One of my Favorite Lower Body Training Blocks for Athletes with "Tight" Hips

/

Full Lift Demo click here

One of my go-to lower body lifting schemes for athletes is structured to improve strength, power, and mobility, without sacrificing the qualities that make them successful in their sport. Many of the athletes I train compete in sports that require explosive, quick-twitch movements on a regular basis—whether it’s baseball, track, football, soccer, or other field and court sports. For them, training needs to emphasize compressive, force-driven movements to enhance their ability to generate power efficiently.

When I talk about "compression," I’m referring to the process where muscles shorten or contract concentrically to create force. Athletes in these sports rely heavily on their muscles' ability to compress quickly and effectively. By playing their sport, and training to improve performance, athletes may develop a posture that chronically compresses certain joints in the body- leading to pain, tingling, or chronic tightness. However, coaches often make the mistake of either neglecting this aspect or focusing too much on “loosening up” athletes, which can lead to issues. Over-focusing on stretching and mobility work without balancing it with strength development may increase the risk of injury or reduce performance because the muscles aren’t primed to handle the loads or demands of their sport.

There is nothing wrong with stretching, massage, or even targeted mobility work. I think these protocols actually help athletes feel tension, and relax. But it’s all about striking the right balance between mobility and strength. The goal is to optimize performance over the long term, and that’s where program structure becomes critical. I typically train athletes for one to three sessions per week, each lasting about an hour. Given that limited time, I focus on exercises that solve a range of issues while being easy to teach and execute effectively in a group setting. So if I can give an athlete an exercise that not only “loosens” their hip flexors, but teaches their muscles how to contract with better synchronization, I am doing it.

One of the keys to this is selecting movements that transition smoothly from one phase to the next, creating a natural flow. This allows athletes to understand the patterns we’re working on without me having to constantly over-coach every detail. As they progress through the program, they improve their movement mechanics while addressing core performance issues.

Training Phases:

In my lower body strength and power programs, I organize exercises around early, mid, and late stance phases. This setup helps strike a balance between expansion (mobility) and compression (force generation) at different points in the movement cycle.

At the start, athletes focus on more expansive movements—designed to allow their muscles to lengthen eccentrically while maintaining tension. Eccentric contraction, where muscles lengthen under tension, plays a key role in building strength and mobility. As the program progresses, we gradually increase load and introduce compressive, concentric-focused movements. This is where muscles contract and shorten to produce the power needed for explosive performance. Finally, we cycle back to lighter loads or bodyweight to reinforce mobility and control, ensuring that the athlete can move efficiently through a full range of motion.

Lift Structure-

A Block

  • Offset Supported Glute Stretch 2x5 Breaths each

  • Wall Assisted 90/90 Hip Bridge w/ Shift 2x5 Breaths each

  • DB Supine Single Arm Rollover 2x5 each

B Block

  • FFE Split Squat 2x6 each (3-1-1)

  • Cable/ Band Low-High Rotational Lift 2x8 each (1-1-X)

  • Med Ball Hip toss 2x4 each

C Block

  • Trap bar Weck Deadlift 3x5 (60-70% of Training 3RM)

  • Med Ball High Toss 3x4 (4-8lb)

  • Lateral 1/2 kneeling start sprint 3x1-2 each (5-10y)

D Block

  • 2 DB Reverse Lunge 4x4 each (1-1-X)

  • Nordic Hip Hinge 4x6-8 each (3-1-X)

  • Cable/ Band supine Single Leg Hip Flexion 4x8-10 each (3-1-X)

Progression:

The lift scheme I use follows a logical progression from expansion to compression. In the early stance phase, the emphasis is on muscle lengthening and joint mobility, which helps the body move more freely and efficiently. But as the athlete moves through mid and late stance phases, we shift the focus toward concentric, compressive strength. This is where muscles contract to generate power, which is key for speed, jumping, and explosive lifts.

The result is a complete strength and power cycle that develops without losing mobility. It allows athletes to enhance their ability to contract muscles forcefully while still moving fluidly.

Practical Application:

Most of the athletes I train are high schoolers with 0-5 years of training experience, and many have passed their peak height velocity (PHV) phase of puberty. However, this training scheme can be adapted for athletes of any age or skill level. The key is modifying the load, tempo, and volume to meet the needs of each individual, whether they're a beginner or an experienced athlete.

At the start of each lift, the goal is to expand the targeted muscle groups—giving the body a chance to work together to move efficiently through space. As athletes progress through the lift, they should feel warmer, more mobile, and more connected to their movements. This is crucial because it helps them push their limits confidently—whether that’s lifting heavier, sprinting faster, or jumping higher.

By focusing on this balance of expansion and compression, we can enhance an athlete's overall output in terms of force, strength, and power, without taking away from what makes them great in their sport. This approach increases mobility without sacrificing performance, and in fact, enhances it.

If you are not sure of what the exercises look like, or even what it is, I will be posting videos in the future demonstrating these movements. Be sure to follow us on instagram @tp_strength, and find our youtube channel - TPstrength