The line drill develops speed, agility and quickness. During play, athletes are frequently required to start, stop, and change direction and speed. The line drill is a great conditioning exercise and can be used as part of your dynamic warm up. The line drill also increases body control and awareness.
The Long Jump Burpee complex develops explosive power in the legs while providing a challenging anaerobic workout. You may perform this exercise for a set distance or duration. This is a great exercise to perform outdoors, in group classes or with a friend.
The dumbbell supine fly performed on the ball is an advanced exercise requiring a strong core. By weighting the body on one side it forces you to work harder to stabilize the movement. The surface of the ball provides for more range of motion and therefore recruits more muscle to perform the action. If one side of you chest is stronger than the other this exercise can help even out development. Bodybuilders like to use this exercise as a “finishing” movement on their chest day.
The reversion extension on the swiss ball is a great exercise to strengthen the muscles of the back and glutes. By using the swiss ball you activate more muscles than if you perform the exercise on the floor or on a bench. The reverse extension on the ball is ideal for anyone looking to improve their back and glute strength. Hold the contraction for a second or two to get the most out of this exercise.
The tripod drape performed on a swiss ball stretches the back muscles. The upper, middle and lower-back muscles are effectively stretched with this exercise. The surface of the stability ball allows the muscles surrounding the shoulder blades to relax. Hold the stretch for 30 seconds or as long as it feels good. Alternate this exercise with rolling your back on the foam core to work out knots and give self massage.
The trunk extension on the Swiss ball develops low back and glute strength. Performing this exercise with you feet against a wall will add support and make it easier to perform. Once you’ve mastered this exercise with your feet against a wall try it in an open space. By keeping you feet together you will recruit more of the core. As you extend your back you will feel the ball shift underneath you and this movement will require more muscles to stabilize your body.
The narrow stance barbell parallel squat is a good exercise to develop all of the major muscle groups of your legs. Only going to parallel lets you use a little more weight than squatting all the way down. Using more weight helps develop the ligaments and tendons as well as core strength. For added challenge try doing these from the bottom up.
The narrow stance dumbbell squat only requires a set of dumbbells. Therefore it is a good exercise for people working out at home. For variety you can hold the dumbbells different places; by your sides, on your shoulders or overhead. The narrow stance dumbbell squat is a good way to progress once you have mastered the bodyweight squat.
The plank is a basic core strengthening exercise. There is no equipment necessary so you can perform it anywhere. When doing the plank ensure that your body stays straight. This is a good way for beginner exercisers to build the strength base they will need to perform more demanding exercises.
The push up is a great upper body and core strength exercise. It does not require any equipment and it can be done anywhere. The push up is a favorite of many military exercise program. Even if you aren’t in the military the push up is a great exercise for over all fitness and conditioning.
The hang clean develops speed, power and balance in the entire body. Hang cleans are a ground-based, full-body exercise that train the abdominals, obliques, erectors of lower back, glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, hip flexors, and groin area. The benefits of the hang clean transfer directly to the athletic arena and provide many benefits for regular exercisers such as; improved balance, quickness, strength, power, and body awareness.
Jumping lunges with rotation and forward movement develop powerful, strong legs. The rotation activates the core muscles and the forward movement requires the fast-twitch muscles fibers in the legs to fire on all cylinders. Jumping lunges with rotation and forward motion should be not be performed by beginners. A strong strength base is recommended before performing plyometric exercises.
The plank performed on the knees is a static (isometric) exercise for strengthening the abdominals, back and shoulders. Isometric strength is important for stabilizing the trunk in various sports and exercises. The abdominal plank is a great exercise for strengthening the transverse abdominus. The transverse abdominus is the deepest layer of abdominal muscle and wraps around the whole midsection. When you contract the abdominals, your waist becomes thinner. This is the action of the transverse.
The pushup performed on the knees is a effective exercise for strengthening the chest, shoulders, and triceps. Pushups are a great exercise for beginners looking to strengthening and sculpt their upper body. The pushup with knees bent is an easier alternative to the straight-legged push up.
The knee pushup performed with hands elevated strengthens the chest, shoulders and triceps. The elevation increases the exercises range of motion and allows for a pre-stretch on the chest muscles. The pre-stretch is believed to contribute to greater force production by the muscles. Following a pre-stretch (eccentric contraction followed immediately by a concentric contraction) the muscles utilize the storage of elastic energy to achieve a peak-contraction.
Lateral box jumps develop strong, explosive legs while improving balance and coordination. This exercise trains the body to move quickly from side-to-side. Perfect for skiers, basketball and volleyball players – lateral box jumps increase lower-body explosiveness.
Lateral jumps on the trampoline strengthen the ankles, hips and glutes. This exercise develops explosive strength necessary in many sports such as, gymnastics and wakeboarding. In fact, wakeboarders repeatedly practice their movements on the trampoline to perfect their tricks before hitting the water. Use the trampoline to add variety in your workouts.
The Lateral Jump Burpee is a great exercise for football, volleyball, and martial arts. The Lateral Jump Burpee strengthens the whole body. For a challenging metabolic workout perform for 60 seconds, rest 60 seconds and repeat for five reps. Find an open field to perform the Lateral Jump Burpee.
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