Steel Club Exercises: Boosting Shoulder Strength and Mobility

Like all members of the armed forces, the British Royal Marines have a language all their own. As a new recruit, I quickly learned that drinks were wets, the mess hall was the galley, food was scran, and water was ogin.

Another example of Royal Marine slang was the tendency to call physical training instructors (PTIs) “club swingers.” This nickname dates back to when weighted clubs were a common military fitness and conditioning tool.

Dating back several centuries, weighted clubs originated in India, where they were used by wrestlers and other physical culturists. Steel clubs, also known as clubbells, are the modern version of these traditional hand-held weights.

Steel clubs are available in a range of weights, from five pounds to 50 or more, and can be lifted or swung in many different ways. Like kettlebells, you can use steel clubs for squats, presses, and other conventional movements. However, there are also many unique steel club exercises.

In this article, I share eight of the best steel club exercises for building upper body strength and shoulder mobility.

The 8 Best Steel Club Exercises for Shoulder Strength and Mobility

When it comes to building bigger, stronger shoulders, most exercisers focus on overhead presses and front, side, and rear raises. While these exercises are undeniably effective, they are quite one-dimensional. After all, you lift and lower the load in the same plane.

In contrast, most steel club exercises involve swinging and rotational movements, challenging your muscles in a unique way. Consequently, steel club exercises build multidirectional strength and enhance joint mobility and stability.

Almost every weighted club exercise involves your shoulders, but some movements are more shoulder-specific than others. Those exercises are the focus of this guide. However, as well as working your shoulders, you will also feel these exercises in your arms, forearms, and core.

1. Steel Club Spiral Lift Around

Warming up is a crucial part of any workout. It prepares your muscles and joints for what you are about to do. The spiral lift around gently increases the circulation and synovial fluid production in your shoulders, elbows, and wrists, making it the ideal start to your steel club training.

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent.
2. Hold your steel club in one hand with your arm by your side. Brace your core and pull your shoulders down and back. Look straight ahead.
3. Bend your arm and pull the steel club up the front of your body until the end clears your shoulder.
4. Next, circle the weight around and behind your head.
5. Bring the steel club around the outside of your shoulder and lower it back down to your side.
6. Continue for the desired number of reps.
7. Switch arms, and repeat with the opposite arm.

Tips:

• Make sure you keep the steel club vertical throughout the exercise.
• Keep your movements smooth and controlled.
• This exercise works best for medium to high reps using a light to moderate-weight clubbell.

2. Steel Club Lateral Press

The steel club lateral press is an excellent exercise for building stronger, broader, more stable shoulders. It predominately targets your medial or outer deltoid, although the front and rear delts also get a great workout. While you can do this exercise with dumbbells, clubbells are much more unwieldy, making your workout harder and more effective.

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent.
2. Hold one clubbell in each hand, arms bent to 90 degrees.
3. Rotate your arms outward so your palms face forward, and your hands are roughly in line with your hips.
4. Next, press the weights out and up to shoulder level, ensuring you keep your clubs vertical.
5. Pull your arms back into your sides, return to the starting position, and repeat.

Tips:

• Squeeze the clubbells tightly to stop them from tilting.
• Make sure you raise your arms to horizontal – no half reps, please!
• Go light – this is a surprisingly challenging shoulder exercise.

3. Steel Club Side Pullover

The side pullover teaches you to decelerate the steel club after a swing. This is a critical skill and something that you only really do with clubbell training. This movement challenges your shoulders, grip, and core, making it a very functional exercise. However, it’s also relatively straightforward and ideal for steel club beginners.

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent. Brace your core.
2. Hold your steel club in one hand with your elbow bent to 90 degrees and your upper arm tucked into your ribs. Pull your shoulder down and back.
3. Raise the steel club and lower it behind your back.
4. Next, swing the clubbell back to the starting position, ensuring you stop the movement with your elbow at 90 degrees.

Tips:

• Use the weight of the club to pull your arm behind your head. Try to reach a little further back rep by rep as your shoulder mobility increases.
• Increase the force of your downward swing as you become used to the exercise. However, ease off if you cannot decelerate and control the weight correctly.
• Ensure your steel club is vertical at the start and end of each rep.

4. Steel Club Double Pullover

Like kettlebells and dumbbells, clubbells can be used in pairs. Using two steel clubs at the same time makes your workout more time-efficient and ensures you work both sides of your body equally. However, bilateral exercises like the double steel club pullover will also test and develop your coordination. Plus, you’ll need to concentrate to ensure you keep both weights under control.

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent. Brace your core.
2. Hold a clubbell in each hand with your elbow bent to 90 degrees and your upper arms close to your sides.
3. Raise the weights up past your ears and lower them behind your shoulders. Take care not to hyperextend your spine by leaning backward.
4. Swing the weights forward and down to return to the starting position.
5. Continue for the prescribed number of reps.

Tips:

• Try to brush your ears with your biceps.
• Think about taking the clubbells through an arc as you raise and lower them.
• You can also do this exercise using an alternating arm action or with one arm at a time.

5. Steel Club Torch Press

Are you bored of barbell and dumbbell overhead presses? While conventional overhead presses are great for building muscle size and strength, they won’t do much for shoulder mobility and stability. The steel club torch press is a unique alternative to more traditional shoulder exercises. And, as an added benefit, they’ll strengthen your grip, too.

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent. Brace your core.
2. Hold a clubbell in one hand with your elbow bent to 90 degrees and your upper arm close to your side.
3. From here, press the clubbell forward and up like you are lifting a torch.
4. Return to the starting position and repeat.

• You can also do this exercise using two steel clubs instead of one.
• Do this exercise in a half-kneeling or seated position if preferred.
• Alternatively, you can lift one steel club with both hands – the flag press:

https://youtu.be/fsfP4owzSts?si=vLQL7JhA5fK08zfm 

6. Steel Club Two-Handed Shield Cast

The steel club two-handed shield cast is a classic shoulder strength and mobility exercise. Often done using a heavy clubbell, this exercise will build power and stability throughout your upper body. It’ll also forge a cast iron grip and muscular core. If you only ever do one steel club exercise, this should be it.

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent. Brace your core.
2. Hold your clubbell in two hands vertically in front of your body. Tuck your upper arms into your sides, and bend your elbows to 90 degrees.
3. Raise your hands up and across to one shoulder. Swing your clubbell around your head, return to the starting position, and stop.
4. Continue circling in the same direction or alternate directions as preferred.

Tips:

• Make sure you pause with the clubbell in front of you between reps. Decelerating and stopping the weight is part of the exercise.
• Engage your core to prevent any unwanted side-to-side movements of your torso.
• You can also do this exercise one-handed, which is significantly more difficult:

7. Steel Club Two-Handed Lateral Swing

I am a longtime fan of kettlebell swings. In my opinion, they’re one of the most effective posterior chain and core exercises around. However, they only work in the sagittal plane, i.e., forward and backward.

The two-handed lateral swing works in the frontal plane, making a welcome change from the conventional swing movement. This is an excellent exercise for golfers, hockey players, and baseball players.

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent. Brace your core.
2. Hold your clubbell in two hands in front of your legs. Hinge forward slightly from the hips.
3. Next, swing the clubbell in a 180-degree arc in front of your body. Turn your hips and shoulders into each swing while keeping your arms long and relaxed.
4. Continue for the prescribed number of reps.

Tips:

• Squeeze the steel club firmly to avoid losing your grip. Use chalk to prevent slipping.
• Change which hand is uppermost set by set.
• Keep your hands and the clubbell in line with your mid-chest throughout this exercise.

8. Steel Club Pullover to Press

Unlike most barbell and dumbbell exercises, you can combine many clubbell movements to create a flow routine. With practice, you can merge multiple exercises to create unique workouts, challenging numerous muscle groups. The steel club pullover to press is a simple flow that will hammer your shoulders, arms, forearms, and core while mobilizing your upper body.  

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent. Brace your core.
2. Hold a single clubbell in front of your body. Bend your arms to 90 degrees, and keep your elbows close to your sides.
3. Raise your arms and lift your steel club up and over one shoulder.
4. Pull it back over and return to the starting position.
5. Next, extend your elbows and press the weight forward and up so your arms are horizontal.
6. Bend your elbows and bring your arms back to your sides.
7. Repeat for the desired number of reps.

Tips:

• Alternate sides set by set or rep by rep.
• Change which hand is uppermost set by set.
• You can also do this exercise in a tall kneeling position to take your legs out of the movement.

Closing Thoughts

Steel clubs are a low-tech but high-effect training tool. They’ve been in use for centuries, but despite this, they are an underutilized tool in modern fitness.

That’s a shame because, in terms of bang for your buck, steel clubs are hard to beat.

Steel clubs are long and awkward to handle. However, it’s this awkwardness that makes them so effective. The weight is offset and far from the handle, so you must work harder to stabilize and control it than a dumbbell or kettlebell. As such, even light steel clubs feel heavy.

No access to a steel club? No problem! You can replicate many of the exercises in this article with a standard sledgehammer or an adjustable dumbbell loaded with weights at one end only.

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