Twice a year, a celestial phenomenon known as the equinox occurs, whereby the Earth’s axis aligns so that our North and South poles lie equidistant from the sun. Just a few short weeks from now, at the end of March, the next equinox will usher in a new springtime.
Adaptation of physical structures over time is precisely what exercise is all about
With summer in our midst and the first rays of sunshine teasing us through the clearing skies, many of us will put a noticeable spring in our step. In exercise terms, a spring in one’s step is known altogether by a different name: plyometrics. Acceleration training, explosive training or high-impact training are interchangeable terms and can all be said to fall under the umbrella of plyometric training.
Most modern exercise trends of late have incorporated these styles to some degree. Whether it’s jumping and landing from a variety of positions, throwing a medicine ball or heaving a thick rope up and down, if you’ve been in the gym over the past couple of years, the chances are you’ve tried it.
So how does this type of training work? A wise fellow called Isaac Newton once said that force is a combination of mass and acceleration. It is by generating force that the muscles are engaged and exercised, so we essentially have two choices when it comes to producing this muscular force.
If we go down the mass route, then lifting heavy things like dumbbells, barbells or weight stacks attached to resistance machines in increasing intensities will allow us to generate muscular force, thus stimulating our muscles to adapt, strengthen and grow. If we go down the accleration route, then accelerating objects at increasing intensities will similarly allow us to generate muscular force also.
There was a time several years ago when moving explosively would have been shunned upon by exercise professionals, but not any more. With the advent of the functional training revolution, plyometrics have hit the mainstream and we’ve had a spring in our step ever since.
It must be stressed that this type of training should be approached in small incremental steps, and impacting movements should be eased into with caution. Just as one would not attempt to lift a 200-kilo barbell off the floor without ever having lifted before, one would not leap full pelt into a high-impact explosive training workout.
Accelerating objects with a degree of speed generates stress on muscles, tendons, ligaments and joints. Too much stress too soon will lead to injury whatever you do, but in the right doses, stress will produce adaptation. Adaptation of physical structures over time is precisely what exercise is all about.
By training our major muscle groups explosively, we can improve jumping and sprinting ability, and few athletes wouldn’t enjoy these benefits. By training the upper body muscles explosively, we can improve hitting and throwing ability. For those of us outside the competitive realm, plyometrics offer an interesting twist, allowing us to reach the same results of better health and body composition with a larger variety of training methods to choose from.
So if you thought dumbbells and treadmills were your only tools for building muscle and burning fat, think again. Let’s take a look at some interesting alternatives you can explore en route to beach season 2013.
Jump squats and jump lunges are fairly common exercises we normally associate with the free weights area of the gym. In a traditional squat, you might generate muscular force by adding kilos to the barbell as time goes by, thus building muscle and strength. To build muscle and strength through this move without employing mass, you’ll need to accelerate.
In a jump squat, you will hit the low position of the movement just as you would in the conventional squat, but instead of attempting to simply stand up, you must try to jump as high off the ground as possible.
The higher you managed to jump, the more acceleration you will have employed and the more force you will have generated. Remember to sit back and down, keeping your back tight and weight over your heels as you descend. Your weight will transfer to the balls of your feet only upon the final moments before take-off and the first moments upon landing.
Upon landing, keep your knees soft to cushion your landing, and sink straight back down into the bottom squat position, forcing the muscles of the knees and hips to absorb the landing forces, not the joints themselves.
Avoid performing such a move on concrete or tarmac. Wooden floors, padded floors, grass or sand are ideal. For lunges, jump out of the bottom lunge with feet spread fore and aft, and switch them in mid-air.
For upper body development, medicine ball throws rank second to none. A ball weighing anywhere from two to five kilos will present an effective workout for most. In a standing stance, hold the ball against your chest and push it out, throwing for distance or hard against the wall.
Just like the jump squat, the more distance you get, the more acceleration and force you will have generated. Another popular variation to this is throwing from above the head and slamming down into the ground. The height of the subsequent bounce will represent your feedback as regards force generated.
So if you’re looking for an alternative method of pushing the envelope this springtime, put a spring in your step and push it explosively.
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