Plyometrics, also known as explosive training or “plyos”, are exercises that focus on increasing speed and agility through high intensity motions and movements. Plyometrics focus on fast and explosive actions that utilize fast twitch muscle fibers to develop a sturdier foundation for athletic performance and speed.
What Do They Consist Of?
Specifically, plyometric exercises involve the stretching of a muscle, which is followed by an instant contraction. This is often referred to as the stretch-shortening cycle. A common example of a plyometric exercise is a jump squat. When you’re doing a jump squat, the stretching of the muscle occurs when you lower into the squat; the contraction occurs when you explode and jump upwards, using stored energy to shoot yourself upwards. Plyometric exercises are also especially important for athletes because it trains their muscles to generate power in a short period of time.
How Does It Improve Athletic Performance?
Plyometrics can be beneficial to your athletic performance in a variety of ways. These make plyometrics a popular exercise for athletes from basketball players to football players and heck, even golf players.
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Explosiveness
Plyometric exercises are mostly aimed at improving explosiveness, which is the definition of exerting a force quickly. This is extremely important for athletes whose sports incorporate fast movements. An example can be a sprinter.
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Agility and Speed
Some exercises in plyometrics also focus on the aspect of speed. With some exercises, such as skater jumps, improve your stride length and frequency, which can help with your overall running speed.
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Cardio Endurance
As stated before, plyometric exercises are performed in a high intensity environment. Therefore, it also provides a cardiovascular workout which, over time, can help improve cardiovascular endurance. This is extremely helpful for long distance runners or cyclers.
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What Are Some Exercises To Get Started on Plyos?
Typically, Plyometric exercise routines increase in intensity over time to ensure you are reaching your full athletic potential. For example, for the first two weeks, you can do the exercise for three sets and 8 reps. Then, in the third week, you change the amount of reps to 10, etc.
Some Exercises That I find Extremely Helpful:
Jump Squats: Position yourself in a squat stance, bend your knees to a 90 degree angle, and explode and jump up, trying to reach as high as you can. Come back down to your squat position and repeat.
Box Jumps: Find a platform safe for you to jump on and off of. A weighted box is preferable; chairs and stairs also work just fine. Stand in a squat position in front of your platform and explosively jump up onto the platform. Make sure to land with both feet at the same time. Step off of the platform and repeat.
Four Corner Jumps: Stand in the center of an imaginary box and imagine yourself standing in the middle of the box. Jump counter-clockwise or clockwise around the square landing on both feet at the same time. It is important to ensure that you immediately jump to the next box to ensure the explosiveness and speed of the exercise. A full rotation can be counted as one rep.
Tuck Jumps: Stand in a squat position with your knees bent at a 45 degree angle. Then, jump up explosively and pull your knees towards your chest as high as possible. Try your best to land softly on your feet and immediately go onto the next jump. (Note: I like to do this exercise in less reps as it can get pretty tiring, 6-8 should be fine.)
Conclusion:
Plyometric training is almost sort of a cheat code for any person or athlete who is looking to take their speed and explosiveness to the next level. Whether you’re just a beginner or an experienced athlete, anyone can take it up as long as you workout with the proper procedures. Remember to always work your way up to higher reps on the exercises and warm up properly before the exercises to reduce injury.
Links:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plyometrics#:~:text=Plyometrics%2C%20also%20known%20as%20jump,power%20(speed%2Dstrength).
https://www.physio-pedia.com/Plyometrics
https://www.nike.com/ca/a/what-is-plyometrics-benefits