May 31, 20219 min read

The Power of Plyometrics | Put The Jump Back Into Your Training

Updated: Jun 18, 2021

an image of man performing a plyometric jump onto a a stack of tyres.

Article Contents

Introduction

The Benefits of Plyometrics Training

Plyometric FAQ

To Conclude

Best Plyometric Equipment

Introduction

Plyometrics! If you’ve ever wondered what that odd, seemingly technical sounding word means, this article is for you. But if you’re unsure as to what it means don’t fret, you’re not alone.

Surprisingly, few people who exercise and participate in sport understand what plyometrics is and how it can be used to enhance performance, which probably goes some way to explaining why so few exercisers incorporate plyometrics into their training. In truth, when I first heard the word used, I thought it was probably a mathematical theorem conceived by the Greek philosopher Pythagoras.

I later learnt that, though plyometrics isn’t a formula for explaining cosmic phenomena, it is a training methodology that can enhance physical performance. And while the concept doesn’t have Greek origins the name does: ‘plyometric’ is purportedly derived from the Greek word ‘‘pleythyein’, which means ‘to increase’ or ‘plyo’ and ‘metric’ meaning ‘more’ and ‘measure’’ (Watson 1995).

Actually, though the word connotes complexity, it is startlingly simple. ‘Plyometrics,’ as Chu defines it, ‘is the term now applied to exercises that have their roots in Europe, where they were first known simply as “jump training”’.

And there is the essence of plyometrics demystified: essentially it is the training methodology of performing explosive exercises such as ‘jumps, leaps, hops, rebounds, springs and throws’ all of which are ‘carried out with the expressed aim of engaging the stretch-shortening cycle’ (Watson 1995).

However, there’s a bit more to plyometrics than just jumping and it can be applied to a plethora of fitness disciplines, exercises and sports.

Before we have a look at the ways which plyometrics can be used in training, let’s firstly consider the science behind how it enhances physical performance.

The Benefits of Plyometric Training

Plyometric exercises are typically short duration explosive power movements, such as sprinting, box jumping or performing a clap-hand press-up. Such exercises engage what is called the ‘stretch-shortening’ cycle where the muscle rapidly contracts and relaxes.

When specific emphasis is placed on training the stretch-shortening cycle, a speciality of plyometrics, ‘the force developed in the positive or shortening phase is dramatically increased when the action is preceded by a rapid short eccentric contraction.’ In other words, explosive bursts can build a power base in the muscle which enables the muscle to deliver more force during a contraction.

this text box says: Plyometrics have been a popular method of training for athletes who seek to run faster, react quicker, jump higher and throw further. Watson (1995)

The capacity to exert more force during a muscle contraction, however slight the increase, should translate to improved performance irrespective of your fitness and/or sporting discipline. This is because ‘plyometrics or stretch-shortening cycle actions are common to most sporting events that involve running, jumping, throwing, turning and changing direction in an explosive manner’ (Watson 1994).

However, plyometrics isn’t just limited to these types of movement and is ever increasingly being applied to combat sports, CrossFit and Olympic lifting – and a whole host of other training disciplines too numerous to list. (I once watched an Olympic bobsled athlete perform a double footed jump onto a 1.5-metre box – and he executed the jump with disconcerting ease.)

In addition, plyometrics can be adapted to traditional callisthenic and resistance movements making them yield far more physical fruit. For example, a study cited in Exercise Physiology (2000) showed that when trainers added a ‘ballistic’ throw at the end of the traditional bench press exercise, they experienced ‘significantly greater average force, average power, and peak power outputs.’ Furthermore, the athletes were able to sustain higher levels of exertion at peak contraction; the point where the force that muscles generate drops off precipitously.

As well as developing power plyometrics can also improve muscular responsivity and the elastic qualities of the muscle-tendon complex. Muscular responsivity can be seen when the footballer, genially jogging the length of the pitch, puts in an almighty sprint to receive a pass. Another example of responsive muscle action is where the boxer unleashes a lightning-quick counter punch to exploit a fleeting window of opportunity. Of course, the ability to be able to react quicker, whether it be in a specific sporting situation or in everyday life, is highly advantageous and can be the difference between receiving the ball or marginally missing it, or landing the punch or it being parried.

The muscle tendon complex (MTC) is an expression of the force generated by the muscle and its subsequent redistribution through the tendon – but, to complicated matters further, the tendons can also act as power ‘amplifiers’ thus augmenting the force of the muscle (Fukashiro et al 2006). Analogously speaking, the muscles can be thought of as motors and the tendons as wires (and bones as rigid supports). When the motors are engaged, they exert force on the wires which translates into movement. Think of a crane hoisting a heavy load.

this text box says: Unlike ligaments and tendons, the other supporting structures, muscles possess a unique ability to impart dynamic activity to the body. Chu (1998)

MTC plays a crucial role in sport and exercise as it can enhance both the effectiveness and efficiency of performance. The stored elastic energy, similar in many ways to the stored energy in a compressed spring, which is channelled through the MTC, can be developed during dynamic movements.

Studies have shown that short, explosive contractions increase the muscle’s stock of stored elastic energy while also thickening the relative muscle fibre density. And there is a substantial body of experimental evidence showing that dynamic, plyometric movements, when adopted as part of a training programme, are ‘effective in improving athletic qualities’ that generally translate to positive physical outcomes (Watson 1995).

Other benefits of plyometric training include

Improved agility and body coordination

Developed proprioception (as you are required to concentrate more on the movement)

Enhances the power of the peak maximal contraction phase of a movement

Improves muscular responsivity

The impact can help strength bones and ligaments

Adds diversity to a training regime

Offers novel exercise modification options

Plyometric FAQ

So what does plyometrics mean?

Technically plyometrics is defined as ‘exercises that enable a muscle to reach maximum strength in as short a time as possible,’ (Chu 1998). Put more simply, plyometrics translates as ‘jump training’. But as this article has attempted to show, the explosive element of a plyo movement can be incorporated into almost all exercises and sporting disciplines, making this training methodology very inclusive.

When was plyometrics first used?

According to Donald Chu, author of Jumping into Plyometrics, ‘Interest in … jump training increased during the early 1970s as East European athletes emerged as powers of the world scene.’ When it became apparent that the secret source in these athletes’ exercise programmes was jump training, other coaches hastily adopted it. The methodology has grown in popularity ever since.

However, the word ‘plyometrics’ was ‘first coined in 1975 by Fred Wilt’ who was one of America’s ‘more forward-thinking track and field coaches.’ The name stuck and the training methodology has come to form a staple of the athlete’s training diet ever since.

What constitutes as plyometrics movement?

For a movement to qualify as plyometric, it must exhibit certain characteristics. For example, a plyo movement must be preceded by an eccentric contraction. Plyo movements are anaerobic and are thus ‘powered’ by the creatine phosphate energy system. Also, plyo movements are typically static and are initiated from a fixed position, as in the double-foot box jump. And finally, plyo movements are explosive and involve maximal muscle contraction.

To Conclude

This article has endeavoured to provide a surface level outline of the fitness benefits associated with plyometrics. However, since it was first conceived and adopted as a recognised training method back in 1970, much research has been conducted showing the multifaced ways which plyometrics improves athletic performance. Consequently, much interesting information has been omitted from this regrettably terse overview.

For a full and comprehensive treatment of plyometrics procure yourself a copy of Donal Chu’s excellent and highly informative book Jumping into Plyometrics.

But, if you are satisfied with the introductory insight offered in this article, and feel ready to incorporate plyometrics into your training regime, follow the link below:

Plyometric Training | Everything You Need To Know

Jumping into Plyometrics

First practiced by the dominant Eastern Bloc athletes of the 1970s, today plyometrics has become a mainstream form of training used by serious athletes around the world. The reason is that plyometrics offers athletes at all levels a proven, straightforward way to enhance their athletic abilities and to get an edge on the competition. This second edition of Jumping Into Plyometrics presents 100 illustrated plyometric exercises in seven categories: Jumps-in-place Standing jumps Multiple jumps Box drills Depth jumps Bounding Medicine ball exercises excellent for both recreational and elite athletes, the exercises can be used to improve quickness, speed, and jumping ability while also helping to develop better coordination, body control, and balance. This edition includes the latest research on plyometric training, a new layout with a much-improved format for drills, and sidebars on star athletes who have benefited from plyometrics.