Jump, Jump

Plyometrics!

That's a fancy name for jumping. Adding it to your training program is a great way to burn calories and increase your overall strength, power, and endurance. The problem is, while many people can get off the ground (accelerate), they don't land so well (decelerate) resulting in injuries. In UBC this week, we've begun working on jumping and will work more next week on developing proper form when landing so participants can get more fat-burning bang for their fitness buck.

So, how do you stop yourself after jumping off the ground? You decelerate the speed and thereby decrease the force on your joints by:

•Landing on the ball of your foot and sinking into your heel.
•Flexing at the hips, knees and ankles.
•Maintaining a straight back/neutral spine position.
•Maintaining your chest over knees and knees over second toe

This means you need the ability to properly load the muscles eccentrically while maintaining proper form.

We'll continue more on this next week with action!

Until then, here's an excerpt from NSCA's Performance Training Journal with a fantastic article: "Landing Mechanics: What, Why, When".

Make it a great weekend!
Jump, jump!