The best exercise you can venture into focuses on overall body strength, and dumbbell clean, and jerk gives precisely this.
Many consider this exercise a complex lift, popularly known as the Clean and Jerk. But, it improves mobility and strength, which are crucial in weightlifting.
Nevertheless, this workout requires a high degree of skill in performing it. Therefore, it is better suited for people with a strong history in weight training and who are physically fit.
But, you can get on with it even as a beginner if you are strong enough and physically fit.
So, how do you do a dumbbell clean and jerk?
HOW TO DO DUMBBELL CLEAN AND JERK PROPERLY
- Grab a dumbbell and keep it in a neutral grip in your hands
- Make sure your feet are about shoulder-width apart.
- Lower the weight by flexing your hips and knees and pushing your hips back.
- The Clean section of this workout now begins with you in the beginning position described above.
- Extend your hips, knees, and ankles while jumping and elevating your shoulders. Keep your arms straight and your grip neutral until you achieve full extension.
- Bend your knees and hips into a squatting position to accept the weight. Bend your arms so that the elbow points forward and direct the weight to your shoulders.
- Stand by stretching your hips and legs. You have now reached the starting position for the jerk component of the lift.
- Bend your knees while keeping your torso erect and dip your body.
- Push the weight off your shoulders by accelerating through your heels and changing direction. Use the momentum to help you lift the weight off your shoulder and stretch and lock out your arms overhead.
- Bend your knees as you receive the weight on your shoulder. Return the weight to its initial position.
WHAT MUSCLES DO DUMBBELL CLEAN AND JERK WORK?
The clean and jerk work both primary and secondary muscles.
Primary muscles worked during this daunting exercise include the following:
SHOULDER
The shoulder joint is supported by a total of eight muscles in your upper body. They are responsible for the structure’s sturdiness, stability, and form.
Skeletal muscles make up the muscles of your shoulder area, and the glenohumeral range of motion remains unmatched.
QUADRICEPS
Four muscles make up the quadriceps femoris muscle group found on both sides of your thighs. They include rectus femoris, vastus medialis, vastus intermedius and vastus lateralis.
They are among the most prominent and most vital muscles in your body.
Running, kicking, cycling and jumping all utilize the quadriceps. These muscles also enable you to sit and stand.
Ideally, the quadriceps maintain balance and stability of the knees. You can extend your lower leg from the knee with the help of all four muscles.
Also, the rectus femoris muscle aids in hip flexion.
Secondary muscles worked by the clean and jerk include:
- Back muscles
- Hamstring
- Abdominals
- Forearms
- Biceps
- Triceps
DUMBBELL CLEAN AND JERK BENEFITS
You achieve the following benefits by incorporating this exercise into your workout routine.
FULL-BODY EXERCISE
Incorporating the clean-and-jerk into your workout routine helps you build muscles in all the major muscle groups in your body.
They include the back muscles, triceps, biceps, hamstring, abdominals, glutes, quadriceps and shoulders.
IMPROVE MOBILITY
Your mobility is dependent on the balance and stability of the knees, courtesy of the quadriceps.
These are the primary muscles that the jerks extensively work. Therefore, walking and running become easy.
For athletes, it promotes performance as a result of more flexibility.
IMPROVED PERFORMANCE IN WEIGHTLIFTING
This exercise can boost your explosive power production, quickness, and precision.
Weightlifting competitions focus so much on the technique and strength that the workout sharpen.
IMPROVES HEART HEALTH
You may incorporate cardio into your weightlifting exercise to boost your heart health.
Besides working significant muscles in your body, the workout increases your heart rate due to the intensity of the training.
ALTERNATIVES TO DUMBBELL CLEAN AND JERK
You still can achieve excellent results with dumbbell clean and jerk variations such as:
SQUAT JERK
It is a version of the jerk in weightlifting at the Olympics. Using squat jerks in competition is rare, and athletes who don’t use them in competition use them much less frequently in training.
You quickly push your body under the barbell and do a narrow-grip overhead squat quickly. A lift ends when you stand up with the bar over your head.
THE POWER CLEAN
There are many ways to perform the clean component of a lift, and the power clean is one of them.
A deadlift movement pattern can be used instead of a whole squat stance to lift the barbell.
During a power clean, the glutes, hamstrings, and calves are prime targets. Traps, arms, abs, and lats are also work simultaneously during a power clean.
Unlike a plyometric exercise such as the squat leap, the power clean has no impact on jumping.
POWER JERK
The jerk is a powerful one. The bar is lifted overhead by lowering into a squatting stance in this variation.
The receiving posture of the power jerk is the same as that of the power snatch and power clean. The feet are usually squat, and the thighs are elevated above parallel.
DUMBBELL CLEAN AND JERK MISTAKES TO AVOID
You should avoid three significant mistakes when performing a dumbbell clean and jerk.
Firstly, a rounded back is a posture you must avoid. This is the most typical mistake that many people make, which increases the risk of injury.
Secondly, when you employ muscle strength instead of force and technique, you risk injuring your arms and shoulders.
That is why proper form is crucial in performing the clean jerk. It cushions you against injury as a result of poor lifting technique.
Lastly, having an extensive stance and catching the weight or pressing it up creates an imbalance.
It also makes your knees hurt, which is a common mistake people make with this workout.
CONCLUSION
Dumbbell clean and jerk is a great workout to improve physical fitness. It is hard enough, but it should not discourage you from including it in your workout regimen.
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