Week 2: What Kind of Training is Best?

Strength, Power, and Plyometrics. These are the 3 main types of exercises that will be used during the program but what are the benefits to each? Simply put… the following types of exercises can generally be described (in the context of this program) as…

Strength: Traditional weightlifting movements. Ex: Squats, Deadlifts, etc. (Strength-Speed)

Power: Explosive movements with weight done at low volumes. Ex: Hang Cleans, Snatches, etc. (Peak Power)

Plyometrics: Explosive movements without weight or with low weight usually done at higher volumes. Ex: Box Jumps, Hurdle Hops, etc. (Speed-Strength/Maximum Velocity)

So which is the best? Unfortunately, its complicated. Fortunately, they should all be used! Think of each type of exercise hitting different criteria which is reflected in the graph below. Strength exercises fit into the “strength-speed” category, power exercises fit into the “power” category, and plyometrics fit into the “speed-strength” category.

I found that using super credible and scientific sources such as the National Centre for Biotechnology Information proved to be useful in knowing what I’m researching is legitimate…but it was also way over my head and advanced. It wasn’t until roughly 2500 words later when I came across a table chart that compared data where I finally went “oh thats what this all kind of leads too” and I (cherry picked) came to my conclusions then. Learning things through Youtube channels such as The Movement System made things a lot easier to grasp and allowed us to view the movements/lifts how they were expected to be done.

Sources

• Sport Science Insider
• National Centre for Biotechnology Information
• The Movement System

To see how these different types of exercises are being incorporated, check out the video below!