There are an almost unlimited number of pushing exercises for the upper body that develop the muscles of the chest, shoulders, and triceps. Many of these are done with bodyweight (dips, push-ups, TRX exercises), barbells (bench presses, incline presses, decline presses, etc.), and dumbbells.
All of these are fine exercises. Bodyweight exercise teach the athlete to control his or her own body, which is important. Barbell exercises allow for a great deal of weight to be used, which is important for strength and hypertrophy. Dumbbell exercises typically involve both arms pushing at the same time, but they have to overcome the weight independently which is also important in sports.
Just like with lower body exercises, unilateral training is important for the upper body. Think about it, there aren’t too many sports skills where both arms do the same thing at the same time. On the one hand, dumbbells are a great tool for this. The challenge is that you need identical pairs of dumbbells and enough of them at each weight so that a team is able to use them in a team strength and conditioning setting. A commercial fitness center might be able to get away with only one pair of 30-pound dumbbells, but in a team strength and conditioning setting this will not work.
An exercise that helps to develop upper body strength and power, unilaterally, without some of the headaches of dumbbells, is the one-armed kettlebell bench press.
To perform this exercise you need a kettlebell. Lie back on a flat bench with the kettlebell at the right shoulder. The hand should grip the inside part of the handle with a pronated grip. From here, press the kettlebell up and slightly towards the midline. Lower and repeat for the desired number of repetitions, then switch sides.
A could of thoughts with this exercise. First, it’s not a bad idea to hold the other (non-pressing) arm out to the side for balance. Second, I like to begin the exercise with the kettlebell pressed up. I find that then when I lower it and press it, the kettlebell is in the proper groove. Third, this can be done with incline presses, decline presses, shoulder presses (standing or sitting), and even floor presses.
This is a great alternative pressing exercise. Not only does it develop the muscles of the upper body, but it is also a great core exercise. It only requires one kettlebell, so while there has to be enough to potentially outfit a team it’s not the same in terms of investment or space requirements as several pairs of dumbbells at each possible weight.
