What Does Plyometric Exercise Do for Your Body?

Plyometrics originated in Eastern Europe and were first seen in track and field workouts in the 1920s. Today they are a staple in most athletes’ workout regimens. Plyometrics are a form of power training, and if the exercises are done correctly and at an appropriate intensity and volume, they are effective at improving athleticism. There are plyometric exercises that target both the upper and lower body.

  1. Benefits

    • Plyometric workouts develop your neuromuscular system. With consistent training, your central nervous system and muscles become more efficient. You’re able to send and receive signals more quickly. As a result, you’ll see an increase in the quickness and power of your muscle contractions. This leads to an increase in speed, power and agility.

    Practical Application

    • An improvement in speed, power and agility means you’ll be able to perform better in your sport. If you’re a football player on defense, you’ll be able to more quickly run down an opponent for a tackle. If you’re a basketball player, you’ll be able to jump higher and get more rebounds. A volleyball player will have a better chance of blocking hits. Soccer athletes can improve their ability to change directions quickly.

    Plyometrics

    • For an exercise to be considered plyometric, it has to begin with an initial muscular stretching period that is immediately followed by an explosive muscular contraction. By loading, or stretching the muscle immediately prior to the explosive component, you’re initiating the myotatic reflex. This myotatic reflex allows you to have a more powerful contraction. The faster and bigger the loading, the more explosive the contraction will be. An example plyometric exercise is the jump squat. The exercise begins with lowering into a squat at a normal cadence. As you lower, you’re stretching the glutes, quadriceps and calves. Once your thighs are about parallel to the floor, you explosively contract your glutes, quadriceps and calves to take off into a maximum height jump.

    Considerations

    • You should have an adequate strength base before incorporating plyometrics into your workouts. Dr. Juan Carlos Santana of Perform Better recommends that you do eight to 12 weeks of consistent weight training and be able to squat one and a half times your own body weight before doing plyometrics. This is due to the significant stress that plyometrics place on your musculoskeletal system. You want to make sure that your body is able to handle the increase in force production.