5 Moves to Build Explosive Strength for Your Next OCR
An Evidence-Based Blueprint for Fitness Generalists
Sometimes muscle mass just isn’t enough. You need power. You want to explode up and over a Spartan 8-foot wall. You want to rocket over a Spartan Bender. You want explosive strength.
Explosive strength training expands your movement toolkit, giving you ninja-like power. It improves general athleticism by teaching your body to use fast-twitch (Type II) muscle fibers while dramatically improving coordination and agility.
It builds durability by teaching you the coordination needed to generate and dissipate force safely. And finally, it enhances longevity. Type II muscle fibers atrophy and become dormant when neglected. If you want to postpone being the slow-moving old guy as long as possible, you’ll want to train explosive movement.
In this article, I’ll first show you how to train and program for explosive strength. Then I’ll show you my top five exercises to build full-body explosive strength.
Here are links to navigate to each section.
How to Train and Build a Program for Explosive Strength
How to Train for Explosive Strength
To effectively train for explosive strength you need to get the intensity and volume right. It isn’t the same as traditional strength training.
Training Intensity: Power training is unlike strength training. The goal is to develop speed. Thus, you want to use lighter weights and fewer reps. Generally, you will do 1-6 reps with a weight you are able to lift 20 or more times. You stay far away from failure. The goal is to avoid fatigue, making each rep a max effort at speed of movement.
Training Volume: You can make great progress by combining just 3-5 sets per week of explosive training with your traditional strength training. Traditional hypertrophy training builds your body, while explosive training builds your skills.
When to Program the Training
You want to perform your power training completely fresh and avoid pushing yourself into fatigue. There are two ways you can do it.
Before Lifting: The first option is to train right after your warm-up but before your hypertrophy work. This is a great way to work on 2-3 of the movements per week when strength and hypertrophy are still the primary goals. For example, you might do three sets of three explosive pull-ups before doing your loaded pull-ups. Or you might do three sets of five tuck jumps before doing your loaded squats. If you stay far away from failure and do just a few sets, it shouldn’t have any negative effect on your lifting. I typically only do 1-2 explosive movements per lifting session.
On a Separate Day: The second option is to set aside an explosive strength training day. Make sure your muscles are not fatigued from your last lifting day. If you strength train on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, then you could run through the five explosive movements on Sunday. Again, if you stay far away from failure, you shouldn’t accumulate much fatigue, leaving you ready to go hard again on Monday.
My Five Favorite Movements for Full Body Explosive Strength
1) Explosive Pull-Up
Explosive pull-ups develop your vertical pulling power, paving the way for muscle-ups and power-ups. They enhance your climbing strength, power, and agility while teaching you to absorb your weight on the way down. This is a particularly great training tool for obstacle course racers. Master these and you’ll fly through the 8-foot walls.
Explosive Pull-Up Tips:
Strength Before Power: You should have an intermediate level of strength before attempting explosive pull ups. For men that’s 10-12 strict chest to bar pullups. For women it’s 3-5.
Strength to Weight: Leaner is better. To move like a gymnast, you’ll want to look like a gymnast.
Explosive Pull-Up Cues:
Starting Position: Start from a fully extended dead hang.
Explode Upward: Pull explosively upward while driving your legs up toward the bar.
Aim High: Try to get your chest above the bar.
Slow Your Descent: Fight to absorb your weight and slow your descent all the way down. Don’t just bounce on your connective tissue and muscles at the bottom.
2) Muscle-Up
The muscle-up requires immense upper body strength, demands total body coordination, and looks cool as hell, cementing its place as one of the sexiest calisthenic movements. If you want to move like a ninja, this is your movement.
Muscle-Up Tips:
Strength Before Power: At a minimum, you should have at least an intermediate level of strength before attempting muscle-ups. For men, that’s 10-12 strict chest-to-bar pull-ups. For women, it’s 3-5.
Base of Power: Build explosive strength with explosive pull-ups. You should be able to get your chest up above the bar.
Strength to Weight: Leaner is better. To move like a gymnast, it helps to look like a gymnast.
Muscle-Up Cues:
Starting Position: Start from a dead hang utilizing a false grip (thumbs on top of the bar).
Swing Into It: Generating some swing will help you get around the bar.
Explode Upward: As your body begins to swing back towards nadir, pull explosively while driving your legs up towards the bar.
Transition: As your chest passes above the bar, bring your elbows up, forming the bottom of a dip.
Finish: Press out the dip.
Slow Your Descent: Fight to absorb your weight and slow your descent all the way down. Don’t just bounce on your connective tissue and muscles at the bottom.
3) Tuck Jumps
Tuck jumps increase your power and explosiveness while teaching you how to land and absorb force. They’re a great way to test and improve knee strength and stability, build a solid foundation of jumping and landing for more advanced aerial movement, and with consistent practice, you’ll jump higher and see increased general athleticism.
Tuck Jump Cues:
Take Off: Drop down into a quarter squat and explode up into the air.
Arm Swing: Be sure to use your arms to generate momentum.
Tuck Your Legs: Bring your legs up into a tuck.
Landing: Land with stable knees in something like a quarter squat.
Stable Knees: Your knees should not cave out or in. You should land in the same general position you jumped from.
Ninja Quiet: Land softly and quietly.
Want to Make it Easier? Just shorten the jump to a short hop.
Pain-Free: There should be no pain. If it hurts, you’re either doing it wrong or aren’t ready for this exercise.
4) Broad Jumps
Broad jumps increase your power and explosiveness while teaching you how to land and absorb force. They’re a great way to test and improve knee strength and stability, build a solid foundation of jumping and landing for more advanced aerial movement, and with consistent practice, you’ll jump further and see increased general athleticism.
Broad Jump Cues:
Take Off: Drop down into a quarter squat and explode up and forward into the air.
Arm Swing: Be sure to use your arms to generate momentum.
Tuck Your Legs: Bring your legs up into a tuck.
Landing: Land with stable knees in something like a quarter squat.
Stable Knees: Your knees should not cave out or in. You should land in the same general position you jumped from.
Ninja Quiet: Land softly and quietly on the balls of your feet.
Stick the Landing: Be sure to hold your landing for several moments.
Want to Make it Easier? Just shorten the jump to a short hop.
Pain-Free: There should be no pain. If it hurts, you’re either doing it wrong or aren’t ready for this exercise
5) Rock/Sandbag Clean and Press
The clean and press trains all the major muscles of the body, building whole-body explosiveness, coordination, and strength. If you’re already doing things like muscle-ups and jumps, this fills in the remaining gaps. For obstacle course racers, it teaches you to lift, throw, and shoulder large weights, making it an absolute must.
Clean and Push Press Tips:
Strength Before Power: I recommend building your size and strength with Romanian deadlifts, squats, and overhead presses. Treat this more like a skill.
Make it Practical: I prefer to train with rocks and sandbags. There are no Olympic bars at an OCR.
Clean and Push Press Cues:
Starting Position: Set up for a deadlift. The size and shape of the object will influence your stance. Keep a flat back and your chest up.
Hinge Down: Hinge at your hips and begin bending your knees.
Brace Yourself: Brace your breath, maintain a slight bend in your elbows, and maintain full body tension.
Explosive Deadlift: Perform an explosive deadlift, bringing the object up to chest height.
Release the Object: As the object passes up to your chest, release your grip.
Rack the Object: Drop down into a quarter squat while bringing your hands and elbows under the object into a rack position.
No Rotation: Don’t flip or rotate the object. It should only move up and down.
Press it Up: Using your legs and arms, press the object overhead or throw the object in front of you.
Final Thoughts
If your fitness interests extend beyond looking good naked, power training is a no-brainer. It takes very little time to build or maintain. It’s fun. And it will help you live a long, adventurous life. So which one are you going to start building first?
