The purpose of this article is to function as an introduction into the relation between speed and agility training and a practice known as Plyometric training. Article breakdown time: what plyometric training really is, the overall benefits it can deliver and what role in can play when correctly introduced alongside classic speed and agility training.
Let’s explore what plyometrics actaully are
Plyometrics are simply a type of exercises whose purpose it is to link strength with speed of movement in order to create a lot of power.To put it simply: plyometric training increases your power output by training your body to use more strength with higher speed.In basketball for example plyometrics are used to increase an athletes running vertical jump.
The foundation of plyometric training is simple:
– your bodies ability to absorb and store force;- the efficient release of that force (producing a motiong that has a lot of power);
Plyometrics can be implemented in any sport that involves one or more of these actions: kicking, lifting, jumping or throwing. Here are some examples: baseball, football, basketball, soccer, power lifting, disk throwing.
Plyomentrics can also Influence Speed and Agility
The first thing that plyometric training does is strengthen your muscles and tendons. The second thing is that it improves your nervous control over your body. These side effects allow speed and agility to be quickly improved — especially if you already have well developed musculature.
To put it another way, the quickest benefits to speed and agility that stem from the incorporation of plyometrics are due to the conditioning of the nervous system. This is why it is critical to perform plyometric exercises following these guidelines:
never train unless properly rested
* perform with maximum concentration and focus for each rep
* keep the rep number low (no more than 20 regardless of the exercise used)whatever the difficulty of the exercise do not perform more than 3 sets for a particular exercise
Drill this into your head: Train HARDER, not looonger.
Plyometrics also bring improvements in the long run, however these rely more on changes in your body structure (incidently this explains why nutrition plays a big part in the results you get with plyometric training). Your muscles and tendons will change.Plyometrics will make your muscles and tendons more springlike.
How does a plyometric movement work?
* first the body absorbs and stabilizes the force from a negative (eccentric) contraction
* as it does this, it loads up your muscles and tendons with force (think of it like a compressing a spring)
* the spring unloads and the body (for legs) or an object (for arms) is propelled with astounding speed
Here’s an example,when you cock back your arm to throw a rock the natural thing you do is to first cock your arm backwards. The effect of this is that the muscles of your arm and shoulder muscles lock, forcing your tendons to stretch thus storing a lot of force in those tendons and essentially turning them into loaded springs. When you throw, the stored force is released, allowing the rock to be accelerated at a rate which is higher than your normal rate of force development.
What really popularized plyometrics back in the seventies was the fact that it produced results and soviet athletes started to dominate many athletic fields. The beauty of plyometric training is that it allows you to make your muscles and tendons behave more like elastic bands or springs — storing force and then releasing it. And the fact of the matter is that before this, there was no known way to train for these aspects — leading many people to believe that such acts as a running for height jump were completely genetically driven abilities.
To summarize, plyometrics kill two birds with one stone: they teach your nervous system how to correctly perform movements at higher speeds and they condition your tendons, ligaments and muscles to aquire more spring-like characteristics allowing for greater acceleration. These benefits directly translate into gains in general speed and agility.To further support this process you should also learn about:role of strength in speed and agility training
How do I adapt the principles of plyometric training to my sport specific speed and agility needs? You have to take the basic movement you want to improve and inflic a pattern of force absorbtion and controlled force release upon it. I know that this isn’t a totally enlightening answer, but the truth is that the answer depends on the sport in question. I have provided a link though. Click here to learn more about: Speed and Agility Training
This article has discussed:
* what plyometrics are
* how plyometrics work
* the role of plyometrics as part of your speed and agility training
* the benefits you can expect when introducing plyometric drills into yours speed and agility training
I also recommend you check out this article and learn this very usefull exercise for speed and agility training and preventing injuries.
