebell, the front rack position hovers at the chest with both hands on the horns of the kettlebell). This variation can help identify any weaknesses in stabilizing the front rack position especially throughout the squat.
5. KB Power Clean (single and double):
If you’re looking for an explosive kettlebell variation, the power clean is an optimal choice. A progression from the dead clean, the power clean is typically executed with heavy weight and requires an explosive drive from the lower body as well as a quick pull and transition from the upper body. A single kettlebell variation will challenge the offset of the front rack position while the double kettlebell variation will target total body strength.
6. KB Clean & Press (single and double):
A full body integration, the clean and press adds an additional component to the sequence. The overhead press targets shoulder strength and stability. For single arm variations, after the clean is in the front rack form, the upper body drives into an overhead press, slowly lowers back down to the front rack and resets to the starting position. Start with one kettlebell and progress with two kettlebells to challenge overhead strength and stability.
7. KB Clean & Jerk (single and double):
One differentiation between a jerk position and an overhead press is the leg drive that is required in the jerk. Once the kettlebell is in the front rack position of the clean, the knees drive forward then extend to help propel the kettlebell in an overhead position. As the overhead position is reached, the legs brace to catch in a stable stance. On the descent of the kettlebell, the knees rebend. Kettlebell clean and jerks are beneficial for developing a lower body drive and coordination sequencing. It is common to see this variation with heavy sets of kettlebells. Start with one kettlebell and advance to a double kettlebell variation to increase the intensity of the load.
Watch a Demo of the Kettlebell Clean & Jerk
Other Kettlebell Clean Variations:
- Kneeling Clean
- Alternating Hang Clean
- Split Squat Clean
- Clockwork Clean
You can watch these in our 50 Best Kettlebell Exercises video on Youtube.
Note: Keep in mind that working with one kettlebell to start is the most optimal option for beginners. Build your foundation and strength with one kettlebell and then graduate to using two kettlebells to increase the intensity of the weight, movement sequencing and power. You may start to find that using two kettlebells unravels any weak points in your technique. Your options are to start with two lighter kettlebells or incorporate both single arm techniques and double arm techniques simultaneously in your program. As always, listen to your body when it comes to training with kettlebells. It is demanding for the entire body.
Related: Single vs Double Kettlebell Training
The kettlebell clean is an important baseline movement that can transition into many sequences and exercises. There are endless options when it comes to incorporating the clean in movements, for instance: clean to reverse lunge, deadlift to clean, single leg clean, clean to lateral lunge, etc. The beauty of working with kettlebells is once you build your foundation, there is room for creativity and exploration with exercise variety and selection based on your goals.
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FINAL THOUGHTS:
The kettlebell clean offers many benefits to the body; training explosiveness, developing the posterior chain and working multiple muscle groups simultaneously. Once you build a strong foundation of this exercise, a variety of kettlebell movements are possible for increasing volume, intensity and strength. You’ll find that once you start incorporating the kettlebell clean into your routine, you’ll be drawn to trying more kettlebell variations.
For more resources on kettlebell training, check the below...
SFS Five Kettlebell Full Length Follow Along Workouts
Check out this extensive Kettlebell Training e-Guide (8-week Workout Program)
More Kettlebell Exercise Articles:
- Kettlebell Rows
- Kettlebell Squats
- Kettlebell Deadlifts
- Kettlebell Halo
- Kettlebell Lunges
- Kettlebell Windmill
- Kettlebell Snatch
Kettlebell Exercises by Muscle Groups:
Paulina Kairys
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