80s TV legend and chocolate bar advertiser, Mr. T knows a thing or two about being strong. You don’t get to be the muscle of the A-Team without getting under the bar now and again.

The big man wasn’t doing it for looks though.

It doesn’t matter how good your beach body is if you can’t floor a baddy with one punch or push a truck out of a ditch. Mr. T was all about real world strength.

Pity the fool

Mr. T doesn’t suffer fools gladly. Murdoch understood that fact in 1983.

So he would make short work of most people who say there is no room for resistance training in modern cricket.

Poking you in the chest he would angrily point out that training is proven to prevent injury and make you more powerful with bat and ball.

He would grab you by the ear and sign you up at the nearest gym.

Remember, the “T” stands for tough. Are you really going to argue?

Quit yo jibber-jabber

But Mr. T is no brainless goon. He’s a smart guy.

Once you are in that gym he won’t accept any straight bar bench pressing.

You might have heard that the bench press increases upper body strength and chest size: and while it does do those things, all Mr. T would tell is to quit yo jibber jabber.

As he might put it: “the fundamental problem with the conventional barbell bench press is that it doesn’t train scapular movement effectively... fool”

When we throw or bowl, the shoulder blade is able to move in any direction. When you lock yourself in by holding a bar above your chest you lose that movement.

When that happens, you also lose carry-over to the field.

“I believe in the Golden Rule - The Man with the Gold... Rules.”

A good programme always balances pushing with pulling. So if benching with a straight bar is not the answer, how would Mr. T make training golden?

Press ups.

Press ups are the gold in any training plan for cricket because the shoulder blade is able to move freely.

Plus you can do them while in a maximum security stockade.

One armed of course (not strictly necessary, but if you are as tough as Mr. T you should)

One arm dumbbell bench and standing cable press comes a close second because shoulder movement is still better and there is a strong element of core training.

Seeing as you don’t want to cross Mr. T and get his fist putting his initials on your brain, you better get your press ups done.