This has bothered me for some time. The "westernized" version of the Olympic clean known as the power clean almost completely removes the eccentric portion of the lift. It consists of a powerful concentric contraction off the floor and catches the bar at its peak so hardly any downward force has to be absorbed. However people compare the power clean to the depth jump and other "plyometric" exercises all the time. But these exercises consist of a rapid (ideally) eccentric contraction followed by a concentric contraction aided by the stretch reflex. So how is the power clean like the depth jump at all???
Also, I used to do an exercise I referred to as the power press. It was essentially a Jerk with the bar behind the neck. Safety considerations aside, I believe this exercise contributed greatly to my increasing my vertical leap to around 34" at one time. I could power press around 285 lbs. at my peak and the only way to get it down was to literally drop it onto my back (in the position I would hold it while squatting) and slow it down by a powerful eccentric contraction of my lower body. I was never able to re-create this powerful of a contraction thru any other plyometric exercise. And ironically, I believe the primary benefit of this exercise came from the lowering portion rather than the actual concentric lift. Thoughts???
-Ed Miller
USA |
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