Essential Hammer Throw Special Strength Exercises
With the help of Mike Mai and Zack Midles, the Evergreen Athletic Fund‘s first clinic was a success on Sunday. We had ten athletes ranging in age from 8th grade to college, as well as local high school and college coaches. We are thankful to everyone who helped put on the event, and for the donations we received from it.
While most of the time at the clinic was focused on hammer throw technique, I also spent a little bit of time talking about one of my favorite subjects: special strength. I have previously discussed how I feel this an area most Americans neglect in their training. Since that post, I have received numerous e-mails asking about what other special strength exercises are helpful to the hammer throw. I thought it would be helpful to demonstrate some of what I was talking about, so I’ve posted a video below that demonstrates some essential hammer throw exercises.
Most of the exercises I cover in the video fall into the following categories, in no particular order:
- Plate Twists: There are so many variations of this exercise that it never gets old. The traditional twist is done while holding a plate in front of you with your arms parallel to the ground and then you twist from side to side. As shown in the video, you can add a little orbit to the twist or bend your arms, do them while seated, or use do endless other variations, such as mimicking the wind motion while holding a plate in your hand.
- Bar Twists: These are similar to plate twists, but are done with a bar on your back instead. You can also get inventive with the bar and do twists such as these.
- Hammer Releases: Throwing other implements and mimicking the release phase can be very helpful in developing special strength. You can throw medicine balls, kettlebells, dumbbells, weights, or puds. You can throw them with one arm or both. Use your imagination and work with whatever you have handy.
- Hammer Drills: The hammer itself can also be used to develop special strength. The easiest way to do this is to throw with a heavy hammer. However, you can do sets of winding and releasing with the hammer. Winding with multiple hammers, heavy hammers, or homemade devices is also great.
Finally, the most important thing about special strength is to be imaginative. There a numerous exercises that I have not shown or mentioned that are just as effective in developing special strength. Other movements should be used in training so that your body has a variety of movements to adapt to. The exercises I chose are only intended to give athletes and coaches a good idea of some important exercises and variations to use in training. If you have question about this topic or would like to add your favorite exercise, please post in the comments below.
Great video Martin. Jesse Dotty showed me a nice drill/special strength exercise in 2008: A plate twist with a hammer turn. For a right handed thrower: begin like you are going to do a straight arm plate twist (I like 25 lbs, 45 is doable). Twist right, and push the plate left into a turn. Catch the plate early with a solid right foot touchdown, and then twist left, right, and then do another turn. Repeat for multiple turns. I think this drill is even better with a dumbell in each hand. It iwll force you to push the right hand around.
Great exercises Martin. One thing I would add is the importance of developing the “correct” special strength. What I mean by that is to make sure you are pushing every implement in these exercises, particularly the releases. If you pull ahead with your body to propel the implement, you are just developing special strength to get better at dragging the hammer. Whereas if you are able to learn how to push the implement in these exercises, both the special strength and the skill learning will transfer to your hammer throw. Just my two cents.
Martin-
I love the exercises. Have you noticed when executing the pud relelease with the left hand only releasing as a right handed thrower, your low point was on the left leg and the pud’s orbit was a wide sweeping orbit o the left side? I think Youri would have been proud!!! Do you think all of your exercises should follow the same theme… Low point on the pivotoing leg wih as much as radius possible?
Great point Kevin. You should always be working on the technique of the exercises. The idea is to develop strength so you can push the hammer better, so it is best to be pushing the implements during the exercises too and enforce other good habits.
I have noticed that. It actually is a bit of a problem with my real throw, since my low point gets too far over to the right and I end up sitting back on the ride side as a result rather than sweeping the hammer out to the left more. I think it helps in the exercises to get as much radius as possible, especially on the left side. However, although keeping the lowpoint in the middle would likely be the best for most throwers (and something I should think about more).
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Thank you for the great video. I am curious, do you vary the weights thrown/used cyclically? For instance, do you throw a lighter pud with emphasis on speed during the spring and summer?
I haven’t noticed much of a cyclical variation in the weight we use; when we throw puds, for example, we typically throw the same weight. However, during the season we do seem to back off the volume by doing fewer reps or less intense exercises (but we do this with other exercises too).
Hello:
What is the material you are throwing into when you show the hammer winds and release at the end of the video?
It thick rubber, like the type found on an industrial conveyor belt. Kibwé and Crystal do a walk through of our indoor facility on their site and shows exactly what the set up is like.
Nice video, i know the other guy in the video…I uysed to be a strength coach at the college he graduated from