Wrestling is hands down one of the most physically demanding sports out there
Especially at the highest level. Most people focus on the technical side of the sport, and sure, skills and tactics are what you see win matches. But what often gets overlooked is the raw athletic ability behind those skills. The truth is, strength and power are massive difference-makers when it comes to who rises and who plateaus.
I’ve worked with athletes long enough to see this over and over again: the most dominant wrestlers—whether it’s high school, college, or the Olympic level—usually have something in common. They’re strong, explosive, and durable. And here’s the good news: those physical traits are 100% trainable. The problem is, most wrestlers just haven’t been shown how to train properly. So they get stuck. Their skills improve, but their body holds them back from reaching that next level.
So let’s fix that. I want to walk you through the five lifts I’ve seen make the biggest impact for wrestlers when it comes to strength and performance on the mat. But before we get into that, I’ve got to tell you a quick story.
When my mentor, Charles Poliquin—one of the greatest strength coaches of all time—came out of retirement to train three wrestlers from the U.S. women’s national team, everything changed for one athlete in particular: Helen Maroulis. At the time, she was ranked 8th in the world with a decent international record. But she wasn’t dominant—yet.
Eighteen months later, she became the first American woman to win Olympic gold in wrestling. And she didn’t just win it—she beat Saori Yoshida from Japan, who was literally undefeated with 89 straight wins, 3 Olympic golds, and 13 world titles.
I saw it with my own eyes back in 2016 when I visited them in Scottsdale. When Helen started training with Charles, she couldn’t do a single chin-up. Keep in mind—she had already been on the National Team for eight years. Nine months later, she was doing chin-ups with 55 pounds strapped to her waist for reps. Her body completely transformed. That kind of strength gave her the ability to dominate—not just survive—at the highest level.
So how do you get there? It’s not magic. It’s just smart, consistent training. Here are the five exercises I recommend for every serious grappler:
1. Chin-Up
This is a non-negotiable for upper-body pulling strength. It builds your back, arms, grip, and shoulder stability—all of which matter when you’re hand-fighting, scrambling, or finishing shots. If you can’t do a clean chin-up, start with assisted variations. And once you can bang out sets with bodyweight, start adding load. This one has massive carryover to the mat.
2. Trap Bar Deadlift
If I could only pick one lift for lower body development, this would be it. The trap bar deadlift hammers the glutes, hamstrings, quads, and upper back—everything you use to lift, drive, and explode through your opponent. Plus, it’s easier on the spine than a straight bar, so it’s great during the season. We’ve had wrestlers hit PRs on this lift and then go dominate a tournament the next weekend. It works.
3. Trap 3 Raise
You’ve probably never heard of this one, and that’s part of the problem. The Trap 3 Raise hits the lower and mid traps—key muscles that protect the shoulder, improve posture, and help you stay in position during matches. This exercise helps with upper body control and improving the strength in this lift has a huge carry over to improvements in the bench press. Every athlete serious about maximizing their physical strength should be doing this movement.
4. Dips
Dips are underrated. They build serious pressing strength in the chest, triceps, and shoulders—and they directly improve your ability to push, post, sprawl, and return opponents to the mat. Just make sure you’re doing them with great form. Once bodyweight gets easy, start adding load. I’ve seen guys make big jumps in upper-body strength from dips alone.
5. Split Squat
We finish with the king of single-leg movements. Whether it’s a rear-foot-elevated (Bulgarian) split squat or a front-loaded variation, this exercise builds balance, stability, and strength in each leg. Wrestling is a single-leg sport when you break it down. Strong split squats help you shoot harder, finish faster, and move more efficiently.
Now, let me be clear: just doing these lifts once in a while isn’t enough. They need to be programmed properly, progressed over time, and built around recovery and nutrition. But if you commit to them—really train with intent—these exercises can take your performance to a new level. I’ve seen it happen more times than I can count.
Are You Into Comeback Stories?
Because here’s one of the best I’ve ever seen. My good friend and NFL Super Bowl winner Frank Zombo was pretty much done. Multiple injuries had wrecked his body. At one point, it looked like his career was over. But we rebuilt him.
We focused on three specific areas—and those changes helped him not just come back, but play another five years in the league, sign a personal-best contract, and retire on his own terms, healthy and proud.
With Gratitude and Love,
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