How to Increase Power for Sports

[MrzDiva]

TweetWhen athletes improve their power, they often improve their sports performance dramatically. Quick movement backed up by strength is the essence of physical power. Football, basketball, soccer, and rugby all demand heavy use of power to accomplish team goals and score goals. Golfers need a powerful swing. Swimmers win races with powerful strokes. Tennis players must serve and return powerfully. There are several ways to increase power.

Ballistics

Ballistics is a form of movement that is done at a high rate of speed with a fast twitch response of opposing muscle groups. Ballistics movements can be used in power training because of their great ability to improve speed, strength and coordination of muscles. Some examples to include in your workout are snatches, push presses, power cleans, and bench throws.

The common theme in ballistics power training for sports is that strong speed is developed through acceleration and release of weight. There should be more force than resistance, meaning that the weight should not be extremely heavy. Weights of thirty percent of 1rep max should be sufficient to develop those fast twitch muscles. Ballistics exercises which use heavier weights usually involve specialized equipment.

Kettleballs and Medicine Balls

Kettleballs and medicine balls can be used as another form of ballistics training to increase power for sports. Medicine balls are great for the type of throw and release ballistics exercise that develops those fast-twitch muscles in the upper body, as well as from the core muscles. Swings, cleans and snatches can all be done with kettleballs rather than standard weights.

Because of the way kettleballs are held and moved, they develop the hip thrust muscles particularly well. The hips are key elements in nearly every sports movement, from the basketball jump to the football tackle to the baseball throw. If you watch an elite athlete, you will see that much of his power for these movements comes from his hips.

Plyometrics

Plyometrics offer another avenue for power training in sports. Many plyometrics exercises look like exaggerated hopping and jumping, but they are actually thought out precisely. When an athlete does a plyometrics jump or leap, chances are that he is developing explosive power. Those power exercises might even be designed specifically with his own sport in mind.

Plyometrics and ballistics not only develop the muscles, but they also develop the neurological connections as well. It takes immediate response from the muscles to achieve power at the moment it is needed. This is very important for power in sports, where action takes place quickly and without warning.

If increasing power in sports were easy, more people would be strong, powerful athletes. The only way to increase your power in sports is through work, practice and dedication. Players who achieve this blend of muscular strength and neural responsiveness have more power, and a better chance of success.

[ZOOT]

TweetI recently added the kettle ball to my workouts and it's a whole new experience..lol

[MrzDiva]

Tweetlol How's that working out for you? When I use to train with them , I use to hate them cuz they kicked my butt lol

[ZOOT]

Tweet

lol How's that working out for you? When I use to train with them , I use to hate them cuz they kicked my butt lol

EXACTLY!!!! I DIE..LOL

[MrzDiva]

TweetLOL.. Well yanno what that means? It means its working ! . Its a shame that pain has to tell you that lol.