Dumbbell clean

Also called dumbbell squat clean, double dumbbell squat clean.

What is a dumbbell clean?

A dumbbell clean brings two dumbbells from the floor to your shoulders using a pull from the legs and hips, followed by a quick move under the weights. This guide teaches the full squat version: receive the dumbbells with your hip crease below the tops of your knees, then stand upright with both weights at your shoulders.

Three-frame illustration of a man with two dumbbells low beside his legs, rising with the weights in front, then receiving them at his shoulders in a deep squat. Thighs and shoulders are shaded.

How do you perform a dumbbell clean?

Set up

Set two light dumbbells on a clear, level floor just outside your feet. Stand about hip-width apart with the handles running front to back beside your shoes.
Bend your hips and knees and grasp the middle of each handle, palms facing your legs. Keep your arms straight, brace your middle and set your shoulders slightly ahead of the weights.

Execution

Push through your feet to lift both dumbbells from the floor. Let your hips and shoulders rise together, keeping the weights close beside your legs and your arms long.
As the dumbbells pass your knees toward your thighs, straighten your hips and legs forcefully. Shrug, then turn your elbows forward as you move down under the rising weights.
Receive both dumbbells at the front of your shoulders as you settle into a full squat, with your hip crease below the tops of your knees. Keep your elbows forward and your feet flat.
Once balanced, stand all the way up with both dumbbells still at your shoulders. Pause there to finish the repetition.
Lower the dumbbells to your sides under control, softening your knees as they come down. Bend your hips and knees to set both weights on the floor. Reset your feet and grip before another rep, or release the handles once the weights are settled.

Common mistakes

Curling the dumbbells off the floor
Start the lift with your legs and keep your elbows straight through the initial pull. Use lighter dumbbells if you cannot extend your hips and legs before turning your elbows through.
Receiving the weights high and treating the rep as finished
This guide teaches a full-squat clean. Move into the squat to receive the dumbbells, then stand to finish. A higher catch belongs to the power-clean version.
Losing balance while turning the weights over
Keep the dumbbells near your body and use a load you can receive without stepping after them. End the set if you cannot settle into a balanced squat before standing.

Where it fits in a session

Practice the clean while you can coordinate the pull, turnover and squat clearly.

Begin with light dumbbells you can lower to the floor under control. Rehearse the shoulder rack and squat with a coach before adding speed or weight. Keep sets short enough that each repetition starts from a settled floor position.

Muscles worked

Front

Back

Primary

Secondary

Select a muscle name to locate it.

Schematic surface view. Some muscles are partly visible or not shown.

The quadriceps straighten your knees and the gluteus maximus extends your hips during the pull and the rise from the squat. The upper trapezius contributes to the shrug. These roles describe the movement, rather than a measured ranking of muscle activation.

Variations

Barbell cleanUses one barbell for the floor pull and full-squat catch, rather than two separate dumbbells.

Frequently asked questions

Is a dumbbell clean the same as a dumbbell squat clean?

This guide covers the squat clean: two dumbbells start on the floor, you receive them in a full squat, then stand. The name dumbbell clean is also used broadly, so check the starting position and receiving depth when following a workout.

How is a dumbbell power clean different?

The power version receives the dumbbells with the hip crease above the tops of the knees. This version receives them below that level. Either version can start on the floor; a hang start is a separate choice that begins with the weights held off the floor.

What muscles does a dumbbell clean work?

The quadriceps and gluteus maximus contribute to the leg and hip extension in the pull and the rise from the squat. The upper trapezius helps with the shrug. The arms guide the dumbbells into place, but the lift is not an arm curl.

Should I press the dumbbells overhead after the clean?

The clean ends when you stand with the dumbbells at your shoulders. Adding an overhead press makes it a clean and press; you do not need an overhead movement to complete this rep.

Do I clean both dumbbells together?

Yes, for the version taught here. Pull both from the floor together, receive both at your shoulders and stand before lowering them. A single-arm clean uses one dumbbell and is a different variation.

Sources

Bordoni B, Varacallo MA. Anatomy, Bony Pelvis and Lower Limb: Thigh Quadriceps Muscle. StatPearls. Updated 2023. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK513334/
Elzanie A, Borger J. Anatomy, Bony Pelvis and Lower Limb, Gluteus Maximus Muscle. StatPearls. Updated 2023. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538193/
Ourieff J, Scheckel B, Agarwal A. Anatomy, Back, Trapezius. StatPearls. Updated 2023. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK518994/