By Wayne Burke
-November 16th, 2015- Plyometrics are a great training tool that every lacrosse player should be including in their program. Simply stated, plyometric training training teaches you how to utilize a stretch in your muscle to produce maximum force. To demonstrate this more clearly try this. Place your right hand on your right leg. While keeping your palm flat, lift your right index finger off your leg and slam it into your leg as hard as you can. Try this a couple of times. Now, still keep your right hand flat and use your left hand to pull that right index finger back fast and release it immediately. That snap and increased force production is plyometrics. This translates in your game whenever you stop and start, change direction, cut and shoot.
Plyometrics aren’t doing high volumes of box jumps on really high boxes to impress people. You’ll only end up scraping your shins and looking like an idiot. Every time we see one of these video fails, Coach Sean Holmes likes to call it “sweet shin music.”
The first phase of progressive plyometric training is the Deceleration Phase. This is the ability to slow down and display body control and balance (eccentric control). This is also where we also teach jumping (2 feet) or hopping (1 foot). When you jump or hop, you should be fully extending your ankle, knee and hip. The landings should be as quiet as possible and you should land in an athletic position. It takes a fair amount of strength to stop yourself quietly, with control. You also have to be strong enough to stop yourself from falling or sinking too deep on the landing. This is the reason we use boxes or steps to jump up on in Phase 1. This is not to make the drill harder, it’s actually to make it easier by eliminating the force of gravity so that you can succeed in stopping and creating what we call good stiffness.
The drill below is an example of a phase 1 lateral hop and stick. Full extension of the ankle, knee and hip with a soft, controlled and quiet landing. Single leg lateral hops progressions should be done jumping off both the inside and outside of each foot as demonstrated in the video.
Plyometric drills when done properly should only be done for 3-4 sets for 5-6 reps each, to maximize the training effect and help reduce injury.
Tags: acceleration, agility, change of direction, lacrosse training, lacrosse workouts, muscle activation, Notre Dame Lacrosse Strength and Conditioning, Power, speed, Speed Training, stability, Strength Training
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