No plyometrics until you squat THIS much...

The world of exercise science and program design is constantly changing. Not because the ideals, principles and philosophies are wrong, but because we really are beginning to learn so much about the body and how it responds to exercise.

One of the hotter topics is that of plyometrics. Most people "know" what plyometrics is. They may have the textbook definition of "a rapid eccentric muscle action followed by an immediate concentric muscle action resulting in increased power," but they have an image in their head of what plyometrics is. And it usually looks something like the picture to the right.

But there are different levels of plyometrics and the truth is most people begin a plyometric training program at far too high of an intensity. But there really isn't a set standard that a person must meet prior to beginning a plyometric program. 

There used to be a "generally accepted" formula for plyometrics and it was that you had to be able to back squat twice your body weight. However this immediately labeled plyometrics as a VERY exclusive type of training program. After all, how many people can actually back squat twice their body weight? If I were to do that I would have to be able to squat 410 lbs!! 

So where did this formula come from? Well it was grounded in science but wasn't necessarily thought about completely. You see when a person is coming down from the peak of a jump their are accelerating at 9.8 meters per second squared. So until the person hits the ground, they are accelerating, or picking up speed, until they land. And for most people the range of their jump has them hitting the ground at a fairly high rate of speed. So much that research has shown the amount of force a person lands with is equivalent to roughly twice their body weight. This we know is true.

However, it must be considered that A) on a squat jump landing the person usually does not land in a full squat position, and B) not all plyometrics involve such extreme landings. The video below gives some plyometric exercises that we use on a regular basis.

So then what are we to do? Do we simply focus on kids getting better at their back squat so they can FINALLY do plyometrics with them? That is obviously not going to happen. Instead what we at Pair & Marotta Physical Therapy do is have them work through a progression. Obviously not every plyometric involves a depth jump from a great range of motion. 

In addition, the thing to consider is that in sport, most plyometric type of contractions involve vertical jumps. Most require movement in multiple planes of motion.So instead we can and occasionally do have our athletes perform box drop jumps. But most often we use lower level, more laterally stressful plyometric exercises.


As a coach, you too must decide the cost to benefit factor and determine what type of plyometric exercises are going to be best for your athletes. Have a system. Or better yet, give us a call to help design and implement a plyometric training program with your athletes or team!

6 Steps to a Better Athlete - Part 2: Agility

What is agility? If you had to explain it to a parent, could you? Sure most coaches have heard of an agility ladder, but what is it exactly that you are attempting to teach with an agility ladder?

Agility is simply the ability to accelerate for a given distance, decelerate, change direction and re-accelerate.

Teaching agility doesn't require any fancy tools or devices, just a sound understanding of what it is and what physiological principle it relies on. Once that is understood, the practical application of that principle is a piece of cake.

Agility relies on the same principle as plyometric exercise does: the stretch shortening cycle (SSC). The SSC is a series of actions that occur within a muscle. When a quick stretch is placed on a muscle it will contract quicker than if the muscle were held in a stretch and then shortened. 

This is not to say that you train agility in the same way that you train for jump height, just that the principle is the same. Basically, the muscle can contract quicker when it is quickly stretched and then released with a muscle contraction. 

Here is a way i explain it to our young athletes. I got this from Mark Verstegen and it is a terrific way to explain it to kids and parents alike. 

Place your hand flat on your chest with your palm against your chest. Now lift your middle finger down and slam it against your chest as hard and as fast as you can. Pretty quick. But now what I want you to do is take the thumb from your other hand and lift the middle finger of the hand that is on your chest to a quick stretch and then move your thumb. That middle finger comes down a lot quicker. 

The thing is, you didn't have to think about it. Instead the mechanics of the muscle caused it to contract quicker. So in a practical sense, you have to teach the muscle to move faster. 

However, there is one thing that must be considered when training for agility: deceleration. Being able to hit full speed and then decelerate is a very complex skill, one that most kids do incorrectly in a sport setting. 

Now most deceleration takes place by loading only a single leg as that leg is planted and then pushed off of in another direction. One exercise you can do to improve deceleration and strength is a single leg hop to squat. 

Have your players balance on a single leg then jump up. As they come back down have them sink into a single leg squat and tough their shoe laces. This should really open your eyes as to which kids are going to be the most agile. 

Athletes basically have to slow themselves down like a car going from 60-0 mph. This means not only controlling their own body weight, but also controlling the inertia created by their body weight. 

Another exercise that you can use is a lateral bound to squat. This is a similar exercise but focuses more on lateral deceleration. I hope your catching the major concept of agility here. 

To perform the lateral bound, have the athlete balance on a single leg and then jump laterally to the other leg, where upon landing they will squat and touch their shoe lace. Now remember that a squat must come from the hips. If the athlete simply bends at the waist, then this is not going to be very effective and will actually encourage a bad, BAD habit.

Continue to enforce control upon landing, making sure that the foot is perpendicular to the direction of travel. This will make sure the glutes are used in both deceleration and reacceleration.

Stay tuned for the next post as we talk about rhythm and how to incorporate it into your practices for improved movement, speed and agility!

Progression: Getting the most from your athletes

Most athletes are go-getters. They'll do anything you ask them to do. And often times will do things you don't ask them to. When training them for fitness and performance though, a good coach will be careful not to do too much, too fast, too soon.

And this is where most athletes have a hard time keeping things at the right level. Far too often players want to literally jump right into whatever it is they are doing. They want to start with plyometrics and ladder drills and skip right over everything that lays the foundation for those fun exercises.

So here is a basic progression that you can use with your teams, your kids and your athletes.

Squat/Jump Progression

• Weeks 1-2 : perform basic body weight squats 3 sets of 20 reps (3 x 20) and hold each squat at the bottom for :03 seconds. Do this during each practice or 3 times per week.
• Weeks 3-4: perform a jump and hold the athletic position for :03 seconds upon landing. Perform 3 x5 - 3 days per week.
• Weeks 5-6: perform squat jumps and upon landing have the athlete take a small bounce before performing the next repetition. There will be no holding or pausing on the landing. Perform 3 x 8, 2 times per week.
• Weeks 7-8: perform repetitive squat jumps with no holding on the landing going right into the next jump 3 x 5 twice per week. Also have the athlete perform single leg squats with a toe touch, 2 x 12 each leg. Perform each of these exercises 2 times per week.

Remember, you have to have a plan in order to get the most out of your athletes as well as to prevent injuries. An excellent resource for this is David Sadler's DVD Plyometrics Training.  It's a terrific resource that shows you how to progress plyometrics for your young athletes.

We at Peak Performance take our athletes through a similar plyometric progression over a period of 12-16 weeks. This is how plyometrics should be taught. 

We want your young athletes to benefit from our years of experience and education. To sign up for our FAST Forward Program for high school age athletes or our Movement First Program for younger athletes, email me at aaron@pairmarotta.com.