Just because you play the game of basketball on your feet doesn’t mean you need to develop tree trunk legs and let your arms become thin as noodles. To avoid this awkward looking physique, it’s important to incorporate total body exercises that don’t ignore the beach muscles.

According to Troy Wills, University of Tennessee’s strength and conditioning coach, if you want to be an elite baller, developing upper body strength is a must.

“You play the sport on your feet, so any time you’re lying on your back, it kind of takes away from what you’re doing from a functional standpoint,” Wills says. “If [you] do the Heavy One-Arm Dumbbell Bench, you actually feel your abs activate and your hips activate, and you have to keep yourself stable by using all those other muscles and not just your pecs and your triceps and your shoulders. It’s more of a total body exercise.”

Try Wills’ Heavy One-Arm Dumbbell Bench during the off-season. When the games begin, you’ll be able to use a strong upper body to your advantage.

Heavy One-Arm Dumbbell Bench
•    Lie on back on bench
•    Hold dumbbell at shoulder level with palm facing out
•    Press dumbbell up and lower under control
•    Perform for specified reps

Sets/Reps: 3-4/5-10
Coaching Points: Keep other arm on chest or off to the side // Don’t hold on to bench // Activate abs and hips to stabilize body // Avoid using body for momentum
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