Most Explosive Plyometric Exercises used by Elite Athletes

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best plyometric exercises
29 April 2022 7 min read
Most Explosive Plyometric Exercises used by Elite Athletes

The advantages of plyometric training cannot be understated. If you play any kind of sport which requires some form of rapid or powerful movement, then implementing some plyometric exercises into your training would be invaluable to your progression as an athlete.

Whether you are just getting into a new sport or you're a seasoned veteran, take your athleticism to the next level with exercises for cultivating lighting-fast agility and explosive strength. If you want to make sure to leave no stone unturned when it comes to enhancing your physical performance, keep reading.

There's untapped potential for you to unleash, and it all starts with plyometrics.

What is Plyometric Training?

Plyometric training bridges the gap between pure strength training and performance sport training. Exercises generally involve exerting maximal effort for a specific movement, such as jumps, hops, or throws.

Plyometrics Class Doing Box Jumps

By taking advantage of a mechanism called the strength-shortening-cycle, which is the lengthening of a muscle followed by immediate shortening, plyometrics can dramatically boost your speed and reactive power in your given sport. It's here where athletes really begin to see the benefit of plyometric training.

What Kind of Sports can Utilise Plyometrics

It goes without saying that most sports require a solid level of energetic movement. Do you feel like you've hit a performance plateau with your specific sport? Most people don't realise that it's their plyometric ability that is holding them back from excelling as an athlete.

The sports which see the most benefit from plyometric training are acyclic sports. Acyclic sports are ones in which each action requires a different kind of movement. Examples of acyclic sports include:

  • Basketball
  • Rugby
  • Football
  • Hockey
  • Martial arts

You'd think that using traditional skill-based training, such as in-game situational drills, would probably bring you the most performance benefit, right? Well, according to a study in the Journal of Sport Science and Medicine (JSSM), this might not actually be the case!

Examples of Sports that benefit from plyometrics, showing martial arts, basketball and amercian football

Researchers observed two groups of high-performance volleyball athletes. They gave one group a traditional skill-based conditioning programme involving situational-type drills. The second group was given a plyometric conditioning program.

Amazingly, the results showed that the second group actually saw, on average, a 19% increase in their skill-based performance. Unlike the traditional skill-based training programme, which only saw an increase of 10%. That's a significant difference, and that 9% could be the boost you've been looking for to excel above and beyond in your given sport.

Want to know how you can get started implementing plyometrics into your training? Well, in the next section we'll show you how!

How can you use Plyometrics to Optimise your Athletic Potential?

Depending on what your goals are will determine what kind of plyometric workout you should be doing. Here at Again Faster, we made our name in the CrossFit industry, so we understand the importance of plyometric training. Its strong presence in elite training programmes is hard to miss.

We've tied in our experience with thousands of CrossFit athletes along with conclusive research to compile the top 5 most beneficial and explosive plyometric exercises, used by elite athletes.

What are the Best Plyometric Exercises

Ready for some ideas for plyometric exercises to add to your training mix? Below are some of the best you can do, along with some ideas for variations to keep things interesting. Our top 5 are:

1 - Box Jumps

The box jump is arguably the most well-known plyometric exercise. There are countless sports that necessitate powerful jumping ability. Even in sports that don't, Box jumps reinforce and improve mechanisms that have universal benefits in sports requiring explosive changes in movement.

Plyo boxes for box jumps

Box jumps are a staple in many professional athlete training regimens because they offer a lot of variation. This allows you to tailor your training to your individual needs, and the aspects of your performance that you want to develop.

There are some fantastic box jump variations, and here are our top picks:

  • Front box jumps
  • Lateral box jumps
  • Weighted box jumps
  • Box jump to single-leg landing

If your gym lacks a plyo box or you want to upgrade your home gym, we've got you covered. Again Faster offers a solid plywood plyo box that is extremely resilient and versatile.

Want a softer landing? We also offer a soft plyo box option as well, which will help reduce that risk of injury. The soft plyo box is designed with a durable anti-slip surface that provides a spongy feel to absorb any impact, and reduce shock on joints.

2 - Med Ball Throws

Research indicates that Med Ball chest throws are more effective than conventional strength training for certain skills. They are designed to enhance the speed and force of outward and rotational movements in the upper body.

This type of exercise is ideal for boxers and other martial artists who want to optimise their punch speed. As well as any throwers who want to improve functional strength in the specific muscle groups relevant to throwing.

Let's not forget about the fact they significantly improve core stability and strength. This will help promote better posture, as well as make everyday laboursome tasks feel much easier.

Here's a handful of our favourite med ball throw variations:

  • Lying down vertical chest throw
  • Sit-up wall throws
  • Standing side-to-side slams
  • Alternating rotational wall throws

Woman performing slam ball throws

If you want to get a med ball for yourself, check out our full range of med balls and slam balls. Both are designed to withstand a lifetime of impacts, and come in a multitude of weights for maximum variation in your workouts.

3 - Single-Leg Knee Drive

This exercise essentially simulates the explosive action of sprinters emerging from the blocks. Improving your force generation from a single leg can aid in cultivating lightning-quick acceleration.

This movement not only promotes functional strength, but also builds the hip flexors. Hip flexors are a muscle that many people can overlook, and this can often contribute to injury. Strengthening your hip flexors will significantly increase your kicking speed. They're highly recommended for sports like football, rugby, and also martial arts.

Some creative variations of the single-leg knee drive are listed below:

  • Resisted single-leg knee drive from lunge
  • Plyo box single-leg knee drive
  • Single leg dumbbell deadlift to knee drive
  • Jumping single-leg knee drive from walk

Adding in some resistance with a resistance band is a great way to maximise the potential benefit from the single-leg drive. By providing constant tension on the muscles, you help strengthen your stabilising muscles. This not only improves your reactive power, but also reduces your risk of injury.

Man performing single leg knee drive in desert

Need a resistance band? Check out our complete selection of resistance bands, which come in four different sizes to allow you to progressively build power.

4 - Lateral Shuffles

Agility is a crucial facet of most sports. Therefore performing exercises such as lateral shuffles is essential, strengthening the ability to make swift and calculated directional changes, ultimately allowing the motion to come more naturally in performance situations.

Another perk of lateral shuffles is that they are an outstanding way to optimise single-leg strength, balance, and coordination, something that has clear advantages in most sports but also in day-to-day life in general.

Here are some of our favourite adaptations of the lateral shuffle:

  • Jumping single-leg lateral shuffle
  • Low box step over lateral shuffle
  • Lateral shuffle with resistance band
  • Weighted side lunge shuffle

5 - Jumping Squats

Much like the box jump, jumping squats exercise the fundamentals for building explosive power. Jumping squats allow for activation of pretty much all muscle groups in the lower body.

Two women performing squat jumps

The initial downward phase of the squat activates the hamstrings, followed by a powerful quad contraction upwards, and ends with full contraction of the calves. This is ideal for cultivating stability integrated with functional strength.

The jumping squat leaves lots of room for personalisation and here are some great iterations:

  • Barbell jumping squat
  • Bodyweight leapfrog squats
  • Dumbbell hold jumping squat
  • Jumping squats with resistance round upper leg

Need any of the equipment mentioned above? Check out our diverse product catalogue at Again Faster. With plenty of options available, you're bound to find the perfect fit.

Why are Plyometrics Important?

Explosive power is a crucial element of several sports. If you are determined to boost your performance and go well beyond your self-perceived limits, don't underestimate the benefits of plyometrics. Many of these techniques are common practice in competitive training programmes; start incorporating them into your regimen, and we promise you'll be amazed by your growth as an athlete.

Remember, you don't have to be an elite athlete to train like one. Your purpose, your progression, your evolution starts here.


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