This power exercise trains the whole body to work in tandem in order to make the slam as powerful as possible. The emphasis in training with this exercise should be effectiveness rather than speed. It is much better for the efficacy of the exercise and your safety to use a NON-bouncing medicine ball as seen here.
Thrusters are a very good exercise for training full body power generation. The exercise can be done with one or two weights with anything from a kettlebell to a sandbag used as the weight. The strength of the legs are primarily tasked during this exercise, but the core, paraspinals, and arms are also put to use during each repetition. The point of this exercise is to train the body to work together to generate power rather than muscles in isolation. This more accurately represents how the human body works in everyday life and in athletic events.
This exercise is more commonly found part of group exercise classes, but is just as effective on your own. It works the chest, arms, core, and legs effectively with only bodyweight. If an additional challenge is needed though, a Weight Vest is the best way.
Kettlebell swings are a great full body exercise that trains power, stamina, and stability of almost all parts of the body. Legs and core are actively working while the shoulders and grip muscles are stabilizing the weight. Doing the exercise for longer periods of time leads to stamina development of even the non active muscles that are a part of the upward throw. Most gyms have a wide array of kettlebells available for use, but for those looking to workout at home, an adjustable kettlebell is the most practical and affordable option Adjustable Kettlebell
This video contains proper form for:
Kettlebell Swings
Single Arm Kettlebell Swings
Plyo pushups are the power version of pushups that emphasize explosive movement. This will improve the core stability to some degree, but mostly improve the muscular power of the chest and arms. It doesn’t require any extra equipment but if you want to use weight for an extra challenge, a Weight Vest is the best option. This is an effective way to create diversity in your pushup training.
Squat jumps are a good way to practice lower body power generation when lacking the equipment for box jumps or space for standing long jumps. When done with intent for max height, this exercise can be just as effective at improving muscular strength of the legs as other jumping exercises while minimizing requirements for exercising. If an added challenge is desired, use a Weight Vest vest to increase the force required for the jump.
The sled push is a very effective power exercise for the legs as it forces people to move more weight against gravity and friction over distance. This really promotes the leg muscles to be able to generate continuous force which is required for any sport that requires you to move from point to point. Pick a weight that requires constant push to keep going, but not so much weight that it stops after each movement.
This tennis court sprint requires powerful launches in both a forward sprint and a rapid backpedal. This sprint should be done with a maximum par time for 40 seconds. If you can easily make this time, drop the par time by 2 sec intervals. For an added challenge this sprint can be done while wearing a Weight Vest
This exercise really pushes whole body power generation to the max. Legs, core, and arms will all be put to use to make the ball fly. Using a bouncing medicine ball, put full force into every throw so that it bounces back to you in one bounce off the ground without you having to bend over awkwardly.
Since velocity of the ball is more important than anything, a lighter ball is recommended. 4-8lbs is ideal. A recommended ball can be found here: Medicine Ball
This is a tennis derived exercise, but it carries great benefit to all other athletes and people trying to improve their fitness. Using a doubles alley of a tennis court is the ideal size, but you can do this same exercise at home with two pieces of tape/wood 4.5ft apart. The important part is being able to balance upon landing without falling over or taking any adjustment steps. This strengthens the legs and core for both power generation and stability around joints and overall balance. If an additional challenge is needed, do this exercise while wearing a Weight Vest with adjustable weight.
Mountain climbers are a dynamic core exercise that train muscular endurance and power with abdominal muscles. Also helps with developing stability strength with the abdominals and shoulders. This exercise should always be done in a fixed time interval. To increase the challenge, you can add a Weight Vest while training.
This exercise is the base plyometric exercise. It can be done with boxes in a gym, a solid bench, or even a short wall. The exercise increases the power generation capacity of the legs. Burpee box jumps can add variety to this as you’re training explosive power of both the upper and lower body in the same exercise. For an additional challenge, you can add a Weight Vest while training.
This video contains proper form for:
Box Jumps
Single Leg Box Jumps
Burpee Box Jumps
Doing a Vertical Wall Ball will very clearly demonstrate your ability to generate power with your muscles. This power exercise also more importantly gets your entire body to work together. In order to get the weighted ball to go the highest possible, the timing of the explosive movement from the legs have to feed the arms as they launch up. It’s more important to pick a weight that you can launch multiple feet rather than barely launch above your head. A quality Medicine Ball will last you for years.
Lunges are a highly effective exercise for training muscle strength, endurance and stability of the legs, glutes, and lower back. Stability is one of the most important and yet most overlooked physical training attributes, so controlled lunges are best for that. The addition of lunge jumps introduces the aspect of power into the training, and magnifies the stability aspect of the exercise. For an added challenge, a Weight Vest can be worn, or weights can be held in hand.
This video contains proper form for:
Lunges
Lunge Jumps
This plyometric exercise is all about training power of the legs and core. By absorbing the landing and immediately jumping up again, the body is being trained to generate and absorb force rapidly. Bodyweight is more than enough to make this exercise a challenge. That being said, it is also beneficial to mix in weight training via a Weight Vest for this type of exercise.
Burpees are one of the overall best bodyweight exercises as they train muscular strength, endurance, balance, and power. Especially when working with limited time, burpees can provide an excellent workout. Of the ways to increase their challenge, increasing reps is the best. If you want to add resistance, a Weight Vest is the safest option.
This video contains proper form for:
Traditional burpees
Single-leg burpees
Burpee Long Jump