You’ve just finished a great session of throwing out at the rings, and you are very confident in your technique. Being a dedicated athlete, you then head straight into the weight room, ready to hammer away at the iron. A true athlete knows that any effort put into training will complement performance in competition. Here’s a list of five exercises that will maximize your results:
1. Power snatch
Throwing is a full body movement, so why not mimic that in the weight room? The power snatch is one of the best full body movements you can do to throw farther. It will help build tremendous force production in both the upper and lower body. The exercise starts out with a triple extension between the ankle, knee, and hip; a movement found in nearly every sport, and throwing is no exception. The second phase of the lift is the powerful pull with the upper body. This will help build the shoulders and traps, two muscle groups that are major in every throwing event. The final portion of lift is the catch. This will help build the important stabilizer muscles that are often talked about nowadays in sports training, allowing for a more complete transfer of force.
This exercise has many variations, but to see the most correlation to the throws, it is best performed from the hang, with a closer grip than usual, preferably with your pinky finger on the power ring. The set and rep range can vary quite a bit, but 3 sets of 5 reps, with about 50-60% of your max will prove effective. With such a light load, be sure to move the weight as fast as possible, this will help increase speed and transfer of force during the finish of your throw.
2. Front Squat
Many people believe that throwing is predominately an upper body sport, but in reality they couldn’t be more wrong. Many world class throwers also have world class lower body strength. The Front Squat proves to be the most effective lower body exercise that can be done to build a throw. In addition to working the quads, hamstrings, and glutes, it will have the entire core working hard, stabilizing your body.
Be sure to rack the bar high up on the shoulders, very close to the neck. To keep the bar in place, grip the bar with the tips of your index and middle fingers, rather than keeping the bar in your palms. This will stretch the forearms, a part of the body that can get very tight from throwing, especially shot put. Keep the elbows up high, then break at the hips, and sink down to the bottom position. From here, it’s necessary keep upright, with an arched or neutral back. Spread the floor with your feet on the way up, it will activate the glutes and hamstrings, two muscles groups often overlooked by throwers. Repeat this for 3-5 sets of 4-6 reps, with approximately 80-90% of your max.
3. Plate Twist
Core rotation is another important movement necessary for a thrower’s success. Being able to separate the upper and lower body as far apart from each other, then rotate through that position as fast as possible will prove for some big throws. The perfect exercise to teach this is the plate twist.
This is a fairly simple, but very effective exercise. Grab a plate of choice (ranging anywhere from 10 all the way up to 45 pounds), extend it out front of you, plant your feet on the floor with bent knees, and focus on moving the weight from side to side as fast as possible. Perform for 3-5 sets of 8-15 reps. The upper body and the core will learn to work together, as you are supporting the weight with the traps, shoulders, and arms, while the obliques actively stretch and flex with each rotation.
4. V-sit ups
As mentioned earlier, the core is very important to throwing. Rotational speed and flexibility is good, but if you can’t stabilize the rest of the core while doing so, that effort has proved to be useless. V-sit ups or Jack-knifes are the best exercise to remedy this. Lie flat with your back on the floor, then bend at the waist and proceed to bring your legs and arms together. The legs should be extended and lifted at approximately a 35-45 degree angle from the floor and the arms should be extended and parallel to your legs. The upper torso should be off the floor. Repeat for 3-5 sets of 12-20 reps and you’ll be on your way to having a bulletproof core
5. Bench press
Throwers are known for being big and barrel-chested, and this is due to the massive weights they can move on the bench. Having a strong bench press can put the little extra oomph on a throw necessary to get the victory. Benching builds the chest, shoulders, and triceps; all muscles necessary for delivery of the throw. Grip the bar just outside of shoulder width, unrack, and lower to your sternum. Press back up, and spread the bar with your hands. This will help to activate your triceps. Repeat for 3-5 sets of 3-8 reps, with 80-90% of your max.
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