Full Body Explosive & Injury Prevention

The Power Clean is a full-body exercise that involves lifting a barbell from the floor to the shoulders in one explosive movement. Start with your feet shoulder-width apart, with the barbell over your mid-foot. Bend at the hips and knees to grip the bar with an overhand grip, hands just outside your knees. Keep your back straight and chest up. Initiate the lift by extending your hips and knees, pulling the barbell upward. As the bar reaches your thighs, explosively extend your hips and shrug your shoulders, pulling yourself under the bar. Catch the barbell on your shoulders in a front squat position, with your elbows high. Stand up to complete the lift.

Plyometric Push-Ups are an explosive upper body exercise where you start in a standard push-up position, lower your chest towards the ground by bending your elbows, then explosively push through your hands to lift your entire body off the ground, clapping your hands in mid-air if desired, and landing softly back into the starting position. Maintain a straight body line throughout, engage your core, and focus on explosive power. Proper form includes keeping your elbows at about a 45-degree angle, avoiding sagging hips or piking the hips up, and landing softly to absorb impact. This exercise primarily targets the chest, shoulders, and triceps, while also engaging the core for stability.

Lateral band walks are performed by placing a resistance band around the legs, just above the knees or around the ankles. To perform the exercise, stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and slightly bend your knees. Engage your core and maintain an upright posture. Step sideways to the right with your right foot, followed by your left foot, keeping tension in the band throughout the movement. Continue stepping to the right for a set number of steps, then return to the starting position by stepping to the left. Ensure that your knees do not cave inward and that you maintain resistance in the band during the entire movement.

Stand upright with feet hip-width apart. For standing calf raises, keep your knees straight and lift your heels off the ground by pushing through the balls of your feet. Hold briefly at the top, then slowly lower your heels back down to the starting position. When performed on a step, position the balls of your feet on the edge of the step with heels hanging off, then raise heels as high as possible and lower below the level of the step for a greater stretch. Maintain proper posture throughout, keeping your core engaged and avoiding bouncing. This exercise primarily targets the calf muscles, specifically the gastrocnemius and soleus.

Hold a plank position on your forearms to engage the core muscles.

Shoulder Mobility Drills using resistance bands or wall involve performing controlled movements to improve the range of motion and flexibility of the shoulder joint. When using resistance bands, typically you perform movements such as shoulder dislocations or pull-aparts by gripping the band with a wide grip and moving it over and around your head, ensuring smooth and controlled motion to avoid strain. When using a wall, exercises like wall slides or wall angels are performed by pressing your back and arms against the wall and slowly raising and lowering your arms in a controlled manner. Focus on maintaining proper posture, keeping your core engaged, and avoiding compensatory movements. These drills target the shoulder capsule, rotator cuff muscles, and surrounding stabilizers, enhancing mobility and reducing the risk of injury.

Eccentric Heel Drops are performed by standing on a raised surface such as a step with the heels hanging off the edge. Begin with your heels elevated and then slowly lower your heels below the level of the step, emphasizing the eccentric (lengthening) phase of the calf muscles. Use both legs to rise back to the starting position or, for increased difficulty, perform unilaterally. Keep your movements controlled and avoid bouncing. This exercise targets the calf muscles and Achilles tendon, helping to strengthen and rehabilitate tendons, especially in cases of tendinopathy.

Mobility and flexibility drills encompass a variety of exercises aimed at improving joint range of motion and muscle flexibility. These drills often include dynamic stretches, static stretches, and movement-specific mobility exercises such as arm circles, leg swings, hip circles, and thoracic rotations. To perform these drills effectively, perform each movement slowly and with control, focusing on maintaining proper posture and breathing. For example, during hip circles, stand with feet shoulder-width apart, place hands on hips, and rotate hips in a circular motion to loosen the hip joints. These exercises are typically performed as warm-up routines or active recovery to enhance overall movement quality and reduce injury risk.