Kettlebell Bottoms Up Hang Clean
Also known as: bottoms up clean
- Primary muscleBiceps
- EquipmentKettlebell
- DifficultyAdvanced
- TypeComplex
Catching the kettlebell upside down, base pointing at the ceiling, turns an ordinary hang clean into a grip and precision drill: the handle must be crushed hard and the bell caught dead vertical or it flops over. Loads stay far below your normal clean weight; a quiet, stable catch is the entire goal.
How to do the Kettlebell Bottoms Up Hang Clean
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding a kettlebell in one hand with an overhand grip.
- Bend your knees slightly and hinge forward at the hips, keeping your back straight and chest up.
- Allow the kettlebell to hang down between your legs, with your arm fully extended.
- In one fluid motion, explosively extend your hips and knees while pulling the kettlebell up towards your shoulder.
- As the kettlebell reaches shoulder height, rotate your wrist so that the bottom of the kettlebell is facing up.
- Catch the kettlebell at shoulder height with your elbow bent and your palm facing up.
- Lower the kettlebell back down to the starting position by reversing the movement.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions, then switch sides.
Tip: Keep the bar close, extend the hips fully and let the legs, not the arms, generate the speed.
Muscles worked
Primary
Biceps · Arms
The biceps should stay relaxed through the pull and only bend the elbow as the bar is pulled under; if they are sore, the arms are working too early.
Common mistakes
- Pulling with the arms early — the arms are just hooks until the hips have fully extended; if the elbows bend before the bar reaches the thighs, you have lost the power.
- Catching with a soft rack — on a clean the elbows should come through fast and the bar should sit on the shoulders, not in the hands; if the wrists take the weight, work on elbow speed.
- Rushing the first pull — the bar should leave the floor at a controlled speed with the back set, and the speed comes in the second pull from the hips.
- Looping the bar — the bar should travel straight up and stay close; if it swings out and back you are muscling it with the arms.
Where it fits in a workout
Olympic lifts go first in a session, before squats or deadlifts, while you are fresh and explosive. Pair a clean with a front squat to make a complex.
How many sets, how heavy and how hard: see what the ACSM position stands support.
Variations and alternatives
Similar exercises
Alternatives
Easier and harder
When to talk to someone
- Chest discomfort, feeling faint or lightheaded, or trouble breathing during or after exercise can be signs of a heart attack. In the US, call 911 right away; elsewhere, call your local emergency number.
- Heart, metabolic or kidney disease, or symptoms like these when you are active: talk to your doctor before you start or step up training.
- Pregnant: ask your obstetric care provider which exercise suits you.
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Sources
- ACSM position stand on exercise quantity and quality (Garber et al., 2011)
- ACSM preparticipation health screening (Riebe et al., 2015)
- ACOG Committee Opinion No. 804 on exercise in pregnancy (2020)
- CDC: About Heart Attack Symptoms, Risk, and Recovery (2024)
Sources checked on October 17, 2026. Full citations are in the exercise library.
Animation and exercise data: ExerciseDB, licensed to SetGrip. General information, not medical or coaching advice.