Whether you’re training for sport, chasing peak fitness, or just want to move and feel better, athletic performance isn’t just about going harder – it’s about moving smarter.
At SW7 Academy, our training is built on real-world results, backed by years of elite coaching. These are five of our best exercises for athletic performance, staples in our app and programs because they work. Period.
Let’s break them down.
1. Trap Bar Deadlifts
Trap bar deadlifts help you build posterior chain strength without loading the spine as much as conventional deadlifts. This means you can lift with less compression and strain because you’re centering the load around your body.
If you do sports like rugby, football and track that rely on explosive movements, trap bar deadlifts are ideal. They’ll target your glutes, hamstrings and back.
For beginners, trap bar deadlifts are a safer way to start lifting. When you’re doing them for the first time, start with a load that’s easy for you so you can master the proper form.
From there, trap bar deadlifts are highly scalable, and you can steadily increase your load and volume of reps over time.
If you want to add trap bar deadlifts, our ‘Strength Phase’ in the SW7 Academy app features weekly deadlift variations to challenge your fitness to new levels. Download the app and start your free 7-day trial here.
2. Sled Pushes
Sled pushes need full-body explosive power and are great for metabolic conditioning, without impact on your joints. With the ability to burn up to 100 calories per minute, they’re an extremely efficient full-body training exercise.
Targeting your quads, glutes, core and grip, sled pushes help to improve your anaerobic capacity and muscular endurance. If you need to perform in a sport that involves sprinting or tackling, sled pushes mimic those demands on your body.
This exercise is great for your conditioning blocks or warm-ups. Keep a low stance and use short, powerful strides. You can use heavier pushes to build your strength and lighter pushes to test your speed and endurance.
Don’t have a sled? Sub this with hill sprints or heavy prowler pushes.
3. Bulgarian Split Squats
Bulgarian Split Squats are an exercise that can build your unilateral strength. This means better balance, stability, and injury prevention.
When you do Bulgarian split squats, you’re targeting your quads, glutes and balance. By doing this move, you’ll be able to see any imbalances in your body and improve your single-leg stability – particularly useful for enhancing performance in running and jumping sports.
Compared to traditional squats, Bulgarian split squats have the added benefit of putting less stress on your knee joints. This makes them a great option for workouts when you’re rehabilitating after a knee injury.
If you have our app, search ‘Lower Body Fire’ in your program to find Bulgarian Split Squats loaded into your week.
4. Landmine Press
If you want to build a powerful upper body without shoulder strain, landmine presses are for you. They’ll target your upper chest, shoulders and core.
The landmine press blends pressing strength with rotational stability, making it a good match for overhead-dominant sports like basketball, baseball and tennis.
This exercise is also especially useful for overhead press progressions and rehab phases. For example, if you aren’t able to press overhead in terms of mobility, the diagonal angle of the landmine press will help you build your pressing strength along a fixed bar path.
5. Med Ball Slams
Medicine Ball Slams develop your power and improve your coordination, while adding an explosive edge to your workout.
This exercise targets your core, arms and back, building essential power for throwing, sprinting and striking sports.
To work on your med ball slams, add them into your finisher or a full-body day. If you’ve hit a fitness plateau, this might be the explosive exercise you need to break it.
How We Can Help
And there you have our 5 best exercises to improve your athletic performance. Remember, athleticism is about total-body control, not just the big lifts.
For more fitness advice, read more in our knowledge hub with articles covering everything from heart rate zones for training to how to train like a Six Nations rugby player.
Want to train with intent and real structure? The SW7 Academy app programs all five movements into weekly workouts for all levels – from rugby players to everyday lifters. Download the app and start your 7-day trial today.