Most at-home workouts prioritize strength, muscle size, and weight loss, but they often overlook a crucial aspect: power training. Power exercises can add a dynamic edge to your routine, helping you achieve a well-rounded and resilient fitness level with the ability to be more explosive. While training for power at home might not be as common as other methods, there are many ways to include explosive workouts into your weekly training program.
What Is Power Training?
We’ll steer clear of any physics 101 lectures here to keep things simple.
Power is defined by the ability to produce and exert force quickly, relying on the ability to move weight fast. Strength training rests on the principle of how much weight you can lift, no matter the speed.
Consider the back squat as an example. You generate a significant amount of force when lifting a heavy weight, but typically at slower speeds. However, if you reduce the weight to around 40-60% of your maximum or gauge your effort at a 4 to 6 out of 10 on the RPE scale (rate of perceived exertion), you’ll notice that you can move the weight more quickly. This allows you to tap into the power-building benefits.
Eugene Onischenko
Why Develop Power?
Developing power has numerous benefits that will improve your abilities in and outside of the gym. While your power levels might not match those of Dragon Ball powerhouse Goku (it’s 9,000!), you’ll significantly increase overall performance.
Here are two advantages of creating a power training program at home:
1. Improved Performance
While you may not be aiming for the NFL combine anytime soon, integrating power training into your routine consistently can enhance key athletic attributes like speed, agility, and jumping ability. Whether you’re a weekend warrior, a rec league baller, or simply enjoy active playtime with your children, developing explosiveness will bring significant benefits.
2. Workouts Stay Fresh
Ever feel like your workouts are stuck in a rut? It tends to happen when you do the same exercises over and over. Adding power movements into your workouts improves performance and can ramp up the fun you have with your workouts. Fun workouts mean you’re likelier to stick with them and see better results. Plus, you might find that adding explosive exercises to your workouts primes your body for bigger lifts!
Piotr Grzywna
How to Turn Your Home Workouts Into Powerful Workouts
w for the fun part: Here’s how to train for power at home.
Limited equipment doesn’t necessarily have to mean limited gains because your home set-up doesn’t have all the glitz and glamor of a gym. I’ve been doing this for a while, helping athletes and gym-goers develop power for improved performance, so allow me to dish out a dose of guidance on how to train for power at home with limited equipment and body weight.
Choose the Right Exercises For Your Power Training Routine
Choosing the best exercises will get you headed in the right direction. While there might not be a “wrong movement,” you’ll need to consider the following exercises performed with the next two ideas: Training at the right intensity and with the correct intent to bolster your workouts to achieve explosive power. Check out the lists below for bodyweight and weighted exercises designed to enhance power development in your upper-, lower-, and full-body workouts.
Upper-Body (Bodyweight)
- Plyo Pushups
- Power Pushups
- Speed Bottom Start Pushups
Upper-Body (Weighted)
- Barbell Bench Press
- Barbell Push Press
- Dumbbell-Kettlebell Push Press
- Dumbbell Speed Bench Press
- Med Ball Slams
- Med Ball Chest Push
Lower-Body (Bodyweight)
- Vertical Jump
- Box Jump
- Squat Jump
- 1/4 Squat Jump
- Split Squat Jump
- Alternating Lunge Jump
- Skater Jump
Lower-Body (Weighted)
- Barbell Back Squats
- Barbell Squat Jump
- Barbell 1/4 Squat Jump
- Dumbbell-Kettlebell Squat Jump
- Dumbbell-Kettlebell 1/4 Squat Jump
- Dumbbell-Kettlebell Split Squat Jump
- Dumbbell-Kettlebell Alternating Lunge Jump
- Dumbbell-Kettlebell Swings
- Med Ball Skater Jump
Full-Body (Weighted)
- Dumbbell-Kettlebell Snatch
- Dumbbell-Kettlebell Clean
- Dumbbell-Kettlebell Jerk
- Dumbbell-Kettlebell Thruster
- Med-ball Throws
Bart Sadowski / Shutterstock
Training at the Right Intensity
Picking the right weights for the above exercises is the next step to successfully training for power at home.
Simply put, move light weights, fast! That’s the formula for maximizing explosiveness in your exercise selection. If you like to base your training on percentages, aim for an intensity level of 40 to 60% of your one-rep max. If you’re more inclined toward the RPE method like me, target a range of 4 to 6 out of 10, focusing on speeding up your movements during the concentric (contracting) phase of the lift.
Train With Intent
While most aspects of power training involve physical actions, your mindset plays a significant role in shaping your results, especially in power-focused training.
Your goal should always be “as fast as possible,” regardless of the resistance level. The effort you put into moving forcefully can be as impactful as the speed you ultimately achieve.
What Are Some of The Essential Home Gym Equipment For This?
The essentials needed for your home gym are pretty simple and short. You probably already own most of these pieces of equipment, but we will go ahead and cover the ideal equipment just in case you’re in the market to expand your arsenal.
Essential Equipment:
- Body weight (hopefully, you already have this)
- Adjustable dumbbells
- Adjustable kettlebells
- Barbell
- Weights or bumper plates
- Medicine Balls (preferably the non-bouncing types to avoid getting popped in the chin)
With Limited Equipment, What Can You Do To Increase Power?
If your equipment shelf is limited, don’t use that as an excuse to limit your power development. There are plenty of other options.
Here are a few pieces of advice to consider when you may be short on gear yet still want to increase those power levels:
- Get creative! Bodyweight exercises are fantastic to include. Also, if you don’t have dumbbells or kettlebells, substitute with some suitable household items like water jugs.
- Focus on volume and intent. Opt for lower-rep sets (2 to 5 reps) and prioritize moving quickly.
- Start light and progress to heavier movements (for example, bodyweight jumps progressed to weighted jumps).
- A pair of dumbbells or kettlebells is enough equipment to train explosiveness effectively.
How Much Space Do You Need For Power Training?
While it might seem obvious, you only need enough space to move around. Many of the best power exercises are quite compact in their motion. Whether it’s vertical movements like squats or horizontal and rotational exercises like kettlebell swings or rotational med ball slams, they typically don’t demand a vast area. A garage gym or any area in your home where you can execute movements safely and effectively is perfectly sufficient.
