Legs are the key. I competed yesterday at the Arnold Classic alongside fellow 69kg lifter and Deep Barbell athlete Connor Felstead. If there is one thing we both walked away knowing is that you can’t have legs that are too strong.
Here’s the last clean (and missed jerk) @ 151: Arnold Classic 151
You can see that not only is my pull off a bit causing me to rock back in the squat but I am not firing out of the hole like most lifters. There is no rebound and I am starting from a dead stop. I think this goes back to a lack of legs. A lack of power. And ultimately a weak squat. A legit Olympic level competitor in my weight class should be able to smoke 151 without a problem. I likely don’t have the legs.
You can see the massive difference compared to this 155 from Nationals: 155 CJ Nationals 2013
The bottomline. Time to be best friends with the squat bar. No lifter is exceptional without a big squat. None. The same is true of any other sport. A big squat can only help not hurt. Make friends with the squat bar and you’ll likely see MASSIVE gains.