How To Coach Soccer

For individuals who like to know about the less talked about topics — plyometrics can fit that bill.This article will function as an introduction into plyometric training and… I’m going to talk about: plyometrics — exactly what it is and what it is supposed to do, the general benefits you can get from it and finally, ways in which this sort of training can be used for the purposes of speed and agility.

So what are plyometrics anyway?
Considered to have first been discovered in Russia, and pretty soon adopted across the world for its spectacular training effects plyometric training has a simple goal: to better link strength and speed with the result of great improvements in power output.To put it simply: plyometric training increases your power output by training your body to use more strength with higher speed.An example of application of plyometrics in a sport that requires a lot of speed and agility is doing a vertical  jump for height in basketball.
The foundation of plyometric training is simple:
– harnessing your bodies ability to absorb and store force;- releasing that force quickly (resulting in spetacular power output);

If your sport of choice involves any throwing, kicking, jumping or lifting, then plyometric training can benefit you. Some examples of sports like these are: soccer, power lifting, basketball, football, baseball etc.

Benefits of Plyometric Training for Speed and Agility
First of all, you should realize that plyometric drills train both muscles and tendons to absorb force, they also train your mind to stabilize and control that force. These aspects directly influence speed and agility allowing you to make very quick gains — such gains are even more powerfull in the case of athletes or other people who already have well conditioned muscle and tendons.

The short term gains in speed and agility that result from incorporating plyometric exercises come from the education of your nervous system. That is why you must pay close attention to these instructions(plus it will also proove to YOU that this gets results and thus you more likely to stick with it and also get the long term gains):
never train unless properly rested
focus on each and every rep
remember to keep your rep number under 20 — this is regardless of the drill you are usingwhatever the difficulty of the exercise do not perform more than 3 sets for a particular exercise

Drill this into your head: Train HARDER, not looonger.

Gains in the long term will rely on body composition — this is why a focus on nutrition and avoidance of injury are critical with regards to plyometrics. The structure of your muscles and tendons will be modified.Plyometrics change your body in the sense that they make your muscles and tendons take on elastic properties.
Nuts and Bolts of a Plyometric Movement:

* first the body absorbs and stabilizes the force from a negative (eccentric) contraction
* as it does this, it  loads up your muscles and tendons with force (think of it like a compressing a spring)
* your body releases this energy in the opposite direction

Here’s an example,when you cock back your arm to throw a rock the natural thing you do is to first cock your arm backwards.  The effect of this is that the muscles of your arm and shoulder muscles lock, forcing your tendons to stretch thus storing a lot of force in those tendons and essentially turning them into loaded springs. When you throw, the stored force is released, allowing the rock to be accelerated at a rate which is higher than your normal rate of force development.

What really popularized plyometrics back in the seventies was the fact that it produced results and soviet athletes started to dominate many athletic fields. The beauty of plyometric training is that it allows you to make your muscles and tendons behave more like elastic bands or springs — storing force and then releasing it. And the fact of the matter is that before this, there was no known way to train for these aspects — leading many people to believe that such acts as a running for height jump were completely genetically driven abilities.
To summarize, plyometrics kill two birds with one stone: they teach your nervous system how to correctly perform movements at higher speeds and they condition your tendons, ligaments and muscles to aquire more spring-like characteristics allowing for greater acceleration. These benefits directly translate into gains in general speed and agility.To further support this process you should also learn about:speed,agility and protein
The question is: how do I adapt the principles of plyometric training to my speed and agility training? The answer is, and you aren’t going to like it, by tailoring your plyometric training to the specific speed and agility requirements of the sport that you are practicing. This is a long discussion and goes way beyond the scope of this article. Click here to learn more about: Speed and Agility Training

Article recap:

* what plyometrics are
* how plyometrics work
* the role of plyometrics as part of your speed and agility training
* the benefits you can expect when introducing plyometric drills into yours speed and agility training

I also recommend you check out this article and learn this very usefull exercise for speed and agility training and preventing injuries.