Lower Body-Knee Dominant Emphasis
1-Leg Box Squat
Single-leg training helps strengthen the lateral hip musculature and work on balance.
1-Leg Crossover Squat
This is a variation to the 1-leg box squat with a slightly greater load to the lateral hip musculature.
1-Leg Dumbbell Squat
This hockey training exercise is a single-leg variation of a two leg squat. This is a great exercise to strengthen the lower body while minimizing the load to the spine.
1-Leg Squat to Box
This is a more quadriceps dominant exercise than the variation with the “up leg” in back. I don’t use this as much anymore, but it’s still a great exercise.
Assisted 1-Leg Squat
A training progression that helps hockey players that have a tough time balancing establish the proper movement pattern.
Back Leg Raised Split Squat
I have replaced all back squatting and front squatting with single-leg exercises. Of all the single-leg exercises, this is the one that can be loaded the heaviest.
Back Squat
A quick video illustrating proper back squatting technique.
Back Squat (405lbs)
I don’t back squat most advanced hockey guys anymore because I think leg strength can be improved more with single-leg exercises and it’s safe on the back. This is another video of me while I was a grad student. This is a little higher than full depth, but given my hip flexion ROM, it’s not far off.
Back Squat (225-CAM Hip)
An illustration of what a squat pattern may look like in someone with CAM impingement. Note the hip tucking and assymetry between the left and right sides.
Back Squat (315-CAM Hip)
An illustration of what a squat pattern may look like in someone with CAM impingement. Note the hip tucking and assymetry between the left and right sides.
Back Squat-Narrow (Back View-CAM Hip)
An illustration of what a squat pattern may look like in someone with CAM impingement. Note the hip tucking and asymmetry between the left and right sides.
Back Squat-Narrow (Side View-CAM Hip)
An illustration of what a squat pattern may look like in someone with CAM impingement. Note the hip tucking.
Box Squat-1-Leg Eccentric-2-Leg Concentric
Part of my 1-leg squat progression bridging the gap between 2-leg and 1-leg squatting.
Front Squat
Front squats help decrease the load on the spine. Focus on maintaining a neutral lumbar spine and on keeping your chest up throughout the lift.
Narrow Back Squat (Back View)
The narrow stance has more transfer to the body positions we generally start moving explosively from. I don’t generally load this as heavy as in the video, but try to focus on moving the bar quickly.
Narrow Back Squat (Diagonal View)
I don’t generally load this as heavy as in the video, but try to focus on moving the bar quickly.
Narrow Back Squat (Side View)
I don’t generally load this as heavy as in the video, but try to focus on moving the bar quickly.
Squat-to-Press
A tough full body exercise. These are perfect for barbell conditioning circuits or to add some low load lower body and high load upper body work.
Lower Body-Hip Dominant Emphasis
1-Arm Overhead Dumbbell Walking Lunge
A combined lower body resistance and dynamic core stabilization exercise. True full body functional movement.
1-Leg Dumbbell Deadlift
One of my favorite lower body exercises for hockey players. The video shows the proper technique; this exercise can be loaded pretty heavy.
1-Leg Dumbbell Stiff-Legged Deadlift
A single-leg exercise for the entire back side of the body. Single-leg exercises are great for strengthening the muscles on the outside of the hip on the “down leg”.
1-Leg Deadlift
A relatively heavily loaded single-leg exercise, emphasizing the hamstrings and glutes.
1-Leg Stiff-Legged Deadlift (1-Arm)
A combined lower body resistance and dynamic core stabilization exercise. True full body functional movement.
Assisted 1-Leg Stiff-Legged Deadlift
A training progression that helps hockey players lacking appropriate strength or balance to establish the proper movement pattern.
Back Leg Raised Stiff-Legged Deadlift
An intermediary exercise between a 2-leg and 1-leg stiff-legged deadlift. This can be loaded pretty heavily. The focus is on maintaining a neutral lumbar spine (e.g. low back) throughout the range of motion.
Deadlift
A quick video illustrating proper deadlift technique. This is one of the only two-leg lower body exercises I still use with elite hockey players.
Deadlift (405lbs)
My favorite two-leg exercise. The deadlift trains full body strength and builds confidence as hockey players learn to control large amounts of weight.
Deadlift (435lbs)
My favorite two-leg exercise. The deadlift trains full body strength and builds confidence as hockey players learn to control large amounts of weight. This is of me while I was a graduate student!
Isometric Rack Pull
An isometric exercise focusing on increasing the neural drive to the muscles working in a deadlift pattern. Including these in a warm-up can boost your deadlift/rack pull strength.
Kettlebell 1-Leg 1-Arm Stiff-Legged Deadlift
A kettlebell variation of an exercise to improve functional strength of the entire back side of the body in a diagonal pattern (hip to opposite arm).
Kettlebell Overhead Reverse Lunge
A kettlebell variation of an exsercise to improve functional strength of the lower body, core, and shoulder. Lunging really falls in the middle of knee- and hip-dominant movement.
Kettlebell Swing
A kettlebell exercise to improve functional strength of the entire back side of the body in a diagonal pattern (hip to opposite arm).
Partner Eccentric Hamstring Curl
A really tough posterior chain exercise emphasizing hamstring work with co-contraction of the glutes.
Rack Pull (Medium Height)
A partial range of motion deadlift variation. I’ll have my athletes let go and “reset” between every rep, especially this heavy.
Rack Pull (High Height: 675 lbs)
A grip strength and upper back strength exercise for hockey players. If you can hold 675 pounds in your hands, you’re strong enough to shoot a 6 oz puck.
Reverse Lunge (Back Squat Grip)
My favorite single-leg exercise. Who said you can’t go heavy on single-leg exercises?
Reverse Lunge (Front Squat Grip: 2×2 Cluster)
The front squat grip variation helps decrease the load on the spine. Performing “clusters” allows you to take a brief break in between reps, allowing you to perform more reps with a heavier weight than you could if you did all the reps straight through.
Slideboard Hamstring Curl
A progression from stability ball hamstring curls, emphasizing hamstring work in a knee flexion pattern with co-contraction of the glutes.
Stability Ball Hamstring Curl
A posterior chain exercise emphasizing the hamstrings in a low load knee flexion pattern with co-contraction of the glutes.
Stiff-Legged Deadlift
A quick video illustrating the proper technique for a stiff-legged deadlift.
Hi, my name is Alyssa and I’m an Ex Sci graduate student from upstate NY. I was looking at your site which I LOVE. I’ve been looking for a few new ideas in terms of strength training to help a friend out who is a club hockey player. My question is about the video with the CAM impingement. I was diagnosed with both cam and pincer impingement in my hips and two VERY badly torn labrums. I had surgery in both hips which went very well. My surgeon operates on a lot of professional hockey and baseball players (I happen to be a competitive distance runner). I was curious if the athlete from this video is still attempting these lifts with this problem? They believe it advanced the damage in my hips dramatically.
Alyssa-Thanks for the note. The bottom line is that FAI (a broader category that encompasses both CAM and pincer impingement) is a bony overgrowth that will either need to be worked around (modifying all relevant movements and body positions) or operated on. The athlete in the video is still attempting the lifts because he’s stubborn and somewhat shortsighted (He’s a friend of mine so I have no problem saying that!). With FAI, you won’t have hip flexion past 90 degrees. If you attempt to push past that range, you’ll get undesirable compensations somewhere else and tear up your hip labrum in the process. From an exercise standpoint, it’s pretty easy to adjust things so you never pass 90 degrees of hip flexion. The key is to also ensure you’re staying above this range while you’re sitting on your couch, in your car, at the dinner table, etc. Hope this helps.
Kevin