Boost Your Performance With Plyometrics

March 17, 2025

Every time a football player makes a tackle, a soccer player pivots on the field or a basketball player leaps up to dunk the ball, they use plyometric power — explosive movement driven by the force and speed of contracting muscles.

“I always recommend plyometrics to anyone who's looking to improve their game in general,” says Peter Christofferson, a strength and conditioning coach for T3 Performance at University Hospitals Drusinsky Sports Medicine Institute. He explains what plyometric exercise is and how it can benefit athletes and others.

What Is a Plyometric Exercise?

Plyometrics are resistance exercises that use quick bursts of high-impact exercise to build strength and increase speed, balance and agility. Most, but not all exercises, involve jumping. “Think about football, soccer and basketball,” says Christofferson. “It's all about putting your foot in the ground and being quick and reactive off the ground.”

Like many sports coaches, Christofferson frequently uses plyometrics to train athletes to get off the ground faster and improve their performance. “For something to be a plyometric, it needs a takeoff and a landing in less than a quarter of a second, so it has to be incredibly fast,” he says. Plyometric exercises don’t require any equipment. They can be done anywhere you can sprint, hop or jump.

4 Plyometric Exercises for Beginners

Some of the best basic plyometric exercises for beginners are little hops and jumps that go from one point to another, like pogo hops, depth jumps, drop jumps and single-leg hops.

Pogo hop: Lower into a squat position, jump up and bounce in place. Try to get off the ground as quick as you can.
Depth jump: Step off the edge of an elevated surface. Bend knees to a quarter squat position as you hit the floor, push into the ground, then bounce as high as you can.
Drop jump: Drop off a surface, land on the ground, and bounce as quickly as you can while bending your legs only minimally.
Single-leg hopping variation: Hop in a straight line on one leg, aiming for a little distance and height.

Benefits of Plyometrics Training

Plyometric training can benefit athletes and recreational exercisers in many ways, by increasing muscle strength, power and endurance.

Other benefits of plyometrics may include:

Enhanced physical fitness.
Ability to jump higher, sprint faster and become more agile.
Faster reaction time and capacity to quickly change direction.
Better balance and coordination, even in older adults.

The benefits of plyometrics extend beyond the sports typically associated with jumping and sprinting. “From a skills standpoint, the ability to be light on your feet, pivot quickly, and pop off the ground from a standstill into a high jump, is going to go a long way in any sport these athletes play,” says Christofferson.

Plyometric training can also reduce the risk of injuries, like ankle sprains, that can occur with sudden intensity changes. This is common when athletes return to practice or a sport after the off-season, and the intensity rises dramatically.

Getting Started With Plyometrics

It’s always a good idea to consult with your doctor before starting a new training program, but Christofferson says that if you don’t have injuries or other problems in your lower body, you should be able to safely incorporate plyometrics into your warm-ups or fitness program.

Proper technique is key, whether you’re an athlete or not. Christofferson recommends that all beginners start with a coach who can guide their plyometric training. “It’s a lot of force on the lower body,” he says, “which can lead to injuries if you’re doing too much too fast.”

He encourages easing into plyometrics with low-impact exercises, and gradually increasing intensity and volume. Using a person’s health history, training background and fitness level as a guide, Christofferson starts with basic exercises, and follows a “more reps, less intensity” approach. “I always like to work from ground zero, just to be safe,” he says. “You can keep plyometric exercise in small doses and it will still have a good benefit.”