Yeah, power versions are awesome, but not for someone who is still learning the lifts. They need to learn the full lifts ASAP (i.e. motor pattern, proprioception of the full lift, and awareness of yourself together with the bar) and learn how to get under the bar, which can take quite a bit of time! That reactive strength (basically your legs absorbing the weight as you catch it) takes time to develop in my experience.
For someone who is more intermediate/advanced, the power versions can be very beneficial. 1) If you are already doing lots of full snatches/cleans/squats/pulls, you might burn your legs out doing the full lifts, whereas you can just do the power versions instead. 2) You can focus on technique, while still going relatively heavy, without worrying if you are going to fail a full squat snatch/clean. 3) It can teach you how to rapidly pull under the bar by focusing on high-and-out elbows, because you essentially NEED to get under that bar to catch it in a squat position that is has you thighs above parallel.
[quote]alexus wrote:
koing, do you mean that in time full cleans will feel easier / more natural than powercleans because the legs are stronger?[/quote]
Heavy Cleans and heavy power cleans will always feel heavy, but lighter weights say 80-85-90% will feel better and you will be able to hit a higher % more often as you get stronger and better at the lifts.
Power Cleans for the most part will feel more natural to most people as it only has the upwards component, and not the downards component of getting under the bar fast in a full squat.