Dumbbell Power Clean and Press

Here's an exercise seemingly tailored-made for kidney transplant recipients, or nearly anyone else for that matter. This compound movement is praised for both its strength-building and endurance-enhancing qualities. And rightfully so, as this exercise works practically all muscles in the body while taxing the cardiorespiratory system as good as, or better than, any set of squats or deadlifts can.

I won't go into all the reasons renal transplant recipients - particularly those taking prednisone - should be regularly exercising (click on heart health in the list of labels in the right-hand margin for posts relating to this topic), but a quick recap of some of the most important points is worthwhile:

• We are 4-6 times more likely to die from cardiovascular disease than the general public
• Studies show patients have greater fat mass 1-year post-transplant than study control groups
• We remain low in peak oxygen uptake compared to sedentary normal controls and have a lower exercise capacity
• From the beginning, prednisone causes a breakdown of muscle (catabolism). This is most striking in the quadriceps, glutes, and shoulder girdle. Many on long-term corticosteroids develop very thin arms and legs. At the same time, prednisone has been called "pro-obesity."
• Prednisone is associated with osteopenia, a weakening of the bones, and osteoporosis, a disease which can cause spontaneous bone fractures.

The National Institutes of Health has stated that "aerobic exercise is necessary to reduce the risks for cardiovascular disease, minimize osteoporosis, and facilitate weight loss, whereas strength-based exercise is necessary to minimize sarcopenia," a degenerative loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength associated with age (and prednisone).

So, according to the National Institutes of Health, incorporating both aerobic- and strength-based exercises into our routines can act as a counterbalance to many of the physiological challenges working against us as transplant recipients. The dumbbell power clean and press, though not usually performed as an aerobic exercise, certainly works the anaerobic system, which is crucial to enhancing muscular strength and muscular endurance while also combating the deterioration of lean muscle mass.

Bill Starr, one of the NFL's first strength and conditioning coaches, once wrote that cleaning and pressing dumbbells is an excellent way to build size and strength in the shoulders (see the 4th bullet point above) that no other upper-body exercise can match. Even if you're not looking for size or strength gains, Starr notes, cleaning and pressing dumbbells makes a fine addition to any conditioning program. "You don't need heavy weights," says Starr. "If you only have light dumbbells, just run up the reps. You can clean the dumbbells and press them 30 or 40 times, or you can turn this simple exercise into an excellent cardio [aerobic] workout. Clean the weights, press them overhead, set them back on the floor and repeat: clean, press, clean, press. Do that for 20 or more consecutive reps, and I guarantee that you'll be blowing at the end even if you only use 15-pound dumbbells."

Of course the clean and press can also be performed with a barbell, but the dumbbell version has some distinct advantages. First, there is the simple fact that dumbbells require less space and are generally safer to train with, particularly when training alone. Because dumbbells require equal work from both arms, any strength imbalances can be more easily identified. As dumbbells are more unwieldy to handle than a barbell, more stabilizer muscles are recruited by the body to perform the movement. And in the clean and press, dumbbells have to be pulled higher than a bar because it's so much harder to dip under them as you would a bar prior to the pressing motion. This means the deltoids have to work a little harder than they do in a barbell clean and press.

In either option, barbell or dumbbell, the entire body receives a vigorous workout. Legs, hips, glutes, back and abs are all involved, and not in just a supportive role. The power clean and press is a very demanding exercise which will produce great results. Use it how you want - for strength or cardio, or both. Currently, I perform three sets in the 8-10 rep range with 35-pound dumbbells. In the demonstration video below, I performed 5 reps and was already breathing heavy.