Are you looking to get strong, explosive gains in your upper body? Look no further! With these 6 explosive exercises, you’ll be ready to take your upper body strength to the next level. These exercises are designed to target your chest, back, shoulders and arms to help you build a powerful upper body. You’ll be able to push yourself further than ever before with this combination of dynamic and static exercises. Get ready to set off some serious upper body gains!
1) The Snatch
The snatch is a full-body exercise that works the upper body and core in particular. It’s an Olympic lift, and it involves using a barbell to quickly lift it from the ground up to overhead, all in one movement.
To do a proper snatch, you’ll start by bending your knees and lowering your hips to grip the bar. Your feet should be just a bit wider than hip-width apart and your back should be flat, with your shoulders above the bar. Take a deep breath and drive your legs and hips up to explosively lift the bar up to chest height. As you extend your arms to get the bar higher, shrug your shoulders and pull the bar up until it’s directly over your head and arms are locked out in a wide grip. Make sure you keep your elbows high as you finish the movement by dropping into a squat.
The snatch is an extremely effective way to build explosive strength in your upper body and core muscles, so if you’re looking for a great way to work on those areas, this is definitely an exercise worth adding to your routine!
2) The Clean and Jerk
The clean and jerk is a two-part weightlifting move that requires a great deal of coordination and strength. It is a compound exercise that works multiple muscle groups in the upper body and is one of the most important exercises in Olympic weightlifting.
The first part of the clean and jerk is known as the “clean”. This involves quickly and explosively lifting the weight from the ground to your chest, while slightly bending your knees and keeping your back straight. You should then use your momentum to lift the barbell over your head and hold it in an overhead position, known as the “rack position”.
Once you are in the rack position, you should then perform the second part of the movement - the “jerk”. This involves quickly and explosively pressing the barbell up, pushing it away from your body, until your arms are fully extended. You should ensure that your feet remain firmly planted on the ground throughout this movement.
The clean and jerk is a highly effective exercise for developing explosive power in the upper body, as well as building muscular endurance. This exercise can be used as part of a strength-training program or as a dynamic warmup prior to other exercises. However, proper technique is essential for getting the most out of this exercise, so it is recommended that you seek the help of a qualified fitness professional before attempting this exercise.
3) The Push Press
The Push Press is an excellent upper body exercise that will help you develop power and explosiveness. This exercise involves lifting a barbell overhead with the help of your legs to propel the weight up. To do a Push Press, start by standing with your feet hip-width apart and your hands gripping the barbell just outside of your shoulders. Bend your knees slightly and use the force generated from your lower body to help press the weight overhead. As you press, your arms should remain straight, but your elbows should be slightly bent at the top of the lift.
The Push Press is a great exercise for targeting the entire upper body, including the shoulders, triceps, and upper back. It also helps you develop core strength and balance. Additionally, it can help improve coordination and athleticism. Because it involves using your legs to generate power, it also develops explosive power and speed which is useful in many sports.
When doing the Push Press, it’s important to keep your torso upright throughout the lift. Make sure to drive through your heels, as this will help you generate maximum force. Also, be sure to keep the barbell close to your body throughout the lift and ensure that you press it directly overhead rather than out in front or behind you. Finally, make sure to lock out your elbows and press the barbell all the way up before slowly lowering it back down.
4) The Push Jerk
The Push Jerk is one of the most popular upper body exercises out there, and for good reason. It’s an explosive movement that works your entire upper body at once and increases your power output significantly. It’s a great exercise to add to any strength training routine, as it can help you build muscle and increase your power output.
The Push Jerk is a complex exercise that involves a few steps. First, you’ll start in a standing position with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart and your toes pointing outwards. You’ll then dip down into a squat position while keeping your chest up and maintaining your back straight. From this position, you’ll explosively drive through your heels while pressing the barbell up above your head. The barbell should be held slightly behind your head with your arms locked out as you press it up. Once the barbell has reached its highest point, you’ll then slowly lower it back down to the starting position.
The Push Jerk is an effective exercise for building both strength and power. It also helps to build stability and balance throughout the entire body. Make sure to keep your core tight and maintain proper form throughout the entire movement in order to prevent injuries and get the most out of the exercise.
5) The Power Clean
The power clean is a great exercise to help build explosive strength in your upper body. This exercise involves taking a barbell from the floor to the shoulders, or a “hang” position. This exercise can be used to target many different muscle groups, such as the legs, glutes, back, and shoulders.
To perform a power clean, start by standing with your feet hip-width apart. Bend down and grip the bar with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Keep your arms straight and back flat. Your head should be up and looking forward.
Once in the starting position, explosively drive your legs and pull the bar off the floor. As the bar moves up, pull your elbows up and out, keeping the bar close to your body. Once the bar reaches your shoulders, rotate your elbows under it, drop into a squat, and catch the bar on your shoulders. Stand up with the bar resting on your deltoids. Lower the bar back to the starting position and repeat.
Power cleans are a great way to increase overall power and strength in your upper body. Make sure to focus on proper form during each repetition in order to maximize gains and minimize injury risk.
6) The Hang Clean
The Hang Clean is an explosive upper body exercise that focuses primarily on developing strength and power in the hips, legs, and core. It's a variation of the traditional Clean and Jerk and involves lifting a barbell from the floor to your chest.
The Hang Clean is performed by first standing in a shoulder-width stance with the feet pointing out slightly and the back arched. You then hold the barbell in front of your thighs with a firm grip. The next step is to take a deep breath and explosively extend your hips forward while also pulling the bar up towards your chest as quickly as possible.
When you reach chest level, you'll catch the barbell in the racked position with your elbows up and hands close together. From this position, you'll need to push your hips forward again and drive the bar overhead until your arms are locked out overhead. Finally, reverse the movement and lower the barbell to the floor.
The Hang Clean is a great way to develop explosive power, improve hip drive, and increase core strength and stability. When performing this exercise, it's important to keep your back tight, maintain an upright posture throughout, and ensure that your elbows stay high when catching the bar.
