All plyometric exercises must be done in flats on a soft surface.
Start with one set of each exercise, working toward three more sets.
Judge whether the athlete has the proper motor skills for properly executing the drills. If the athlete has poor form, stop the drill.
Always start with simple drills and progress to more difficult.
Properly warm-up and stretch before each plyometric workout and follow with a proper cool-down.
Have the athletes execute the drills with 100 percent effort to ensure best training results.
Take a 1-2 minute rest between successive exercise sequences.
Perform a number of repetitions according to the intensity of the drill and the condition of the athlete.
The athlete will only benefit  from reps performed properly.
Never perform plyometric drills on the same day as a weight training session.
Each set should last no longer than 6-8 seconds.
Full recovery should occur between sets.
Start  with easy exercises  and develop in intensity and complexity.
Stop before fatigue breaks down technique.
Always emphasize proper  technique.
Integrate plyometrics as a part of the training program.
Remember a large part of the initial training may be spent on teaching your athletes.
    Quality, Not Quantity

A safe and effective plyometric program stresses quality, not quantity of jumps. Safe landing techniques, such as landing from toe to heel from a vertical jump, and using the entire foot as a rocker to dissipate landing forces over a greater surface area, also are important to reduce impact forces. In addition, visualization cues, such as picturing yourself  landing “light as a feather” and “ recoiling like a spring” after impact promotes low-impact landings. When landing, avoid excessive sideto-side motion at the knee. Landing forces can be absorbed through    the   knee   musculature   (  quadriceps,   hamstrings,   gastrocnemius   or calf muscle) more effectively when the knee is bending primarily in only one plane of motion.

Jumps should always begin from ground level, off and onto padded surfaces such as grass or a gym mat over a wood gym floor. These types of jumps are both safe and easy to perform. Other training techniques include jumping over cones or foam barriers, and travelling bounding. One study found that participants in a well-designed program of stretching, plyometric training and weight training reduced their landing forces from a jump by 20 percent, and increased their hamstrings strength by 44 percent. Both of these factors contribute to reducing an individual’s potential risk of injury. In addition, some studies have shown plyometrics to have a positive effect on bone density in younger participants.  

Plyometric exercises can build power and speed if done properly

Many fitness experts use plyometric exercise to build power and speed, improve coordination and agility and effectively improve performance. It is important to point out that plyometrics,if performed incorrectly by the wrong individuals, can increase the risk of injury.

What are Plyometrics?

Plyometric exercises are specialized, high intensity training techniques used to develop athletic power (strength and speed). Plyometric training involves high-intensity, explosive muscular contractions that invoke the stretch reflex (stretching the muscle before it contracts so that it contracts with greater force). The most common plyometric exercises include hops, jumps and bounding movements. One popular plyometric exercise is jumping off a box and rebounding off the floor and onto another, higher box.

All plyometric exercises are done quickly and correctly. There are never any shortcuts. Every action is done in the intent to have a muscle reach full movement as quickly as possible.

Plyometrics can best be described as "explosive-reactive" power training. This type of training involves powerful muscular contractions in response to a rapid stretching of the involved musculature. These powerful contractions are not a pure muscular event; they have an extremely high degree of central nervous system involvement. The event is a neuromuscular event! It is a combination of an involuntary reflex (i.e. a neural event), which is then followed by a fast muscular contraction (i.e. voluntary muscular event). Sound complicated? Well, it's really not. We all have seen it, experienced it and continue to use this type of "reactive" movement pattern to develop power. We all do it everyday.

For example, every person that has been to a physician has experienced a plyometric event. When the doctor tapped under your kneecap, causing your leg to jerk, what do you think he/she was checking? The tapped caused a sudden stretch of the tendon that connects to all of the quadriceps (i.e. the muscle involved in extending the knee). Small receptors within the quadriceps create a stretch reflex, which makes the quadriceps responded by contracting explosively.



When doing plyometric drills always strive for speed of execution.
Imagine the ground is on fire.
Spend as little time as possible on the ground, explode up.
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