He's Fit

Click here for the Lead Stories

Plyometrics: Getting Stronger And Faster

Posted January 7, 2008 at 03:00 PM by Jamal Walker

Section: His Fitness, Strength Training, Alt. Therapies

Many athletes are familiar with something called plyometrics. Plyometrics are great for those guys who compete in aggressive sports that require both speed and strength, such as football. Combining speed and strength allows maximal forces to be exerted in high-speed movements.

Plyometrics are a form of exercise designed to produce the greatest strength gains in as short a time as possible.  Plyometrics actually use gravity to store potential energy in the muscles, then quickly turn this stored energy into kinetic energy. Here are some examples of plyometric drills that can be useful to a guy who plays football recreationally, or who is looking to just increase their strength and add variation to their workouts.

Box Jumps: (see picture above) Use a box that is 12 to 30 inches high. Set your feet about shoulder width apart about 2 feet away from the box. Jump straight up and land on the box softly. Step down onto a lower box to your side, get back to your starting position, and jump again. The key to this exercise is landing as soft as you can on the box. Make sure you start with the smallest box and move up to a higher box when you feel comfortable.

Squat jump: Assume an athletic squat position, explosively jump upward, land and immediately repeat. (10 reps)

Split Squat Jump: Assume a lunge position, jump upward using the front leg, land in the lunge position, immediately repeat. (10 reps each leg)

Split, Cycle, Squat Jump: Same as above picture, but while in air, legs are cycled front to back. (10 reps each leg)

Research sources and for more information: [Athleticadvisor.com]; [picture1]; [bubearcats.com]

Comment on this post | Permalink | Share this article

Tags: box jump, box jumps, cycle, fitness, football, football training, health, men, men's health, plyometrics, speed, split, split squat jump, squat jump, squat jumps, strength

Like what you see? Subscribe to our feed!

0 Responses to “Plyometrics: Getting Stronger And Faster” (Leave a reply)