The two handed slam is one of the fundamental heavy rope/battle rope/fitness rope exercises. It can be done as either a total body exercise or as an exercise that has an upper body emphasis. This is a great exercise for warming up, rehabilitation, and or conditioning.
To perform the total body variation, secure the rope to something. When I do these I thread the rope through several 45 pound plates. Some people will install a special wall anchor to secure them. I have also used heavy kettlebells to keep them in place, lots of options here.
Image from amazon.com
After the middle of the rope has been secured, hold a handle in each hand. Step back away from the middle of the rope until there is tension on the entire rope. Holding the handles, move into an athletic ready position (chest out, shoulders back, hips pushed back into a quarter squat, weight on the balls of the feet). From here, rise up out of the quarter squat while lifting both arms up until they are parallel to the ground. This will lift the ropes up. Quickly move back down into a quarter squat while slamming the arms (and the ropes) down. Repeat.
The variation described above works the entire body. It is rhythmical in nature and can be done for repetitions or for time, which makes it ideal for warming up or for conditioning.
This can also be done as a primarily upper body exercise. Hold the ropes and move into that athletic position. Without leaving the quarter squat, raise both arms (and the ropes) until they are parallel to the ground. Slam the arms (and the ropes) down towards the ground. Repeat.
These are both great exercises, but they can be challenging in a team setting. These tend to be 30-50 feet long, so an athlete is going to need 20-30 feet of space to do the exercise. This space requirement can be a challenge when 50+ athletes are training in the weight room at one time. These can cost $100 each. So having one for every “x” number of athletes can be a financial challenge to a team. Now, these would be great in a smaller team setting like with a baseball or basketball team!
