Strength Training for Ice Hockey: Upper Body
I think we can all agree that it’s important for hockey players to lift weights. By getting stronger and more explosive in the legs you’re able to skate faster and longer without getting tired. When we look at the upper body, having more strength up top allows you to give and receive checks better and it also decreases the chances of injury. Another reason you’d want to have a strong upper body is to hold off checks while puck protecting like in the image above. Now the question always becomes, how do you pick the “best” exercise to achieve this goal? I don’t think you can pick the “best” exercise, every exercise offers something a little different. When focusing on the same area of the body, each exercise chosen will will provide a slightly different stimulus and the body will respond accordingly. Some exercises are for maximal strength, while others work on stability and control.
What I like about today’s exercise in the video below is that it’s a really good balance between the two mentioned above (strength and control). I believe you’re still developing really good strength while also increasing the stability and control needed for healthy shoulders which will help you hold off those checks while driving the net with the puck. And as an added bonus, the core is really having to engage to keep your body stable during the exercise and this will help prevent you from falling off the bench. Having this high level of core engagement and the increased motor control of the shoulder really makes this a full upper-body exercise.
Watch the video below to learn more about this exercise👇
If you’re currently performing a regular dumbbell bench in your training plan. I would recommend substituting it for this single-arm dumbbell variation for a few weeks and then when you go back to the traditional dumbbell bench you’ll get to see how your overall strength has improved. And then moving forward, you could have one of your push days be the traditional two dumbbell variation and then the other day you would incorporate the single-arm one.
If you have any questions regarding this exercise or anything hockey training related, please don’t hesitate to contact me by clicking one of the social buttons below.
Your Strength Coach,
Travis Martell, CSCS