There are several types of people who sign-up for fitness bootcamp training. However, a good percentage of them are athletes who are looking to take their game to the next level. This led to the development of Plyometrics being used extensively in sports fitness bootcamp exercises.
Why Plyometrics at a Fitness Bootcamp?
In a nutshell, it’s a bootcamp program which aims to improve the skills and the responsiveness level of athletes and the athletically-inclined. In the past, plyometric training was not readily available. You almost had to be a professional athlete to gain access to a trainer who’s knowledgeable and experienced in Plyometrics.
As trainers, instructors and kinesiologists (professionals who are involved in the medical and clinical study of the movement of joints, ligaments, tendons and muscles) saw the benefits of using Plyometrics. The training was adopted by more and more college and high school training camps. A noted benefit was the reduction of injuries to Plyometric-trained athletes.
What is Plyometrics?
It is all about explosive response. It is packing your muscles with improved reaction so you can run faster, jump higher, be stronger and avoid extremity injuries. Plyometrics is usually done by athletes who will benefit from muscles which can contract rapidly and strongly.
Take jumping for example. When you jump, your leg muscles do three things:
- The muscles elongate as you bend your knees in preparation for the jump.
- Just as you’re about to jump, the muscles rest.
- Your muscles contract as you perform the jump itself.
This is where the explosion comes in. With Plyometric training your muscles contract quicker which leads to a faster, higher and longer jump.
Sports Bootcamp Plyometrics
Nowadays, you don’t need to be a professional athlete to take advantage of Plyometrics. You can be someone who’s just looking to improve their overall health. If you’re interested in sports, then you can take your game to the next, leaving your competition behind. You should consider taking plyometric training if you want to improve your skills in the following sports:
- Basketball
- Volleyball
- Running
- Tennis
- Badminton
- Football
- Soccer
These sports are very popular with people who are just looking to get healthy using sports. So why not train to get better at a sport so you can better improve your health?
The exercises vary by program but the most popular one is the burpee. The theory is simple. You start from the squat position and you jump as high as you can with your arms extended upwards. As soon as you land, you kick your feet backwards until you’re in a push-up position. Do a push up. Then, you need to pull your feet back in to a squatting position before repeating. Jump with arms extended, land in a squat, kick back into a push-up position. Complete one full push up. Back to a squat position. Repeat the cycle by jumping again. A single burpee is not really hard, just try to do 10! Oh, this time clap your hands at the top of your jump.
Other Benefits of Sports Bootcamp Plyometrics
In addition to helping your muscles gain explosive responsiveness, Plyometric exercises also provide other benefits, which explains its popularity. You will also improve your balance. Add that to the speed and strength which you will develop and you have the tools to be dominant in most sports. Additionally, you develop resistance to extremity injuries, particularly lower extremities (shins, knees, etc.) It does all this by also improving your nervous system response time.
These reasons are exactly why even people who are not into sports are signing up for fitness bootcamp Plyometrics.
So still unsure about what plyometrics is. Is it the study of making your muscles perform to their best ability? Where did the name come from Burpee? It’s rather interesting reading that movement sequence, sounds like you need practice to get it down!