Customer Reviews

Power Training for Sport: Plyometrics for Maximum Power Development

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Contrary to what another reviewer has said, plyometrics are perfectly safe when performed correctly by someone who already has a foundation of strength. While the high intensity training enthusiasts like to be dogmatic in their bashing of this type of training, it has been proven effective time and time again. In fact I had the opportunity to speak to a strength coach for the NFL who said most of the athletes who came to his team from a school that utilized high intensity training techniques seemed to be more susceptible to injuries. HIT training has it's place. But so do plyometrics. I have done them for years with no injuries resulting from them. Tudor Bompa is well respected in the field of strength training and for good reason. All of his books that I have read are excellent.

This was a good alternative to training for power with weights. Since not everyone can get to a place to workout. I found it helpful in giving me another method to train. I also liked the small variations of each jump along with the jumps being listed in a simple progression pattern.

Tudor Bompa's Power Training for Sport is informative along anatomical lines, but erroneous otherwise. This book promotes dangerous training techniques that offer very little for athletic improvement. For those who read this book and practice plyometrics, I pray for your safety. Authors Mike Mentzer and Ken Hutchins provide excellent information on weight training. (As well as Brian Johnston and others whose books are not found at Amazon.com) These authors will illuminate the proper way to improve strength - which is the only way to dramatically and safely increase power.

AMMENDMENT (12/14/02)
Having been accused of dogmatism, I feel the need to clarify my review. As for finding alternatives to gym-style workouts this text may very well be of use but as this is not it's primary purpose readers should probably look elsewhere.

That being said, I'd like very much to read the proof of plyometric exercise effectiveness for it is not what Mr. Bompa provides. The premise upon which I wrote my previous review is that the force a human can generate and the motion by which it is applied, are seperate. An athlete's physical performance is based on (1) the efficiency of motion, and (2) the force applied to that motion. Power is the synergy of these two factors. (Power = Force / Time)

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Tohji et al. (1991) found that subjects who used a combination of moderate speed and isometric (i.e., no movement) muscle contractions enhanced their maximal muscle power production significantly greater than a group that used both moderate and maximal speeds of movement.
Behm and Sale (1993) showed that subjects who trained one limb at 300 degrees per second and the opposite limb isometrically showed similar increases in high-speed power in both limbs.
1) Behm, D.G., Sale, D., Intended Rather than Actual Movement Velocity Determines Velocity-Specific Training Response, Journal of Applied Physiology, 74(1): 359-368, 1993.
2) Tohji, H., et al., Effects of Combined Training Programs on Force-Velocity Relation and Power Output in Human Muscle, Thirteenth International Congress on Biomechanics, (Marshall et al., eds.), University of Western Australia, Perth, 311-312,1991.
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*Information provided free of charge at www.i-a-r-t.com
(And no, I have no affiliation, but I do not wish to plagiarize.)

Given the evidence I have seen, read, and experienced via my own personal endeavors, improvement in any sport is predicated upon the advancement of strength and skill (and mentality - I suggest The Mental Game of Baseball by H. A. Dorfman, Karl Kuehl, the contents of which apply to any sport) and that the two can be achieved separately. The separation of the two is important because they are inherently safer independent than combined.

P.S. I can speak for no college, university nor NFL team. I do however find it difficult to take the safety advice of an NFL strength coach - unless, of course, he is speaking on the use of hyperdermic needles.