Plyometric training is a form of exercise that conditions the muscles and central nervous system through the use of rapid and dynamic movement which involves a rapid stretch of a muscle immediately followed by a shortening of a muscle.

Did I already lose you?? This form of training is typically used to increase athletic performance in sports.

Plyometrics can be used by individuals who have a solid base of muscular strength and flexibility to increase their power, strength, and balance.

This form of training is not recommended for obese or significantly overweight individuals due to the impact on the joints and chance for injury.

However, you do not have to be an athlete to perform plyometrics, but you should understand proper form and use low impact exercises if you are a novice.

Incorporating 1-2 days of plyometric bodyweight training can lead to significant increases in your muscular strength and power. This can benefit reaction times, agility, and balance, which are all important skills to have.

Don’t think this is just for the basketball player who needs to jump high to dunk a ball, but rather the parent who needs to jump into a pool to save their child from drowning.

The functional strength component of plyometric training is often overlooked, yet is an extremely important part of a well rounded exercise program.

If you are in good physical strength and thinking of adding plyometrics to your workout routine, I have listed 12 exercises (from lowest intensity to highest) that are a good place to start.

If you are NOT in good physical shape, I do not recommend trying these exercises without proper instruction.

By most professional standards, if you cannot perform a squat with a weight of 1.5x your body weight, you should use very low intensity plyometric exercises or continue to build strength before attempting them.

Also, it is important that these exercises are done on shock absorbing surfaces such as grass. Doing them on concrete is a good way to injure yourself quickly as the impact on your joints can be severe.

Lower Body Plyometric Exercises: Lowest to Highest Intensity

1. Jump squats
2. Box jumps
3. Jumping lunges
4. Knee tuck jumps
5. Depth jumps
6. Unilateral (1 leg) lateral hops

Upper Body Plyometric Exercises: Lowest to Highest Intensity

1. Medicine ball toss
2. Overhead medicine ball slam
3. Plyometric push up
4. Woodchop medicine ball throws
5. Medicine ball plyometric push ups
6. Single arm overhand throws

The use of a proper warm up and cool down are also very important when performing this type of training. Your warm up should consist of dynamic stretches followed by movement specific exercises (i.e. stationary lunges prior to jumping lunges).

The cool down should consist of static stretching (holding a fixed stretch for 30+ seconds) to allow the muscles to return to the pre exercise state.

If you have decided to begin using plyometric exercises as part of your routine, I strongly recommend that you educate yourself on the proper form or find a fitness professional who can provide instruction.

Due to the explosive nature of these exercises, performing them improperly can lead to acute injuries and put you out of commission for months..

The pull up has to be hands down the most effective exercise for building upper body strength and is the “king” of all bodyweight exercises (although some of you may disagree and say the push up is). Although it would be nice to have Tony Horton’s (of p90x fame) muscle definition as seen in the photo above, it is not necessary in order to perform this exercise.

I have come to realize through 13 years of training that most people cannot perform even 1 pull up with proper form. By proper form I mean starting from a dead hang and using only your arms and back (no momentum) to lift your chest to the bar. The reason….ummm..it’s hard….

But seriously, most people you see in the gym aren’t training for strength. Often times, they might think they are, but they’re not. People want to look good and feel good and there is nothing wrong with that at all. I’ve seen it so many times..the guy who can lift the entire weight stack on the lat pulldown machine but can’t even do a single pull up.

Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing to be embarrassed about if you can’t do a pull up. Most women (and proud men)I’ve worked with won’t even try. However, if your goal is to  build a strong, muscular body then doing pull ups should be on your “A” list.

There is a good reason that all branches of the military incorporate this exercise into their fitness programs, it produces tremendous results in much less time than any other back exercise.

The overhand pull up, not to be confused with the reverse grip chin up, is a compound, closed chain exercise, which is beneficial for many reasons. Please refer to my article here to read why. It also involves more than ten muscles to do a pull up.

If you find that you would like to add this exercise to your routine but can only do 1 or 2, here are some suggestions as to how to build enough strength to do multiple reps:

• Place a chair in front of you and place1 foot on it. Now you can use your leg strength to lift you. Obviously, the more weight you put on the leg, the easier the pull up.
• Use negatives. Jump up to the top of the pull up position and bring yourself down as slowly as you can.
• Use isometric contractions. Jump (or pull) up to the top position and hang in a static position until you either reach failure or your brachioradialis splits in two….
• Start with chin ups (reverse grip). Your biceps will be used much more and it will make this exercise quite a bit easier.

If you a bit more advanced and can perform at least 12 pull ups, you can begin to add some variations to your program. A few of my favorite are:

• Wide grip pull ups
• Towel Pull ups
• 1-arm pull ups (no, I can’t do them)
• Pause pull ups (hold position midway up)
• Subscapularis pull ups (push out and away from the bar at the top position)..not easy

The bottom line is that if you are NOT doing pull ups, you are missing out on a great exercise. Even if you have no interest in being strong (you should for functional reasons), you still need to consider these. Adding lean muscle tissue is imperative for people with ALL goals.