The development of Explosive Power
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Power is the ability to apply maximum strength in the shortest possible time. Think of jumping and throwing events, and Olympic weightlifting.
Power/ Explosive strength is the strength quality most relevant to sports and is something that has to be developed with specific training.
Maximal strength is an essential strength quality for all athletes to develop.
But you must realise that it takes about 0.3 to 0.4 second to develop maximal strength.
However, the time required to perform certain athletic actions is much shorter, therefore making it impossible to utilize 100% of one’s strength.
Sprint running 0.08 - 0.1 second
long jump 0.11 - 0.12 second
high jump 0.17 - 0.18 second
shot put 0.18 - 0.21 second
( Zatsiorsky and Kraemer, Science and practice of strength training)
Here’s the sad news: Developing Max strength only doesn’t guarantee you will be stronger and faster where it matters specifically for your sport.
But to complicate things, Power is dependant on Max strength.
Here’s how to put it simply:
Low speed = High force/ resistance.
High speed = Low force/ resistance.
There you have the basic idea behind training for explosive power.
It is a combination of 2 training methods. One day of Max effort, and one day of Dynamic effort.
You should already know how to train max effort. So let’s look at methods and exercise choice to train for explosive power.
Zatsiorsky and Kraemer, in “Science and practice of strength training” state the following:
(Italics are my words)
“A 1RM lift is composed of a high force component and a relatively low power component. It is not until the resistance is considerably lowered that the maximum amount of power can be produced in the movement.This is called the maximal mechanical power output.
Of dramatic importance when training for power is to choose exercises in which a limited amount of deceleration occurs over the range of motion. This requires a high velocity exercise that allows for continuous acceleration of the mass (jumps or throws, ballistic exercises).
If the mass cannot be released, the body will attempt to protect the joints by activating antagonist muscles and limiting the firing of the agonists ( it is like putting on the brakes early), making the exercise ineffective for power development (this is where resistance bands come in).
Power can also be developed with supplemental training of the stretch-shorten cycle using plyometric muscle actions prior to rapid shortening.
Such drills can help in power development by emphasizing the velocity component of the power equation.
It is imperative that one does not compromise the development of maximal strength, as any detraining of this part of the power equation can result in a power training plateau. Maximal force development is vital for improvements in power production.
Heavy resistance ( 90 to 100% of 1RM) must be included in training cycles.”
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Put simply, the most effective methods for explosive power training are: ballistic exercises, throws, jumps, plyometric exercises or coumpound lifts with the use of resistance bands.
Resistance bands shift the deceleration point by tricking the action of the antagonist muscles. The agonist muscles are free to contract maximally at high velocity throughout the whole range of motion.
The more you stretch a resistance band, the greater the resistance becomes. What it means is that you have to keep accelerating the movement all the way up to the lockout.
If you stop accelerating, the resistance bands make it near impossible to achieve a lockout.
It is a handy piece of equipment to have, as you will have more variety in your choice of exercises.
Some of the best exercises for power training are:
Bench throws, jump squats, jump step ups, shot put, hammer throws, plyometric chin-ups, swings, overhead swing throws, clean pulls, power cleans, jerks and power snatches.
Unless you are specifically training for weightlifting events, power cleans and power snatches are better suited because you do not have to dip so low under the weight, but effectively pull the weight over a longer distance.
Ballistic: relating/ characteristic to the motion of objects moving under their own momentum.
A ballistic exercise involves a burst of muscular activity followed by a phase of relaxation during which the motion of the weight continues.
Swings, cleans, clean pulls, jerks and snatches are ballistic exercises.
Jerks and snatches require maximum acceleration to achieve overhead fixation of the weight. In effect, the weight is being accelerated as if you were about to throw it, but you lock it overhead and fix it in a stable position. The arm muscles are minimally involved in the motion.
If you press out the weight to achieve a lockout, you have defeated the purpose of the exercise.
Remember to also work the split/ lunge variations of those exercises for improved athletic performance.
Guidelines
The optimal range of resistance for power training is in the 30-40% of 1RM range and up to 60-70% for some exercises such as the clean pull or when using compound exercises with resistance bands.
If we are talking about jumps squats, you have to use the 1RM of your quarter squat, not the 1RM of your full squat. Obviously you are way stronger in a quarter squat, so take that fact into account or the loading will be too little.
The optimal range for reps is 3 to 2 reps, done for 8 to12 sets.
When training dynamic effort/ explosive power, the focus is on developing maximum speed. Think quality work over quantity. This is the best way to improve your explosive power.
When you do 10 reps, the speed of execution after your third rep starts slowing down, defeating the purpose of training for power, unless you are training for power endurance events such as kettlebell sport.
Finally, keep the rest between sets short, 45 to 60 seconds sharp.
Pay attention to your technique, and take your training to a new level!
