Barbell Power Cleans As Deadlift/Squat Warm-up

[Kenny Croxdale]

Exactly. The idea is to turn on the nervous system, that's it. You don't even need to use jumps. For various reasons I don't do jumps, but I always warm up with KB swings prior to any type of workout, even if its an upper body workout. Having someone scare you would likely work just as well.

Kettlebell Swings...

are plyometric. When the bell swing back between the legs, it elicits the stretch reflex.

The bell bounces back out of the hole.

Kenny Croxdale

 

[Kenny Croxdale]

In simple English, performing an explosive exercise prior to training helps "turn your body on." Your nervous system gets turned on and gets you ready to lift fast."

Yes.

Kenny Croxdale

 

[MikeTheBear]

@kennycro@@aol.com I don't disagree at all. I do find that KB swings are "gentler" than a depth jump. When it comes to box jumps, there's always that fear that you won't make it and get bloody shins. No worry about that with swings.

 

[Kenny Croxdale]

@kennycro@@aol.com I don't disagree at all. I do find that KB swings are "gentler" than a depth jump. When it comes to box jumps, there's always that fear that you won't make it and get bloody shins. No worry about that with swings.

Kettlebell Swings "Gentler"

Overall, they are a gentler.

However, that in part is due to the fact the the majority individuals use are extremely light.

As I noted in a previous post, to maximize power output and elicit a greater stretch reflex with a Kettlebell Swing, loads of 50% to 100% of your body weight need to be used. That means if you weight 200 lbs, you need to preform Kettlebell Swings with 100 to 200 lbs.

That based on...

Are Heavy Kettlebell Swings Better Than Deadlifts? | T Nation
Dr Bret Contreras

Below are Contreras' Peak Vertical Force Measurement with a 140 lb Kettlebell.

Squat Style Swings with 140 lb Kettlebell produced...

2,431-2,444 Newtons of Peak Vertical Force

278-353 Newtons of Peak Horizontal Force

Squat Style means you sit back (Squat) in the movement. This method load the quads and glutes.

Hip Hinge Style with a 140 lb Kettlebell produced...

2,325-2,550 Newtons of Peak Vertical Force

499-520 Newtons of Peak Horizontal Force

Force = Mass X Acceleration

The stretch reflex action of a 140 lb Kettlebell dropping/falling all they way back is magnified beyond "gentler"; it's aggressive.

I've worked up to 175 lb "Kettlebell Swings" with a Hungarian Core Blaster.

Box Jumps

The "fear that you won't make it and get bloody shins" bluntly means the individual preforming the jumps is a idiot is using a box that is too high.

Selecting a box to jump up on that you question is driven by ego, NOT common sense. I have not empathy for individual who injure themselves doing stupid thing like that. An individual like this are a danger to themselves and others.

As Forrest Gump said, "Stupid is as stupid does."

The box height chosen to jump up and land on should be low enough to ensure missing the landing is NEVER an issue. Individuals should select a box where they have an ample amount of landing clearance.

Kenny Croxdale

 

[Anna C]

On the subject of plyometrics, and whether or not everyone should be doing them, here is what my NASM-CPT manual says.

"Individual clients must posses adequate core strength, joint stability, and range of motion, and have the ability to balance efficiently before performing any plyometric exercises."

"Plyometric training is often perceived by many to be too dangerous, and as potentially increasing the risk of injury. However, plyometric training has a systematic progression sequence that allows a client to begin with less demanding exercises and progress to more demanding exercises as he or she adapts. This is no different than any other form of training. If too-advanced exercises are assigned to a client, he or she will not have the ability to perform them correctly and will compensate. This leads to synergistic dominance (synergists compensating for weak prime movers) and faulty movement patterns. When placed within the proper programming scheme with proper progression, plyometric training can be a vital component to achieving optimal performance of any activity at any level of ability. For example, a 60-year-old woman and a 25-year-old male professional athlete may not both need to train for maximal strength. However, they both need stabilization, strength, and endurance as well as the ability to produce force quickly to perform daily activities efficiently. Therefore, the ability to react and produce sufficient force to avoid a fall or an opponent is paramount."

 

[Kenny Croxdale]

On the subject of plyometrics, and whether or not everyone should be doing them, here is what my NASM-CPT manual says.

"Individual clients must posses adequate core strength, joint stability, and range of motion, and have the ability to balance efficiently before performing any plyometric exercises."

General Rule

A simple, easy rule of thumb is that an individual needs to be able to Squat with at least 150% of their body weight before beginning a plyometrics.

"Plyometric training is often perceived by many to be too dangerous, and as potentially increasing the risk of injury. However, plyometric training has a systematic progression sequence that allows a client to begin with less demanding exercises and progress to more demanding exercises as he or she adapts. This is no different than any other form of training.

Progressive Plyometric Sequence

Yes, as the manual states there is a progressive plyometric sequence dependent on your strength level. The progressive plyometric sequence is also dependent on how aggressive you want to be with your plyometric training.

The information in the progressive plyometric sequence is addressed in an article that I co-wrote years ago, "Squatting: To Be Explosive, Training Explosive".

"...that the athlete work his/her way sequentially from #1 to #4 over the course of their squat training program (based on Chu's periodization of plyometric training (1992). This will allow the lifter to establish a base of plyometric conditioning and then progress up through the more difficult activities while minimizing the chance of injury and maximizing power. Care should be taken when performing these activities."

Chu's one of the leader in the field of plyometric training, primarily working with world class jumpers. Chu's "Periodization of Plyometric Training" is from his book, Jumping Into Plyometrics.

The beauty of this book is its simplicity and that it is cheap, about $5.00 plus shipping on Amazon.

[

... a 60-year-old woman and a 25-year-old male professional athlete may not both need to train for maximal strength. However, they both need stabilization, strength, and endurance as well as the ability to produce force quickly to perform daily activities efficiently. Therefore, the ability to react and produce sufficient force to avoid a fall or an opponent is paramount."

Plyometrics for Seniors

This point reinforces the information that I provide in an earlier post regarding Tom Morris, MS Exercise Physiology (a specialist who trains Seniors) application of plyometrics for Senior and the article that I posted regarded on the benefits of plyometrics for Seniors.

Incorrect NASM Assessment

A 25 year-old male professional athlete NEEDS to implement a "Limit Strength" (Maximum Strength) Training Program at some point in their training; dependent on the sport.

That because the Foundation Of Power and Speed are built on "Limit Strength" (Maximum Strength).

Thus, the primary focus for ANY individual who wants to be able to display greater Power Output or Speed is to increase "Limit Strength", an individual 1 Repetition Max.

Example

Let use Shot Putters as an example. Research has demonstrate the Power Output of a Shot Putter rivals the Power Output of Olympic Lifters. Olympic Lifter have some, if not the highest, Power Output measurements on record.

Which Shot Putter of these two will produce the longest throw, producing the greatest Power Output?

Lifter A: Squats 300 lbs, Incline Presses 200 lbs.

Lifter B: Squats 500 lbs, Incline Presses 350 lbs.

With that said, for optimal Power to be developed, at some point, Power and/or Speed Training MUST be implemented into an athletes program.

Let's now look at...

Power

"First let’s define what power is. Power is equal to force multiplied by distance divided by time.

Power = Force x Distance/Time

Since the terms force and strength are often used interchangeably and distance divided by time is the same thing as speed, power can more simply be defined as strength multiplied by speed.

Therefore,

Strength x Speed = POWER.

Since strength and speed are components of power, increasing one while neglecting the other limits total power development. Unfortunately, many players focus on strength because they are familiar with this traditional and well-established mode of training. Because strength and speed have a multiplicative impact on power, athletes can make greater gains if they develop both components. For example, if an arbitrary strength score for an athlete was 2, and the athlete's arbitrary speed score also was 2, the hypothetical power rating would be:

2 x 2 = 4

Doubling strength without altering speed would double power:

4 x 2 = 8

If the same athlete made only a 50 percent gain in strength and an equal gain in speed, the power rating would be:

3 x 3 = 9" (Brittenham, 1997)

Source: "Plyometric Bench Press Training For More Strength and Power" [Plyometric bench training for 1rm increases]

Kenny Croxdale

 

[Steve Freides]

@LoneRider, I'm not sure what your goals are, but we should mention that, for a long time, a beginner should just "do the thing" - if you want to get better at deadlifting, deadlift and don't spend time on the "assistance" exercises a more advanced trainee might do.

-S-

 

[MikeTheBear]

@kennycro@@aol.com I have some nerve damage in my right leg that kind of messed up my explosiveness - not that I was all that explosive to begin with. Some days my leg works better than other days. But as you said, no need to be stupid which is why I really don't do box jumps. Instead I do KB swings as a warm up. If the workout calls for barbell snatches followed by squats, I definitely find that my squats, both front and back, are better and stronger after the snatches.

 

[Kenny Croxdale]

That makes sense to me. So by these definitions, a box-floor-box jump is a plyometric movement. A floor-to-box jump might be slightly plyometric if you lower yourself very quickly in order to jump up. A floor-to-box jump is not plyometric if you do it slow enough or pause, avoiding the stretch reflex.

Yes.

I think this was Wendler's point, that it's the jump or throw that is important for his purposes, not the plyometric aspect of it. Making it plyometric goes beyond the need. "In simple English, performing an explosive exercise prior to training helps "turn your body on." Your nervous system gets turned on and gets you ready to lift fast."

Yes and No

Yes, preforming an Explosive Movement turn on the Central Nervous System; it innervates the "Super" Fast Type IIb/x Muscle Fiber.

With that in mind let look at the...

Three Types Of Explosive Training Movements
Source: Fundamentals of Special Strength Training in Sports/Yuri Verkhoshansky

Verkhoshansky is the "Father of Plyometrics". The Fundamentals of Special Strength Training in Sports
is a brilliant piece of work.

Before examining the Three Types of Explosive Training Method, we need to define...

Ballistic

Ballistic mean that a body or an object become airborne such as: Jumping into the air or throwing a Slam Ball, etc.

1) Explosive-Isometric (Ballistic): This is defined as an Explosive Movement perform from a paused position. The end of the range of the movement is concluded via "Going Ballistic", airborne.

Examples:

a) Preforming a Power Clean from the floor from a dead stop.

b) Preforming a High Jump from Paused Bent Knee Squat position, etc.

2) Explosive-Ballistic: This movement is generated with some movement prior to "Going Ballistic".

Examples:

a) A Shot Putter's Spin or Glide prior to launching a the Shot.

b) Performing a Box Squat by rocking forward on the Box before driving up. To ensure, power is developed and maximized throughout the entire range of the movement, the intent should be to "Go Ballistic", airbone.

3) Explosive-Reactive-Ballistic: This is a Plyometric where the stretch reflex is performed prior to "Going Ballistic".

Examples:

a) Quickly dropping down into a Partial Squat, then rebounding back up in a Jump.

b) A Touch and Go Bench Press, obtaining a slight bounce off the chest prior to driving the weight up. Again, to ensure maximum power is developed throughout the full range of the movement, the intent should be to "Go Ballistic", throw the bar up in the air.

Accommodating Resistance

Since "Going Ballistic" with the Bench Press is a bit difficult. Attaching Bands/Chain and/or Bungees allows lifter to maintain power through a greater range of the movement.

However, Squat Jumps and Bench Press Throws are effective at developing power.

The Smith Machine Bench Press Throw is an effective method of increasing power while ensuring greater safety.

Different Methods

Each of these method elicits a different training response. A good program will utilize each at some point in program, depend on the training objective.

However, the ONLY method the develops the Stretch Reflex is the Explosive-Reactive-Ballistic Training Method.
Compensatory Acceleration Training, CAT

Dr Fred Hatfield coin this phrase/method, circa 1980. It revolves around pushing/pulling heavy loads as hard and fast as you can.

Compensatory Acceleration Training ensures "Super" Fast Type IIb/x innervates and developed to a great extent when heavy load are used.

Research (Dr J.M. McBride) demonstrated that the "Intent to push/pull in training with heavy load is the primary component in eliciting the "Super" Fast Type IIb/x Muscle Fiber".

The Take Home Mess

If you want develop Explosive Power, be Explosive or Try to be Explosive with every movement, regardless of the load.

Kenny Croxdale