If you have been paying attention to sports coaching at any point in the last 20 years then you will probably have heard of plyometrics. Even if the name sounds unfamiliar, some of the exercises are instantly recognisable. Box jumps, agility runs, standing broad jumps, hops, all of these are examples of plyometrics.

This article will take a close look at plyometrics. What it is, the philosophy behind its use, and how best to implement it into your coaching programs. We will also talk about who stands to gain the most from plyometrics, and who would be better off avoiding it.

What is plyometrics?

Plyometrics is a form of exercise that involves explosive movements, it is also called jump training, which is perhaps a more descriptive name. Often, plyometrics will include agility movements as the two forms of training synchronise together really well.

This form of training is really popular in sports coaching because not only does it increase explosive power, but it can be programmed to specifically adapt to each sport.

For example, you could combine two common plyometric movements, throwing and jumping, together to recreate a basketball drill. Or you could use boxing footwork combined with throwing a medicine ball to recreate punching drills in boxing.

A Brief History of Plyometrics

In 1964, Soviet scientist Yuri Verkhoshansky published his first paper about a form of training called the “Shock Method”. The paper discussed how this new training method could improve speed-strength (power). The paper was a success, and Soviet athletes began to use the shock method as part of their training for Olympic events.

The process took several years, but by the early 1970s the shock method was fairly common among Soviet athletes. It wasn’t until 1975 that the West began to notice this form of training. Michael Yessis and Fred Wilt witnessed Soviet athletes using jump training as part of their warm ups and the two coined the term plyometrics.

Verkhoshansky had created this form of training and was instrumental in its uptake in athletics, but Wilt and Yessis expanded the training a lot further over the coming years.

Verkhoshansky’s training was mostly focused on depth jumps, this is where you jump off a tall box or chair. When you land, you immediately spring up into the air. There are/were a number of variations to this, such as jumping forwards after landing, or jumping and then sprinting.

Wilt and Yessis became well-known in Western fitness circles for their development of Verkhoshansky’s work, but the man himself was largely forgotten. Plyometrics became better known in the 80s, with the publication of Yessis’ book on the subject, and by the 90s it was being used by most athletic squads.

In the 00s and 2010s plyometrics started to become popular with personal trainers and fitness classes. This was a mixed blessing. It introduced complex training techniques to a larger audience, which is usually a good thing. But under the influence of some personal trainers and fitness instructors, plyometric exercises began to be taught in an irresponsible manner.

We will talk more about this later in the article, but plyometrics has very specific goals (increased power) and is a lot more intense than people expect. There is one school of thought that nobody should embark on a plyometrics program until they are strong enough to squat twice their bodyweight.

This may be a little extreme, but it gives you an idea of how intense plyometrics is, and why adding box jumps into a beginner’s fat loss program aimed at 50 year old office workers is pretty irresponsible.

Luckily, today there is a lot more understanding of what plyometrics is, and when it is appropriate to use it. You are starting to see fewer classes that utilise plyometrics incorrectly, and it is now mostly used for athletes.

What are the Benefits of Plyometrics?

Before talking about the benefits of plyometrics, it might be a good idea to discuss some misconceptions about plyometrics. For starters, it is not an effective way to burn calories.

When performed correctly, plyometrics is designed to improve performance and explosive power. This involves a lot of rest between sets, and an emphasis of quality over quantity. This just does not lend itself to burning a lot of calories.

Some trainers have tried to shoehorn plyometrics into fat burning workouts, and it can work, but it kind of misses the point. It’s also a lot more likely to lead to injury this way.

Plyometrics is also not designed for muscle hypertrophy or to increase strength/endurance. It is not good for improving cardiovascular fitness either. So, what is it good for?

Power

Plyometrics is incredibly good at increasing explosive power, which can then be used in athletic events. It can also help with Olympic lifting if you want gym-based benefits.

Performance

You can use plyometrics to improve your athletic performance, that’s the reason why it was invented in the first place. Tennis players can use it to improve their serves or overhead smashes. Boxers can use it to improve their knockout blows. Basketball players can use it to improve their dunks. It is perfect for getting better at the explosive movements that win you games.

Running Economy

Technically, this could be seen as a performance benefit, but it makes more sense when viewed on its own. Plyometrics can help to improve your mobility and your power, and it can be used to help with your running technique.

Hopping, skipping, bounding, etc are all used in plyometrics, and they can all help you to run more efficiently. This allows you to run further or faster than usual while burning the same number of calories. Which is great for improving your run times, but not so good from a fat loss point of view.

Mobility

Plyometrics can help to improve flexibility, economy of movement, and your mobility. That being said, you need good mobility to perform plyometric exercises in the first place, so the benefits will be less obvious.

Who Should Use Plyometrics?

Anyone who is in very good shape and wants to improve their athletic performance should seriously consider adding plyometrics into their training. It is an excellent way to increase explosive power and improve your technique.

Who Should Not Use Plyometrics?

Anyone who is new to exercising, anyone with an injury, anyone with mobility issues. It should also be avoided by people with differing goals such as wanting to build muscle or to lose weight. If you are training for health reasons, then plyometrics isn’t going to be that helpful.

How to Incorporate Plyometrics into Your Training

The first thing you should do is to start thinking of plyometrics training as separate from your normal workouts. It is not something that should be combined with squats or deadlifts or even bicep curls.

Well, that’s not quite true. You can add one or two plyometric exercises into a strength training session, and use them as a warm up. But you have to keep the intensity and volume low.

Set out a plan for what you want to achieve, then create a plyometric training program around that. Most plyometrics programs last around 4-6 weeks, and they usually have a specific goal in mind.

The program (based on this NASM article) will look something like this:

• Week 1 Stability Endurance
• Week 2 Strength Endurance
• Week 3 Muscular Development
• Week 4 Max Strength
• Week 5 Power

Obviously, following a proper program is going to require either a coach/trainer or you taking a course to further your own education on plyometrics. But if you want to just give it a go, then pick 3-5 exercises and perform 2-3 sets of 10 reps for each. With lots of rest in between and a good warm up and cool down.

Plyometric Exercises

Here are some examples of plyometric exercises:

• Box jumps
• Depth jumps
• Standing broad jumps
• Hops
• Skips
• Bounds
• Lateral jumps
• Jumping squats
• Jumping lunges
• Clapping push ups
• Burpees with jumps
• Medicine ball tosses
• Medicine ball slams