I was watching NFL highlights on ESPN Sports Center last night and I saw a touchdown run by Adrian Peterson.....besides being fast, I saw something else during his run to paydirt---extreme explosion and acceleration in relation to the players trying to tackle him. They didn't have a chance once he exploded.
Every athlete can improve leg power and explosion. Your height achieved in squat jumps and vertical jumps, and horizontal distance of long jumps will tell you how much leg power you have. These exercises also give a good indication of how much speed you have. Doing these exercises as full speed plyometric exercises will improve your leg power.
Quadriceps, hamstrings, hips, glutes and calves are targets for improvement if you want your vertical jump and long jump to improve. Squats, lunges, leg presses, step ups, hip abductors and calf raises are all good exercises to improve lower body strength. Also, the hang clean is a great exercise because you execute the exercise from the same position that you jump from (or the power position).
How much lower body strength do you need to develop optimum power? A male should be able to squat his body weight 8-10 times and a female should be able to squat about 75% of her body weight 8-10 times. If you are not able to squat, then you should be able to leg press about 1.5 times your body weight 8-10 times.
It doesn't help you to continually get stronger if power development is not there also. Power, or speed strength (how fast your muscles can produce force) is one of the best physical predictors of success in sports.
Train hard and smart!
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Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
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Hi there,
ReplyDeleteThe jumping is best exercise to improve your height and strengthen lower body part.
Thanks,
Maria