I love plyometrics. This type of exercise is great for building power and giving you a good cardiovascular workout. The increased explosive strength will improve athletic attributes such sprinting and vertical jump. You can jump higher in as little as 2 weeks with the right regimine.
So, what are plyometrics? Plyometrics are any exercise where the muscle is stretched then immediately, contracted. A good example of plyometrics are clap push ups. Your chest muscles will be stretched from the downward motion of your body, then contracted very quickly to accelerate your body off the floor high enough to perform a clap. Plyometrics have been shown in many studies to decrease muscle contraction time, resulting in more power.
You can add plyometrics to either your cardio or resistance training days. On weight training days, I wouldn’t suggest more than 1 plyometric exercise per muscle group. Your body will build more muscle if you don’t over train your weight days. Cardio days are always great days to do plyometrics.
You may be asking if plyometrics are dangerous. Since so many exercises are considered to be plyometric, then yes, some can be dangerous. But like in every exercise, as long as the proper form is used there shouldn’t be a problem. Plyometrics are controlled by you.
Throw a few of these plyometric exercises into your workout routine. You may find its just what you needed to boost through that plateau and you will be able to jump higher in no time.
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Box Jumps
Stand facing the box with your feet slightly wider than your hips. Squat down until your knees are at a 90 degree angle and immediately jump up onto the box. Try and explode upward as fast as possible at the bottom of your movement. Your feet should land softly on the box and you should step down, not jump down. This is a great exercise to jump higher in a short amount of time. -
Split Squat Jumps
Keep your feet hip width apart. Step back with your right leg about 2-3 feet standing on a the ball of the back foot. Lower your body until your front leg’s thigh is parallel to the floor. As soon as you hit this bottom position, explode upward. Switch your feet in mid air so that each foot is opposite of where it started. This exercise can also be used with one leg propped on a box.
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Tuck Jumps
Keep your feet about shoulder width apart. Bend at the knee down and jump upward bring your knees to your chest. Be sure to land on the balls of your feet and repeat immediately. -
Clap Pushups
Position yourself in a pushup position. Lower yourself down and push up hard enough to lift your body 1 or 2 feet. Clap your hands in front of your body and land softly on your palms. -
Medicine Ball Slams
Stand with your feet hip width apart. Raise the medicine ball above your head and slam the ball into the floor as hard as you can. Make sure to use your full body. Catch the ball on the bounce up and repeat the motion.
These are only a few plyometric exercises. A more in depth discussion of plometrics will be down the road. Expect a video section shortly on all plometric exercises. Thanks for reading.
Increasing your agility skills like vertical leap and speed often require packing on some quality muscle. Check out Go Healthy Fitness’ review of No-Nonsense Muscle Building by Vince DelMonte.
Travis
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