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WEIGHTLIFTING
EXERCISES ALL ATHLETES SHOULD DO
Steve Daisey
MPT, CSCS
Across virtually
all competitive sports, you will find a few exercises that are performed
by nearly everyone. This is because they work on the core components
of human movement essential to speed, explosion, acceleration and
deceleration. This list is obviously NOT exhaustive. For instance,
the bench press is frequently
found in most sports training programs, however it is not necessarily
important to a sport such as tennis or golf. This list is meant to
cover the most common movements across all sports.
Click on the exercises below to learn more about them. As always,
it is extremely important that a professional watch your form and
help integrate these exercises safely into an overall routine designed
specifically for your sport, position, age and body type.
| EXERCISE |
REASON |
| Squat |
Teaches
proper deceleration mechanics through the hip, as opposed to
the knee and lower back. The squat engages virtually all muscle
groups in a sport-specific movement. |
| Single
Leg Squat |
The single
leg squat emphasizes control and balance while using all muscles
of the lower extremity. Performed correctly, this teaches the
gluteals and hamstrings to become responsible for the power
of pushing off the ground. |
| Lateral
Lunge |
Teaches
proper deceleration through the hips, as opposed to the knees
and lower back. This also helps to Train the gluteals and hamstrings
in a highly sport-specific manner. |
| Rotational
Resistance |
Trains
rotational strength, which helps movement in nearly every sports
(think hitting or throwing a ball, cutting/turning left or right,
etc.). This is typically done on a cable pulley system. |
| Lat
Pull or Compound Row |
Very
important for head/neck, upper extremity and upper back stability.
This helps to improve posture, which in turn helps mechanics
during all movements, especially first step where many young
athletes prefer to bend forward at the spine. |
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