Power is force produced fast. Build landing and strength foundations before you add jumps and throws.
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4 lessons · ~8 min · in this order- 1Power vs Strength vs SpeedStrength is how much force you can produce, speed is how fast you can move, and power is the product of the two — force applied quickly.Begin →
- 2Plyometrics (Definition)Quick, powerful movements that use a rapid eccentric pre-stretch immediately followed by an explosive concentric action — training the stretch-shortening cycle to produce more power.2 min
- 3Plyometric Prerequisites & Readiness CriteriaBefore high-intensity plyometrics, an athlete should have a base of strength, sound landing/balance technique, and (for lower-body work) the ability to squat a meaningful multiple of body weight.2 min
- 4Landing MechanicsLand soft and balanced — absorb through ankles-knees-hips with the knees tracking over the toes; a stiff or inward-collapsing landing is the main plyometric injury risk.2 min
Every Power topic
61 topics
- 5-10-5 Pro Agility Drill2 minExercise · Start in the middle, sprint 5 yards one way, 10 yards back the other way, then 5 yards to finish — a short lateral COD drill and standard combine test.
- A-Skip1 minExercise · A marching/skipping drill that grooves high knee drive, a dorsiflexed foot, and a downward "punch" strike under the hips — the foundational sprint-form drill.
- Acceleration vs Max-Velocity Training2 minConcept · Acceleration training develops the leaning, horizontal-force "drive" phase; max-velocity training develops the upright, reactive top-speed phase — they need different drills, distances, and cues.
- Agility Ladder Drills2 minExercise · Fast, patterned foot placements through a flat ladder — develops foot quickness, coordination, and rhythm, but is mainly a warm-up/coordination tool rather than true agility.
- Agility vs Change of Direction2 minConcept · Change of direction is pre-planned fast redirection; true agility adds a reaction to a stimulus — perception and decision-making plus the physical redirection.
- B-Skip2 minExercise · An A-skip that adds an active leg extension and "paw-back" before the foot strikes — teaching the active, claw-like touchdown and hamstring action of sprinting.
- Ballistic Training2 minSystem · Explosive lifts where the load is accelerated through the whole range and released or projected (thrown or jumped), instead of being decelerated at the end.
- Bounding2 minExercise · Exaggerated, powerful running strides that maximize air time and horizontal distance per stride — a high-intensity single-leg plyometric that transfers strongly to sprinting.
- Box Jump2 minExercise · A two-foot jump up onto a raised box, landing softly on top — a lower-intensity way to train upward jump power while reducing landing impact.
- Broad Jump (Standing Long Jump)1 minExercise · A maximal horizontal jump for distance from a two-foot takeoff — trains horizontal power and the posterior chain.
- Butt Kicks2 minExercise · A running drill that snaps the heels up toward the glutes with a quick cadence — grooves fast heel recovery and "stepping over" the opposite knee.
- Change-of-Direction (COD) Mechanics2 minConcept · Changing direction is a braking-then-reaccelerating task — decelerate eccentrically, plant with a stable knee/hip, lower the center of mass, and push off explosively into the new direction.
- Clap / Plyometric Push-Up2 minExercise · An explosive push-up where the hands leave the ground at the top (sometimes with a clap) — the bodyweight upper-body plyometric for the stretch-shortening cycle of the pressing muscles.
- Complex & Contrast Training2 minSystem · Pairing a heavy strength exercise with a biomechanically similar explosive exercise to exploit post-activation potentiation and train power.
- Cone Drills2 minExercise · Sprint-cut-and-redirect patterns marked by cones — the core change-of-direction drills (e.g., box, L/W/zig-zag, 3-cone) that train deceleration, cutting, and re-acceleration.
- Cutting Mechanics2 minConcept · A cut is a sharp redirection off a planted foot — done safely with the hip and knee controlling a toe-aligned plant, not an inward-collapsing knee.
- Deceleration2 minConcept · The controlled, eccentric braking of body momentum — a trainable skill that limits change-of-direction speed and protects the knee when done well.
- Depth Jump (Drop Jump)2 minExercise · Step off a box, land, and immediately rebound into a maximal jump — the highest-intensity plyometric and the classic reactive-strength drill.
- Force-Velocity Curve2 minConcept · The inverse relationship between how much force a muscle can produce and how fast it shortens — heavy loads move slowly, light loads move fast.
- High Knees2 minExercise · A fast running-in-place/forward drill driving the knees high with quick ground contacts — builds knee drive, stride frequency, posture, and serves as a warm-up.
- Integrating Power with Strength Training2 minProgram Design · Strength is the foundation power is built on — develop a strength base first, then train power early in sessions and emphasize it within a periodized progression toward sport.
- Jumps in Place1 minExercise · Repeated low vertical jumps that land and immediately re-jump on the same spot — the lowest-intensity entry plyometric for grooving landing mechanics and the SSC.
- Landing Mechanics2 minSafety · Land soft and balanced — absorb through ankles-knees-hips with the knees tracking over the toes; a stiff or inward-collapsing landing is the main plyometric injury risk.
- Lateral Bound (Skater Bound)2 minExercise · A powerful sideways push off one leg to land and stabilize on the other — trains frontal-plane power for cutting and change of direction.
- Medicine-Ball Chest Pass2 minExercise · An explosive two-handed chest pass of a medicine ball to a wall or partner — a ballistic horizontal-push power drill that lets the load be released, avoiding end-range deceleration.
- Medicine-Ball Overhead Throw2 minExercise · An explosive overhead (forward or backward) medicine-ball throw using triple extension and the whole posterior chain — a total-body ballistic power drill.
- Medicine-Ball Rotational Throw2 minExercise · An explosive sideways/twisting throw of a medicine ball into a wall — trains transverse-plane (rotational) power for swinging, throwing, and cutting sports.
- Medicine-Ball Slam2 minExercise · Drive a medicine ball overhead then violently slam it to the floor — an explosive lat/trunk power drill and easy-to-scale conditioning tool.
- Olympic-Lift Derivatives for Power2 minSystem · Partial or simplified versions of the snatch and clean & jerk (power clean, hang clean, high pull, push press) used to train explosive triple extension and high power output.
- Plyometric Intensity Levels (Low to High)2 minConcept · Plyometric drills range from low-intensity (small jumps in place) to high-intensity (depth jumps, single-leg work); progress up the ladder only as competence and tolerance allow.
- Plyometric Joint Stress & Injury Risk2 minSafety · Plyometric landings generate ground-reaction forces several times body weight, so impact must be managed through prerequisites, technique, surface, volume, and recovery.
- Plyometric Prerequisites & Readiness Criteria2 minSafety · Before high-intensity plyometrics, an athlete should have a base of strength, sound landing/balance technique, and (for lower-body work) the ability to squat a meaningful multiple of body weight.
- Plyometric Progression2 minPrinciple · Advance plyometrics gradually — from low to high intensity, double-leg to single-leg, in-place to long-response to depth jumps — increasing one variable at a time.
- Plyometric Recovery (Between Reps, Sets & Sessions)2 minProgram Design · Plyometrics are quality work — use long rests so every contact is explosive, and leave 48-72 hours between hard plyometric sessions for the same muscles.
- Plyometric Surface & Footwear1 minSafety · Plyometrics need a surface that absorbs shock without being so soft it lengthens ground contact, plus supportive, well-cushioned, stable footwear.
- Plyometric Volume Guidelines (Foot Contacts)2 minProgram Design · Lower-body plyometric volume is counted in foot contacts per session — roughly 80-100 for beginners up to ~120-140+ for advanced athletes, with higher intensity requiring fewer contacts.
- Plyometrics (Definition)2 minConcept · Quick, powerful movements that use a rapid eccentric pre-stretch immediately followed by an explosive concentric action — training the stretch-shortening cycle to produce more power.
- Post-Activation Potentiation (PAP)2 minConcept · A near-maximal "conditioning" contraction temporarily boosts subsequent explosive performance — heavy work primes the muscle to produce more power for a few minutes.
- Power vs Strength vs Speed2 minConcept · Strength is how much force you can produce, speed is how fast you can move, and power is the product of the two — force applied quickly.
- Programming for Power (Sets, Reps, Rest & Placement)2 minProgram Design · Train power fresh and explosive — low reps with maximal intent, full recovery between sets, placed first in the session, on a base of strength.
- Programming for Speed (Distances, Recovery & Placement)2 minProgram Design · Sprint training is maximal-quality work — short, fully-recovered runs done fresh after warm-up, with distance chosen for acceleration vs max velocity.
- Rate of Force Development (RFD)2 minConcept · How quickly a muscle can build force — the slope of the force-time curve — which matters more than peak force when contact times are short.
- Reactive Agility2 minConcept · Agility performed in response to an unplanned stimulus — training the perception and decision-making that turn change-of-direction ability into game-like agility.
- Reactive Strength1 minConcept · The ability to switch quickly from absorbing force (eccentric) to producing force (concentric) — how well an athlete uses the stretch-shortening cycle.
- Resisted & Assisted Sprinting2 minSystem · Resisted sprints (sleds, hills, bands, parachutes) overload force and acceleration; assisted (overspeed) sprints (downhill, towing) push stride frequency above normal — both used carefully to nudge speed.
- Running / Sprint Form2 minConcept · Efficient sprint form is tall and braced with high front-side knee drive, dorsiflexed feet, ground contact under the hips, and a powerful shoulder-driven arm swing.
- SAQ Programming (Speed, Agility & Quickness)2 minProgram Design · Organize speed, agility, and quickness work as fresh, high-quality, low-volume training early in the session — progressing from closed/planned drills to open/reactive ones.
- Shuttle Run2 minExercise · Repeated back-and-forth sprints between two marks with a turn at each end — trains acceleration, deceleration, turning, and (with volume) anaerobic conditioning.
- Single-Leg Hops2 minExercise · Repeated hops on one leg for height or distance — a high-intensity drill that doubles per-limb load and builds single-leg reactive strength and stability.
- Skater Hops2 minExercise · Continuous side-to-side single-leg hops mimicking a speed skater — trains frontal-plane power, lateral stability, and reactive change-of-direction control.
- Sled Work (Pushes, Pulls, Resisted Marches)2 minExercise · Pushing or towing a weighted sled to add resistance to the drive phase — builds acceleration, horizontal force, and lower-body power (and conditioning at higher loads/volumes).
- Speed-Strength vs Strength-Speed2 minConcept · Two regions of the power continuum — strength-speed is heavier/slower explosive work, speed-strength is lighter/faster explosive work.
- Sprint Mechanics2 minConcept · Sprinting has two distinct phases — acceleration (driving from low and leaning) and maximum velocity (tall, cyclical, reactive) — each with its own posture and force-application pattern.
- Sprint-Form Drills Overview2 minSystem · A family of low-load drills (A/B skips, high knees, butt kicks, wall drills, dribbles) that isolate sprint-mechanics components so they can be grooved before full-speed running.
- Squat Jump1 minExercise · A maximal-effort vertical jump from a squat — the basic strength/power jump testing and training drill.
- Stretch-Shortening Cycle (SSC)2 minConcept · A rapid eccentric (stretch) immediately followed by a concentric (shortening) action produces more force than the concentric action alone — the engine behind plyometrics.
- T-Test (Agility Drill)2 minExercise · A T-shaped course combining a forward sprint, lateral shuffles to each side, and a backpedal — trains and tests multidirectional agility (forward, lateral, backward).
- The Three Phases of a Plyometric (Eccentric, Amortization, Concentric)2 minConcept · Every plyometric has three phases — a loading stretch (eccentric), a brief pause (amortization), and an explosive push (concentric); the shorter the middle phase, the more powerful the result.
- Tuck Jump1 minExercise · A vertical jump in which the knees are pulled up toward the chest at the apex, performed in repeated cycles — a moderate-intensity plyometric.
- Wall Drills (Acceleration)2 minExercise · Lean into a wall in a rigid forward-lean position and drive the knees, teaching the body line, positive shin angle, and front-side mechanics of the acceleration phase.
- Youth Plyometric & Power Considerations2 minSafety · Well-supervised, age-appropriate, low-to-moderate plyometrics are safe and beneficial for children and adolescents — the key is qualified coaching, technique, and conservative dosing, not avoidance.
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