Free Youth Strength Training Exercise Videos
Every movement below is demonstrated on video, free — the same exercises we coach every week with student athletes ages 6 & up at Mighty Oak Athletic in Westmont, Illinois. No gym, no equipment, no excuses: bodyweight and a little floor space.
The library covers five categories: mobility, conditioning, core, strength, and power. Watch the demo, match the positions, and master each movement slowly before adding speed. Then put them together with the complete at-home program at the bottom of this page.
Parents in DuPage County: the fastest way to lock in perfect technique is a free coached session at our Westmont facility.
Step and reach through every position on an imaginary clock face. Opens the hips and builds balance and control in every direction an athlete moves — forward, sideways, and behind.
Drive one knee up and across to meet the opposite elbow. Cross-body coordination, core strength, and conditioning in one standing movement.
Three movements in one flow: hinge down to touch the toes, drop into a deep squat, then stand and press the hands to the sky. The hinge, squat, and overhead press patterns stacked into a single conditioning drill.
From hands and knees, extend the opposite arm and leg without letting the hips tilt. Teaches the deep core control that protects the spine under load.
Hold a strong plank and tap each shoulder with the opposite hand — without letting the hips rock. Anti-rotation core control that transfers to every sport.
The foundation of lower-body strength. Hips back, chest up, knees tracking over the toes, full depth under control.
Squat, explode, land quiet. Lower-body power plus the safe landing mechanics that protect knees.
Explode from a lunge and switch legs mid-air. Single-leg power and balance under fatigue — the demands of real sport.
Press the hands overhead while rotating the torso side to side. Links the core to the shoulders and builds work capacity with a rotational twist.
Climb an imaginary ladder — opposite arm reaches high as the opposite knee drives up, in rhythm. Full-body conditioning that doubles as coordination training.
Sit tall, lean back slightly, and punch across the body. Builds rotational core strength while the trunk works to hold position.
Lying on the back, legs straight, alternating up and down without touching the floor. Lower-core strength and hip flexor endurance.
The king of upper-body bodyweight strength — pressing power plus shoulder and core stability in one movement. Rigid from head to heels on every rep.
The hip hinge in its simplest form: push the hips back, keep the back flat, and reach for the toes. The pattern behind every deadlift an athlete will ever do.
A wide-stance jump that recruits the inner thighs and glutes and challenges landing control from a different position.
Bound laterally from one leg to the other and stick each landing. Builds the side-to-side power and single-leg stability behind cutting, skating, and change of direction.
The Mighty Oak At-Home Athlete Program
Sixteen movements are a toolbox. Here's the blueprint — a complete at-home training program using only the exercises on this page. No equipment. Every movement demonstrated above.
Warm-Up (Every Session, 4–5 Minutes)
Around the Clock – 3 reps each leg
Toe-Squat-Sky – 8 slow reps
Twist Press – 30 seconds, easy pace
Move with control. The warm-up is practice, not punishment.
Day A – Strength & Core
Squat – 3 sets x 10–15
Push Up – 3 sets x 6–15
Toe Touch – 3 sets x 10, slow and flat-backed
Bird Dog – 3 sets x 6 each side
Shoulder Tap – 3 sets x 10 total, hips quiet
Day B – Power & Core
Squat Jump – 3 sets x 5, land quiet
Jump Lunge – 2 sets x 4 each leg (beginners: hold the bottom of a lunge for 20 seconds instead)
Side Jump (Ice Skater) – 3 sets x 5 each side, stick every landing
Scissor – 3 sets x 20 seconds
Seated Cross Punch – 3 sets x 10 each side
Day C – Conditioning (Ages 12–18)
Set a timer. Work 30 seconds, rest 30 seconds, rotate through the circuit 3 times:
Jacobs Ladder
Knee to Elbow
Sumo Squat Jump
Twist Press
Shoulder Tap
Weekly Schedule
Ages 6–11: 2 days per week — Day A and Day B. Ages 12–18: 3 days per week — Day A, Day B, and Day C.
Rest at least one day between sessions. When every rep of a movement looks identical from first to last, add a set or slow the tempo — quality earns progression.
The Rules
Form first, always. Land quiet on every jump. Stop a set when reps get ugly. And show up on schedule — the program only works if you do.
Ready for the next level? This is the foundation we build on at our Westmont facility, where athletes progress from these patterns to the barbell under CSCS coaching. First session is free — serving families from Westmont, Hinsdale, Clarendon Hills, Darien, Downers Grove, Burr Ridge, and across DuPage County. Playing a sport? Grab the free off-season baseball program too.
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An effective at-home program for ages 6 & up needs no equipment: a short mobility warm-up, a strength day (squats, push-ups, toe touches, bird dogs, shoulder taps), a power day (squat jumps, jump lunges, ice skaters), and — for ages 12 and up — a conditioning circuit day. Ages 6–11 train two days per week; ages 12–18 train three.
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Young athletes can train every quality with bodyweight alone: Around the Clock for mobility, Toe-Squat-Sky and Jacobs Ladder for conditioning, Bird Dogs and Shoulder Taps for core control, Squats, Push Ups, and Toe Touches for strength, and Squat Jumps and Side Jumps (Ice Skaters) for power.
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Two full-body days per week for ages 6–11 and three for ages 12–18, with at least one rest day between sessions. Consistency at that frequency outperforms sporadic harder training, and recovery days are when young bodies actually adapt and get stronger.
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Jump training builds power safely with bodyweight: Squat Jumps and Sumo Squat Jumps for two-leg explosiveness, Jump Lunges for single-leg power, and Side Jumps for the lateral explosiveness behind cutting and change of direction. The non-negotiable coaching standard on every jump is a quiet, controlled landing.