Yuri Vardanian is arguably one of the greatest weightlifters of all-time. If you feel unconvinced, watch this video to revisit his achievements (43 world records… are you kidding me?) and how he single-handedly influenced the technique of countless weightlifters. This influence relates to his impeccable extension after bar-body contact, influencing the system’s vertical speed and direction. This finish minimizes horizontal displacement of the bar and makes receiving it more predictable and efficient. The exercise variations he used in training heavily contributed to this technique and the strength supporting it, a recent favorite of mine being the no contact clean. 

The no contact clean — a variation of the clean that eliminates the bar-body contact and forces a vertical and forceful extension of the legs. Due to the constrained nature of this exercise, the resultant movement and stress on the body drives powerful technique and muscular adaptations. Here’s how it can transform your own and/or your athlete’s technique.

Constraints-Led Approach

If the constraints-led approach sounds unfamiliar, listen to the podcasts I recorded with Keith Davids to understand how this framework impacts skill acquisition and program design (Episode 96, Episode 125, Episode 156, and Episode 242). I also wrote about the concept in the Weightlifter’s Guide to the Clean and Jerk, providing an overview and how it guides exercise selection. At heart, it involves the manipulation of a task (e.g., environment, individual movement options) to constrain execution of the selected skill.

Within a weightlifting context, most task manipulation relates to what the athlete can do with the barbell. Besides deficit or block lifts, and some seriously esoteric drills (e.g., jerks with weights placed at the edges of the sleeves), the external environment is not altered much. Examples of how the task is altered include: 

• Tempo Snatch/Clean/Jerk (slowing down or pausing the lift)
• Barbell displacement (increasing or decreasing the length of the pull)
• Athlete’s technique (no foot movement, no hook grip, no contact, close grip)
• Athlete’s displacement (power vs full)

Manipulation of the task is a potent driver of training stress and subsequent results. Gone are the days of practicing the task as it’s exactly performed in competition – which is not possible given the influence of the crowd, timer, other athletes, etc. The strategy of hyper specific training or greater training specificity should generally be reserved for specific and competition preparation blocks. 

What’s Constrained and Why?

It is self-explanatory, but to make it obvious, the clean with no contact removes the brush of the bar against the body. Constraining the direct influence of the legs, the ricochet, alters the trajectory and velocity of the barbell as it moves into the power position. Instead of an aggressive acceleration with excessive horizontal movement from the hips, there is a less intense, but significant vertical propulsion of the bar. This not only influences bar trajectory and velocity, but the downstream consequences with an emphasis on the muscles used in the squat under and turn over.

Eliminating Bar Crash

The dreaded bar crash can have many causes, but the major contributors are horizontal movement of the bar after contact and the ability (or inability) to stay connected to the bar throughout the entire movement. As the weight on the bar increases, all aspects of the movement become more challenging to execute perfectly.

Horizontal movement of the bar after contact is the loop coaches reference in passing. Bar loop is unavoidable to some extent, as the bar needs to move horizontally to reach the catch position, but minimizing it is ideal. Excessive horizontal displacement will often rock the athlete back and create greater instability when the weight is received. Any crash and softening in the catch is very difficult to recover from, especially when the weight needs to be put overhead after recovery. The no contact clean removes this problem by not creating it in the first place, with the  bar delivered in a nearly perfect vertical path. After training this variation consistently, the technique is more efficient and fluid, with less bar loop and drop. 

Along with the ill effects of excessive horizontal movement, a lack of connection throughout the entire lift is a recipe for bad timing and an undesired bar trajectory. There is no point in the lift when the athlete should relax and let the lift happen to them. Being active and connected to the bar is an aspect of the skill, which includes moving it most efficiently to the power position, delivering a forceful upward drive, then pulling underneath the bar into a squat – meeting the bar at its highest point. This requires an engaged upper body, directing the athlete and bar to the correct spot. This variation of the clean exaggerates an upward drive by removing the bar-body contact requiring a more active pull under with the arms and shoulders. Without support from the contact, the upper body will work to continue the lift and has less of a chance to become passive. 

Bigger IS Better

When the upper body is increasingly involved in the lift and augments the speed and direction of the bar – resultant muscle mass that is active also increases. Skeletal muscle is a contractile tissue that responds to repeated bouts of high tension stretch and contraction by increasing in size and strength. Both of these adaptations are load and range of motion dependent, but increasing the demands on the shoulders, upper back, and arms during the pull will likely result in some degree of growth in size and strength. Including no contact cleans with moderate frequency and volumes could be seen as a general means of weightlifting-specific bodybuilding and a specific means of technical work.

Example Progressions

The no contact clean should not entirely replace classic cleans or any clean variation with contact. The purpose is to support the development of clean technique and improve upper body size and strength. The timing and tempo of the clean – the contact of the bar, the turnover and catch – requires expertise at all loads. For this reason, the no contact clean and its close variants will always play second or third fiddle within the training process.

Here’s how to program it effectively: 

• Movement: No Contact Clean
• Frequency: 1-2x a week
• Prescription: 3-6 working sets, 8-15 total reps
• Load: 60-90% of clean 1RM (lower %s for power variations, higher %s when driving specific strength)

From block to block, this may look like:

• Block 1: General Preparation (work capacity)
• 1-2x Frequency, more variation (e.g., no contact power clean + push press)
• 3-5 sets of 2-3 reps, 60-85% 

• Block 2: Specific Preparation (basic/maximal strength)
• 1-2x Frequency, less variation (e.g., no contact clean + jerk)
• 3-5 sets of 1-2 reps, 65-90%

• Block 3: Competition Preparation 
• 0-1x Frequency, more variation w/lower intensities
• 2-4 sets, 1-2 reps, 60-80%

The no contact clean can include other constraints (e.g., power, no hook, no feet) to increase technical difficulty and perceived effort of the complex or movement. It can also be preceded by a pull variation and/or followed by a front squat and/or overhead lift to create a string of movements to target other qualities. 

From block to block, exercise sequencing may look like:

• Block 1: General Preparation (work capacity)
• Variation 1 (performed as a primer):
  
  • No Hook, No Feet Power Clean (1) + Push Press (1) for doubles
• Variation 2 (performed in a separate session):
  
  • No Contact Clean (1) + Front Squat (2) + Jerk (1) 

• Block 2: Specific Preparation (basic/maximal strength)
• Variation 1 (performed as a primary variation):
  
  • No Contact Clean (2) + Jerk (1)
• Variation 2 (performed as a primer):
  
  • No Feet, No Contact Clean (2) + Power Jerk (2) 

• Block 3: Competition Preparation 
• Variation 1 (performed on the lowest intensity day of the week):
  
  • No Contact Power Clean (2) + Power Jerk (1)

Contact Your Potential 

In some circles, no contact variations of the lift will receive little support. While it is not a panacea, it will seriously impact your training, driving positive changes to your technique, allowing heavier weights to be moved more efficiently. The key is to single in on the execution of the movement, keeping quality at the forefront. If done correctly, increases in upper body strength and size and technical proficiency will be a sure result.

Try this variation out today and feel the difference it can make, plus the challenge it brings.