March 6, 2025 • 44 mins
Most runners focus on endurance and strength training—but what if explosive power was the missing piece to better running?
In this milestone 400th episode of the Real Life Runners Podcast, we’re diving into plyometrics—a powerful training tool that can help you run faster, improve efficiency, and reduce injury risk.
Many runners assume plyos are just for sprinters or elite athletes, but the truth is, every runner can benefit from adding explosive movements into their training. Whether you want to improve stride power, reduce ground contact time, or stay injury-free as you age, plyometrics could be the key.
🎧 In this episode, you’ll learn:
✅ What plyometrics are and why they matter for runners
✅ The science behind explosive movement and how it improves running efficiency
✅ How plyos can help runners over 40 maintain speed and strength
✅ The best beginner-friendly plyometric exercises for runners
✅ How to add plyos into your training safely and effectively
If you’ve ever felt like your stride was missing “pop” or struggled with slower ground contact times and injuries, this episode is for you! Learn how to train smarter, build power without burnout, and take your running to the next level.
Have you ever tried plyometric training? What’s your experience with it? Let’s chat! DM me or comment on Instagram—I’d love to hear from you.
Join the Team! --> https://www.realliferunners.com/team
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Angie (00:00):
It's episode 400 of the Real Life Runners podcast, and
I'm so glad that you're here.
For today's episode, we arediving into a game changing
training tool that can help yourun faster, improve efficiency,
and reduce injury risk.
All about the power ofplyometrics.
So many runners think thatplyometrics are just for
sprinters or for elite athleteswhere some have never even heard
(00:23):
of them.
But the truth is every runnercan benefit from adding
explosive movements into theirtraining.
So whether you want to increaseyour stride power, improve your
running economy, or stay injuryfree as you age, or just get
faster and stronger, plyometricscould be the missing piece in
your training.
So today, We're breaking it alldown.
We're talking about whatplyometrics actually are and why
(00:44):
they're different from strengthtraining.
The science behind whyplyometrics make you faster and
more efficient, how to useplyometrics safely, even if
you've never done them beforeand the best plyometric
exercises for runners.
So let's jump in.
(01:21):
What's up, Runners?
And yes, that pun was definitelyintended, because plyometrics
are also known as jump training.
Kevin (01:27):
I can't believe you took the let's jump in joke.
I was so ready for the let'sjump joke myself.
I was, I was gonna dominate thatone.
It was gonna be great.
Angie (01:34):
Puntastic.
Kevin (01:35):
It was Yes.
It was ponderful.
Angie (01:37):
Oh, it will be anyway.
So welcome to today's episode tothis week.
Um, first of all, thank you somuch for those of you that have
been on this journey with us.
Can you believe that we haverecorded 400 episodes?
Kevin (01:51):
That's even more in metric.
Angie (01:52):
It is.
Yes.
Okay.
I was not expecting that one,but I mean, what a cool journey,
you know?
I mean, I can.
Came up with this idea back in20 16 20 17?
2017.
2017.
Yeah.
Hey, like, Hey, Kevin, let'sstart a podcast.
And you're like, what are youtalking about?
Like, did you even then I,
Kevin (02:11):
I had a seizure in response to it.
Angie (02:12):
No, stop it.
It was not, I mean, you did havea seizure relatively soon after
that.
But it was not in response tomy, it was not
Kevin (02:20):
in response.
to
Angie (02:21):
my podcast idea.
Um.
So what a cool and wild journeythis has been.
I mean, we can probably talk allday and reflect about how.
Great.
The last 400 episodes have been,um, we've really recorded and
released a podcast once a weekfor the last seven plus years,
(02:42):
which is wild.
Kevin (02:43):
Like there were a few episodes in there that were like
interview episodes that wedidn't get together, but I love
the, yeah,
Angie (02:48):
so I've recorded 400, but you have not.
This
Kevin (02:51):
is true.
There have been some where I'velost my voice also.
Angie (02:54):
There have.
Yeah.
So there was a couple, I've donea couple solo episodes, some
interview episodes, which wedefinitely have more of those
in, uh, planned for this year,so I'm really excited to be
bringing on some really stellarguests.
And you're going to have some ofyour own interview episodes as
well, where it's just you andnot me.
Kevin (03:11):
Also true.
I don't know
Angie (03:13):
how I feel about that.
I
Kevin (03:14):
know you're going to jump.
You're going to jump in on thoseones also, but I've really
enjoyed just being able to spendthis time with you and discuss
all of this to help other peopleand try and improve everybody.
We've clearly improved ourpodcasting.
If you go back and listen to.
Episode one, we sound a littlebit like robots.
Um, and now we sound much, somore comfortable.
Angie (03:31):
And thank you to all of you who have been with us since
episode one, or those of youthat found the podcast and then
decided to go all the way backto the beginning.
I remember, um, I got an emailfrom somebody.
a couple years ago that said hehad found the podcast and was so
excited because he had gone backand started listening from
episode one, which is bingingall the episodes.
(03:54):
And he found himself coming upon like 2019 and the beginning
of 2020, knowing that thepandemic was going to hit, you
know, he's like, so what's goingto happen in the podcast.
So that was, I thought that wascute.
Kevin (04:06):
Yeah, it's, it's really been quite the, the journey.
Our podcasting has improved andI think that it's because we
just started doing a thing.
Like we weren't like, Hey, we'regoing to be awesome at
podcasting.
So now let's, now let's startactually hitting the record
button.
We just started to record, whichI think ties in really nicely to
today's episode is you don't getreally good at plyometrics and
(04:26):
then incorporate them into yourtraining.
It's just a thing that you startkind of easing into.
Angie (04:31):
Yeah, that's true.
And so before we jump into theepisode, I am going to make a
request as a way for you to helpus celebrate our 400th episode,
can you please hit pause rightnow on this episode and go leave
us a review.
Even if you already left us one,you can leave us another review.
If you have not left us areview, please, if you could
(04:52):
leave us a review, that would besuch a great way for you to Say
thank you for the last 400episodes for you to help
celebrate 400 episodes of theReal Life Runners podcast with
us.
Uh, we obviously wouldappreciate those five star
reviews and especially if youleave us a review, um, you know,
a couple sentences because youcan leave a rating.
Oh, that's the other word.
Rating and a review.
The rating is how many stars yougive us and then the review is
(05:15):
you can write as little as onesentence if you want or a couple
words, um, or just one thingthat.
This podcast has added to yourrunning or to your life.
One way that we have helped youto improve as a runner, that
would be so amazing.
So thank you in advance foreverybody that takes me up on
that.
And that, you know, goes, goesforward with that request and
(05:35):
answers that, that call in thatrequest, because I would just
love to help more runners.
That's really our goal.
On this podcast, we produce thispodcast every single week for
free.
We don't have any sponsors.
If you notice, there's nocommercials or anything like
that.
So we're literally just doingthis out of our desire to help
more people.
And if you could help us to helpmore people and to reach more
(05:55):
people by leaving us a review,that really does help us.
Like when people go into Applepodcasts or Spotify and they're
searching for running podcasts,the ones that are rated more
highly tend to pop up.
You know, first, so that willhelp more people to find us and,
um, if you share it on socialmedia or share it with a friend,
that's another great way for usto spread the word as well.
Kevin (06:15):
I should go in and review the ones where you're
interviewing other people andI'm not on them.
It feels, it feels awkward togive myself a five star review,
but the ones where I'm notthere, they're phenomenal
episodes.
Oh,
Angie (06:24):
thanks.
That, we had a great one lastweek with Dr.
Christine Lee.
I've been getting a lot ofreally good messages about how
powerful that.
Episode was for people.
Kevin (06:34):
Yes.
I have not I'm like part waythrough that episode.
It's a good one I'm just partway through.
Angie (06:38):
All right, so let's jump in to today's episode Nailed it.
We're gonna probably do quite afew of those.
So hopefully you don't get tootired It's gonna be the
Kevin (06:46):
same pun every time.
It's always jumping.
Angie (06:48):
Yeah, so plyometrics have been in athletics for a very
long time, and they weretraditionally known as jump
training.
Hence all of the jumping punsthat we're making.
So let's first talk aboutexactly what they are other than
just jumping and why they matterfor runners.
So, So throughout this episode,you're going to kind of hear us
referring to a spring metaphorlike so think about a spring,
(07:13):
not like a slinky, a very loosespring, like a very tight spring
where like your garage, likeyour garage spring, you do not
want to get your fingers stuckin those springs or let those
things pop off because that willlike take off your limb.
Kevin (07:24):
Yes.
Yeah, no, that'll shoot rightthrough you.
Angie (07:26):
So yes, we're talking about like a spring that when
you compress it, it buildstension.
And then once you release it, itsprings back and creates power,
right?
So if you think of your legs,like springs, the more stiffness
that you have in your legs orthe more stiff that spring is,
the harder it is to compress.
But also when you release it,the more spring back it has, the
(07:49):
more recoil that spring has.
And it's the same thing goesfor.
Your muscles and your tendonsspecifically your tendons.
Okay, like when we talk aboutthe spring back We're not as
much talking about the muscles.
We are to an extent but it'sit's a kind of a different Way
that your muscles operate thedifferent benefit to your
muscles from plyometrics then toyour tendons But when we talk
(08:13):
about your tendons, I alwayslike to think of the Achilles
because it's jumping and sothat's an is easy one for us to
visualize.
And we all know where theAchilles tendon is.
So when you compress it, you'restoring energy.
And then once you push off theground and you're like, you
basically release it, thatenergy gets transferred to help
push you up or forward if you'rea runner.
So it's giving you essentiallyfree speed without extra effort,
(08:37):
just because you are utilizingthis passive energy reserve that
your tendons can
Kevin (08:44):
Yeah.
I mean, that's why there,there's a lot of running coaches
out there that suggest thatrunning is generally a passive
action that it's at that one legkind of moves and it doesn't
Angie (08:54):
feel passive at
Kevin (08:56):
all.
Like the first time I heardsomebody that was like, they
were adamant.
They're like, no, no running isa passive thing.
If you just lean forward, youtake one step.
The next leg will naturally moveforward in response to your
first leg moving forward.
You've got like the fall reflexand your body literally just
keeps kind of bounding forward.
I'm like, that doesn't seemright, but it's.
It's part, I agree partially,
Angie (09:15):
it is partially true because I would say that running
is reflexive action than apassive action.
Kevin (09:21):
Yeah, I think they were trying to equate those two words
and I didn't fully agree, but Iget that it's reflexive.
Um, so where do we actually gowith plyometrics?
Like what specifically isplyometrics?
Cause I remember when I did thisin like.
Junior high, I was trying topretend like I was going to be
really good at basketball.
I was thoroughly confident inseventh grade I was going to be
in the NBA.
(09:41):
And so I had like a two by fourin the backyard that I was like
jumping over.
My dad had this all set up forme.
I'm sure that he had a bookinvolved that led to my
plyometric just jumping all overthe backyard.
Is that what it is?
Do I have to get a two by four?
Angie (09:53):
We, I mean, you can absolutely get a two by four and
put it in our backyard if you'dlike to.
There's some falling off of ourfence right now so that you
could maybe use one of those.
But That's why I think that I'mglad you brought that up because
a lot of runners or a lot ofpeople they think about
plyometrics Like that, you knowin jump sports, right like
basketball volleyball Sportsthat obviously require jumping.
(10:17):
They're like, oh, yeah, ofcourse You would do jump
training because in basketballand volleyball it matters how
high you can jump and so peopleEquate it with that but don't
always necessarily equate it toWith running and basically
plyometrics help train your bodyto be springier, which helps you
to push off the ground fasterand more powerfully.
(10:38):
So plyometrics basically arethese quick explosive movements
that often involve jumping,hopping, bounding, those kinds
of things, and they involverapid muscle contractions.
Okay, that is the key toplyometrics is that they are
very quick.
Movements that involve the rapidcompression and release of
muscles and tendons.
(10:59):
So these are different thantraditional strength training
because strength training ismore of like slow, controlled
movements, whereas plyometricsfocus on speed, elasticity, and
power.
So I would put plyometrics kindof under the strength umbrella.
Like if we're looking at a verybroad um, umbrella because they
do make you stronger, they makeyou faster, they increase your
(11:20):
power, but they're kind of likea different leg than traditional
strength training.
Kevin (11:26):
Okay.
So they are a hundred percentnot replacing strength training.
I just want to, I want to dropthat down as a clear statement.
You can't just be like, allright, plyometric sounds more
fun.
Can I avoid strength training?
That is a no.
Angie (11:38):
That is a definite no.
And it's actually.
Important for you to have a baseof strength training before you
jump into plyometrics nailed it.
I did it again But essentiallywhen you think of running
running it is a series of jumpsIt's a series of plyometric
movements where you are actuallyjumping or bounding from one
foot to another and with eachstride your muscles and your
(12:02):
tendons absorb the force andthen push you forward like you
were just saying like in A lotof it, you know, a lot of that
action does happen quote unquotepassively like where you are
storing and releasing energybecause that's one of the ways
that elites set themselves apartfrom more recreational types of
runners is that they've learnednot only do they have ridiculous
(12:23):
genetic Genetics behind them,you know, and, uh, but they have
also learned how to maximizetheir running economy and
efficiency so that they canutilize all of that passive
return of energy.
So basically what happens isevery with every step your your
body exerts a force on theground and then the ground do.
It exerts what's called a groundreaction force.
Kevin (12:44):
Thank you, Newton.
I was
Angie (12:45):
going to say, you're the physics teacher.
This is
Kevin (12:47):
our third law.
Angie (12:47):
Right, so the ground reaction force, so the third law
is for every action there's anequal and opposite reaction.
Kevin (12:53):
Yeah, but that, when Newton said action and reaction,
it always messes people upbecause he used the word action
and reaction as a synonym forforce.
For every force, there's anequal and opposite force.
So when you're foot hits theground, the ground hits right
back up on your foot.
Angie (13:08):
With the same exact force.
They match each other.
Otherwise, your foot would gothrough the ground.
Kevin (13:12):
Yes, which would be tragic.
Angie (13:14):
Well, and that's one of the reasons why, like, running
on ice, for example, like,people, your foot can go through
the ice or, you know, Or thesnow, if you're,
Kevin (13:21):
if you're, uh, Yeah.
What's it called?
Where your foot just drops allthe way in?
Pulling, like, uh, No
Angie (13:26):
idea.
Kevin (13:29):
Nope.
Angie (13:30):
Nope.
Don't don't have it.
Don't have it.
Okay.
I don't know what you're talkingabout, but yeah, so that's one
of the things that happens isthat ground reaction force is
essentially pushing up on yourbody and helping to push you
forward if your body is at theright angle and if you're
utilizing the forces properly,
Kevin (13:45):
right?
If your body is at the rightangle.
So when we talk about running isessentially Jumping from one
foot to the next.
I've seen people that that'swhat it looks like.
They're running.
They literally look like they'rebounding from one foot to the
next.
And like, well, that, that doesnot look efficient at all.
That's
Angie (14:01):
not, you're correct.
Kevin (14:02):
It looks remarkably inefficient.
If you've ever watched like theOlympic long jumpers, their
first few steps are super longbounds down the runway.
And it's trying to kind of getthem to the point where they're
able to put out this huge amountof.
Force and power with everystride, but it's a remarkably
inefficient way to run.
There's a reason why they don'teven cover like a straightaway
(14:23):
of the track when they're doingthat, because it's super
inefficient to run thatdirection.
And there's other people thatjust shuffle the entire time.
That's like the completeopposite of bounding along.
If you're shuffling, you're notgoing to get much rebound off
your leg either, because you'renot hitting the ground with very
much force.
Cause you're never reallypicking your foot up.
Angie (14:40):
Right.
And that's one of the reasonsthat people that shuffle tend to
have.
Pain, especially like in theirhip flexors and other muscles
because they're overworking themuscles instead of using some of
that force That's passivethrough the tendons,
Kevin (14:52):
right?
And then you get this thirdcategory which I think that,
that track coaches put peopleinto this thing or people found
something online and it's aterrible running cue of any
coach that's ever told you,well, make sure you pick up your
knees when you run.
If you see people that shuffle,they're like, Oh, pick your
knees up.
You get this very weird marchingform when you do that.
(15:12):
And you're, you're basicallytrying, you're almost
eliminating the bounce back ofyour Achilles, because instead
of letting your Achilles justdrive your leg correctly, you're
hitting the ground and then,Actively lifting it back up
instead of like hitting theground and letting your leg
recoil back up It's sort of ifyou've ever been on a trampoline
with somebody else you try anddouble bounce them It's the
(15:34):
opposite of that if you try andjump right as somebody lands on
the trampoline and your legslike buckle underneath you,
you're getting no recoil.
Angie (15:42):
That's the worst.
I hate it when that happens,right?
But that's what double bouncingsofa double
Kevin (15:46):
bouncing is super fun.
And that's essentially whatyou're getting.
If you strengthen the Achillesand you get this rebound and
it's coming back up, you'removing up because the tendon is
just compressing and springingyou forward.
If you're trying to do this sortof like, Oh, I'll get my knees
up and really make sure that I'mgoing, you're essentially like,
it's the opposite of that.
If you've ever been on thetreadmill or on a trampoline and
(16:06):
had it like bounce underneathyou right as you're ready to
jump and you just drop to theground, that's what's happening
with every single stride.
Angie (16:13):
So what does the research say?
Right?
So hopefully you kind of have anunderstanding of what
plyometrics are, why they'reimportant for runners.
But what does the research say?
The research has shown that.
Plyometrics increased yourrunning economy.
So, what does that mean?
It means that you can use lessenergy at the same pace.
So, that improves the efficiencyof your running as well.
(16:35):
So, you don't get as tiredrunning the same pace, which
means you can maintain that pacefor a longer period of time.
It also shows increased stridepower and speed.
So, basically, there's thisConcept inside the muscle that
plyometrics utilize, which iscalled the stretch shortening
cycle, and it's what, like whenyou shorten the muscle and like
(16:55):
release it and like you do, uh,I'm trying to like figure out
how to explain this in a verysimple way.
It's like it's a reflexivestretch and then the muscle
shortens and then stretches andthen releases and you get that
power.
Does that make sense or is thatnot, is that more confusing?
Kevin (17:12):
No, try saying it one more time, I'm gonna see if I
can come up with it.
The stretch shortening
Angie (17:15):
cycle.
Kevin (17:15):
I know, I'm not good at trying to explain it, I know
what it muscle
Angie (17:18):
spindles and the Golgi tendon organs.
Like in my brain is like all thescience behind it.
Um, but basically it's like thisquick contraction of like when
you stretch a muscle, you getthis reflexive contraction.
So it's this rapid Stretch andshortening cycle of the muscle
and you're kind of trying totrigger that.
It's a neuromuscular thing
Kevin (17:38):
If you've ever actually learned how to type on a
keyboard Which maybe peoplelistening to us have learned how
to type on our keyboard Our kidsonly know how to type on their
phone with their thumbs, butit's possible if you ever type
with your keyboard It's thedifference between having your
fingers up above and literallyhunting and pecking Versus if
you get your hand placement,right your fingers literally pop
right back off the key and sendyou towards the next place It's
(18:00):
a very crude metaphor for what'shappening inside of this.
Angie (18:04):
I've never would have put those two things together.
But yes, you're essentiallyhelping your your muscles to
work more efficiently.
So you spend less time on theground, which is going to allow
you to move forward fasterbecause running the thing that.
Separates running from walkingis the float phase, which is
when both feet are off theground.
You are literally flying, right?
(18:25):
And I'm literally figuratively.
No, you're literally literallyfine because both feet are off
the ground You
Kevin (18:30):
just made me smile because I love all the slow
motion Replay of the speedwalkers in the Olympics where
they're like, oh both feet offthe ground both feet off the
ground,
Angie (18:38):
right?
So when you're spending lesstime on the ground you can move
forward faster again As long asyou're moving forward and not up
and this is another point thatwe're going to make later.
Um, you know, which is whyyou're running form overall
matters because plyometrics isnot about giving you more upward
motion.
It's about giving you moreforward motion.
Um, and plyometrics can alsoreduce your injury risk when
(18:59):
used correctly.
Um, if plyometrics also haveIncreased inherent risk within
them.
So you have to be careful andwe're going to talk about how to
incorporate them safely later intoday's episode.
So the stronger your tendonsare, there's, that means that
there's less strain on yourjoints and lower risk of
Achilles problems, kneeproblems, and hip injuries.
(19:20):
So incorporating plan metricscan.
Decrease your risk of injury aswell.
And that's what also has beenshown in the research.
As
Kevin (19:27):
long as you're doing it correctly and not just searching
Instagram for plyometrics andthen trying to do the coolest
looking ones.
Angie (19:34):
Right.
Because you know, you don't wantto do what I did last week.
I actually forgot.
I was going to tell this storyat the beginning of the episode
of one of the reasons why we'retalking about plyometrics this
week, um, because you don't wantto be like me.
So last week, I, in my Mondaystrength session, I decided I
was going to do box jumps and Ihad been doing box jumps pretty
consistently for a few monthsand then I basically took a
(19:57):
month off ish, about a month offand didn't do box jumps for
about a month.
And then last Monday I was like,I really should start doing
those again.
Those are really good for me.
And so.
Not only did I start doing boxjumps again, I increased the
number of sets that I did and Ialso made them harder by
including a depth jump, whichmeans like I jumped up onto the
(20:18):
box and then jumped back downinstead of doing it the way that
I had been doing it before,which is jump up and then just
gently and slowly step back downand then jump up with two feet
and then step back down.
Um, I just decided to jump upand then jump back down and that
is much harder on the body.
And so I tweaked my back doingthat.
It was a stupid thing to do.
(20:39):
That shows you that we ascoaches often know better, but
that doesn't always mean that wedo better because we like to
trick ourselves and our brain,you know, likes to lie to us
sometimes.
And, uh, yeah, so So, I want youto start incorporating
plyometrics, but I want you todo so safely and not follow my
lead there.
Kevin (20:57):
Yeah.
It's nuts to me that youdecided, I've taken off several
weeks, I'm going to come back,but I'm coming back in a more
difficult manner than I left.
Angie (21:05):
It was dumb.
Yeah.
It was very, very dumb.
Okay.
And in part three, we're goingto talk about how to incorporate
everything safely.
So, um, all right.
Now we're going to talk abouthow plyometrics help you to run
faster and more efficiently.
You start to understand a littlebit, you know that there's
research behind it, butbasically let's explain how this
is working.
Mr.
Physics major, would you like totake the microphone?
Kevin (21:27):
Sure.
I mean,
Angie (21:28):
you're not physics major, but you are a physics teacher,
Kevin (21:31):
physics teacher, engineering major.
I've got all sorts of things.
All right.
So Essentially, your tendons arestoring potential energy.
Every time you hit the ground,the spring that is your tendon
compresses, and then when youtake your foot off the ground,
it's able to spring back.
And that potential energy,stored in your tendon, turns
into kinetic energy, which movesyou forward.
(21:51):
We skip some steps along theinside, but that is essentially
what is happening, is thepotential of your tendon turns
into kinetic energy, shootingyou forward.
Angie (22:00):
Right, so it's kind of like a rubber band, except in
the opposite direction.
Like, with a rubber band, whenyou Pull a rubber band and you
lengthen that rubber band.
You build up the potentialenergy in that.
And then when you release it, itshoots much further, right?
So the tendons, it's not thatwe're stretching the tendons per
se, like, but we kind of arebecause it's, it's a stretch and
then a shortening that that'sthat muscle stretch shortening
(22:22):
cycle that we were talking aboutbefore.
So that's what essentiallyplyometrics help your muscles
and your tendons do whichimproves that elasticity Making
you more powerful with lesseffort
Kevin (22:33):
Which is like the holy grail of training if you can
increase power and speed withoutincreasing your effort level
That's as good as it canpossibly get whatever Training
method you can come up withthat.
That's the result you're winningbecause you're going faster and
it's not harder
Angie (22:50):
Yep, and so Those of us that are over 40, which I think
is the majority of our audience.
I mean, there might be some ofyou youngins listening, which
is, you know, wonderful.
And for you to know thisinformation and start
incorporating this informationinto your training now is a
great idea.
So this is A universal principlethat runners and athletes of all
(23:11):
ages need to be incorporating,but especially for runners over
40, it's important for us toknow that plyometrics help us to
maintain the stiffness andelasticity of our tenons that we
tend to lose with age, becauseas we age, we Not only lose that
stiffness in that tendon, theelasticity, but we also lose
(23:31):
fast twitch muscle fibers, whichare the key for speed and power
and plyometrics help us topreserve more of those muscle
fibers.
So you don't feel like you'relosing that pop in your stride
as much it.
That's really the key here.
Plus, stronger tendons also meanless stress on your hips, your
knees, and your ankles, whichreduces your injury risk.
Kevin (23:52):
We kind of skimmed over this, but just for, for some
anatomy assistance on this,tendons are the ones that
connect muscles to bones, right?
Angie (23:59):
Yes.
All right.
So as ligaments connect bone tobone.
Kevin (24:03):
Okay, so if we're connecting, if we're
strengthening the connectionbetween muscle and bones, that's
what's happening at every singlejoint, which is why plyometrics
are super helpful.
When you're hitting this, you'relike, Oh, is that going to be
good for, for this part of me?
It's good for all of the partsthat bend.
So ankles and knees and hips,which one of those is.
probably given you problems inthe past or could potentially
(24:25):
give you problems in the future.
So if you can reduce thelikelihood of some sort of
aching soreness in a joint,that's, that's a win.
Give me, give me someplyometrics.
I'm going to go get a two byfour.
Angie (24:36):
Excellent.
All right.
So let's talk about how to startincorporating them safely into
your training without gettinghurt like I did.
So number one, start small.
Plyometrics are all aboutquality.
Not quantity.
And this is a very importantconcept that is really Carrying
over to pretty much all of ourtraining as we get older quality
(24:58):
over quantity You don't need tobe out there just doing endless
jumping exercises but if you doa few targeted plyometrics
drills done correctly andConsistently they can make a
huge impact in The results thatyou get from them,
Kevin (25:14):
you
Angie (25:15):
can't
Kevin (25:16):
actually be out there doing endless jumping drills
because as you start stacking updrill after drill after drill
and all sorts of exercise on topof each other, you're going to
immediately lose the quality ifyou can't actually get the
spring off of we're going to gothrough some of these different
exercises.
If you're not getting the quickspringiness or you're not
landing stable, that's going toput you in a position of hurting
(25:39):
yourself.
And then you're not actuallygetting any of the benefit of
the plyometrics.
If you're moving really, reallyslow through the plyometrics,
you're not getting the wholeidea of actually building the
spring, actually working on theelasticity of your tendons.
It's, it's just taking.
Uh, it's taking a spring andinstead of like compressing it
and letting it pop back out,it's just taking that spring and
(26:01):
just slowly stretching it out soit doesn't actually recoil.
That's not the benefit ofplyometrics.
Everything needs to go at afaster cadence.
Angie (26:10):
Yes.
And so these do need to bethose, again, those rapid
explosive types of movements,and they should be done when
your muscles are fresh.
Like Kevin said, when you havefatigued, tired muscles.
Like so if you go out and do aheavy lifting session or a speed
session and then try to doplyometrics afterwards, your
muscles are already very tired.
(26:31):
So when you do the plyometricsalso makes a big difference
because if you try to doplyometrics on already tired
muscles and tendons, number one,it's going to increase your risk
of injury.
You're much more likely to gethurt doing them.
And then number two, you're notgoing to be getting the same
effects.
You're not going to be gettingthe same benefits.
And so Why are you doing things,anything in your training plan,
(26:52):
if you're not getting goodbenefits from them?
You know, people might say, Oh,well, there's the mental health
benefit and this benefit andthat benefit.
And sure, there is some of that,that, you know, maybe.
The training plan or the exactweekly routine that you're
following is not completelyoptimized and that's fine It's
real life, right?
Like it doesn't have everythingdoes not have to be optimized in
(27:15):
our lives, but at the same timePlyometrics are one of those
things that you can't do a lotof them because it increases
your injury risk So you need todo a small amount of them for a
short period of time, put themin when they're going to give
you the most benefit and be themost effective.
Kevin (27:32):
All right.
So if you were, let's take some,before we get into what we've
got here in the outline, if youwere looking at somebody who's
like, I want to bring inplyometrics consistently on a
weekly basis and they're, theygo out for a run and they get in
there, they're, you know, Idon't know, 30, 45 minutes, like
their regular run.
And they realize, Oh, I doactually have a little bit of
time.
(27:52):
Is it better to put plyometricsOn the end of a run, if you
might be fatigued or should yoube like, Ooh, I missed my
plyometrics.
I should have done it at thebeginning of the run when I had
time.
I didn't think I had time.
Is it a safer move, especiallyfor athletes over 40 to be like,
I'm going to have to skipplyometrics this week and do it
again next week?
(28:12):
or to do it on tired legs?
I know it's a pure opinionquestion that you've got here
but that's what I'm going for.
Angie (28:17):
I think it depends on what kind of plyometrics you're
doing.
Kevin (28:20):
Oh, good one, gray area answer.
So if you're doing plyometricsthat will be less demanding,
then you could probably get awaywith it?
Angie (28:28):
Yeah, you can get away with some but you wouldn't want
to do some of the harder ones.
So
Kevin (28:33):
depth jumps?
Angie (28:33):
Depth jumps is in there.
Okay.
Okay, so before we jump intokind of some common exercises
that we can recommend for youand ways for you to get started,
Let's first start with commonmistakes to avoid.
So number one is the Angie boxjump problem, which is doing too
much too soon.
And even though I have abackground in plyometrics, I was
doing them consistently.
(28:54):
A month ago, I took off a monthfrom doing them.
And so my body wasn't Still usedto them, especially in that
volume.
I think that if I would havedone, um, in that volume and
that intensity, I should say.
Because if I would have justdone my normal set of box jumps
to get back into it, it wouldhave been fine.
I think that I increased thesets and I added that depth,
(29:16):
that jump back down, which was areally dumb idea.
That was the dumbest of all ofthe ideas.
Increasing the number of setswould have probably been okay as
well.
But doing too much too soon.
is one of the worst things thatyou can do.
Okay.
So you want to start with a lowvolume and with controlled
landings, you have to make surethat your body can control this.
So again, you don't want to justjump into plyometrics.
(29:38):
You want to have a base ofstrength training and mobility
and stability before you startworking on power, because
plyometrics helps you to developyour power.
And it's not a good idea to justjump into power and speed
training.
If you don't have a foundationunderneath you, because again,
your risk of injury is muchhigher.
Kevin (29:55):
Right.
The plyometrics themselves aregoing to strengthen the muscle,
like the tendons around yourankle.
But if you're so weak in theankle that you can't stand on
one foot for like 10 seconds,then plyometrics might not be
the place to start.
You might want to start bypracticing standing on one foot
and then stretch that out towhere you can stand on a foot
(30:15):
for a minute.
And then can you stand on a footfor a minute on an uneven
surface or with your eyesclosed, get to the point where
you can actually supportyourself on a foot before you
start jumping all over theplace.
Angie (30:25):
Yep.
Second common mistake to avoidis ignoring recovery.
These are intense.
exercises.
And I know that some of thebeginning examples that I'm
going to give you, you'reprobably thinking, okay, Angie,
really, that's what you call anintense exercises.
But for your tendons, they are,you know, that's the thing.
It's, you know, it might notseem that intense since you are
(30:46):
a runner, but But to yourtendons, these are things that
they have to kind of get usedto.
So recovery is really important.
That's why you're only going todo them a couple of times a
week.
This is not something thatyou're going to necessarily do
on a daily basis because overusecan lead to tendon fatigue.
Tendon fatigue can lead tochronic, you know.
Uh, it can lead to acuteinflammation.
It can lead to chronictendinosis and other changes in
(31:08):
the tendon, which you're alreadyhaving age related changes in
our tendons.
So we don't need to add overuseand fatigue on top of that.
Kevin (31:15):
Okay.
Tendon fatigue.
I know what it feels like whenmy muscles get tired.
Can I actually feel when mytendons are getting tired or is
this sort of like I need to takeit easy and slowly advance
because otherwise I'm likely toget to tendon fatigue and before
I even notice it it's moved intoYou know inflammation in the
(31:36):
area.
I'm heading towards tendonitis
Angie (31:38):
Yeah, I think it's probably the second one.
I don't think it's like, Oh, mytendons are fatiguing because we
noticed muscle fatigue before wenoticed tendon fatigue.
That's what I thought.
So that's one of the reasonsthat you're, you're less likely
to actually understand it, thatand tendons are avascular.
Kevin (31:54):
That was my other thought is like, we're not getting good
blood flow to our tendons.
Like, I don't really notice thatmy tendons are getting tired.
And that's what you call themintense.
I've done these things with myhigh school kids and they're
like, that's, All we're doingfor our workout today.
I'm like, uh, yes, cause I don'tneed you getting hurt.
And it's, it doesn't seem like ahuge amount, but for your
tendons, there's such a smalllittle part of your body and
(32:17):
they don't repair very rapidlybecause there's no blood flow
going to them essentially.
So you've got to ease your wayinto these guys.
Angie (32:24):
Yeah.
Um, the other mistake thatpeople make is.
Letting their form break downand not being aware of their
form, and this is one of thethings I tell all of my clients
is as soon as your form startsto break down, you need to stop
that.
Like, I don't care if you'vedone three repetitions.
If the fourth repetition feelslike I can't maintain that form,
(32:46):
then that's the answer.
Like you have to stop.
You have to focus on softlandings like where you You when
you're jumping and you soundlike it if there's an elephant
in the room, that is not a goodsign, right?
You want to focus on keeping theknees slightly bent do never
ever land with straight knees Soyou want your knees slightly
bent at all time and you want totry to absorb those forces and
(33:10):
Make your landings as quiet andas soft as possible.
And again, making sure thatyou're controlling that movement
and that you're not wobbling allover the place.
Kevin (33:18):
Right.
Because if you feel like yourform is breaking down, you're
probably two reps beyond whereyour form actually started to
break down.
If you were filming yourself.
You might be good with like thefirst three or four and then it
starts breaking down and then itgets to a point where it's so
broken down that you're like,Ooh, I feel like I landed wobbly
on that one.
Those first signs where you'reactually sensing that you're not
(33:42):
quite in control is definitelythe time to stop and not the
time to be like, I couldprobably get a couple more in.
Right?
Angie (33:49):
I agree.
Okay.
All right.
So when should you be doingplyometrics?
How often should you be doingplyometrics?
So basically you want toincorporate these 2 to 3 times a
week for about 5 to 10 minutesper session.
This doesn't take a lot ofvolume.
Again, less is better.
Quality over quantity.
You can do these for 5 to 10minutes and that includes rest
breaks.
So it's not 5 minutes straightor 10 minutes straight of
(34:11):
plyometrics.
It's doing them for about 15seconds, 30 seconds.
Maybe up to a minute, dependingon what you're doing and then
taking a break in between them.
So two to three times a week,five to 10 minutes per session.
So maybe about three to fiveexercises per plyometric session
is essentially what you'relooking for.
You want to make sure that yourbody is warmed up before you get
(34:34):
into plyometrics.
So, if you want to do thesebefore a run, which is when I
would suggest to do them if youcan, I would, uh, suggest to do
essentially a dynamic warm up ofabout 5 to 10 minutes, where
you're getting the bloodflowing, you're getting your
muscles and your joints warmedup and the body moving.
Then you do your Set ofplyometrics, and then you can go
(34:54):
off on your run, especially ifyou have a speed workout that
day.
You definitely want to get yourplyometrics done before.
If you have a shorter, easierrun, you can probably do them
afterwards.
But again, you're going to wantto make sure that if they're
after a run, they're more oflike a low intensity type of
plyometric, not the moredifficult versions,
Kevin (35:13):
right?
Because it's, it's quality overquantity.
If you're already fatigued fromyour run, it's likely that your
first couple of reps are alreadygoing to not have the proper
form and then you would have tostop anyway,
Angie (35:24):
right?
But there's a lot of runningdrills that we give to our
clients as well that you can doeither before or after you can
do them before as part of yourwarmup or you can do them after
a run when you do them after arun again, they're low intensity
and the goal is.
Running mechanics, right?
Like really focusing on thebiomechanics of your run and
trying to improve your runningform and to improve the
(35:45):
springiness.
And again, it's better if it'safter an easier run or a shorter
run versus a speed session.
Kevin (35:51):
Yeah, and I mean, the, the running drills as a, as a
light form of plyometrics istotally different than saying,
I'm going to go off on Mynormal, it's an easy run, I
should be fine.
And then coming back and doingsomething intense, like box
jumps.
It's always the one I go to isbox jumps.
Cause it just seems like one ofthe most intense forms of
plyometrics or something whereyou're jumping excessively from
side to side,
Angie (36:11):
lateral one.
Yeah.
Kevin (36:12):
Because like the last thing you need to be is like,
Oh, I'm slightly fatigued for myrun.
And then you try and dosomething side to side and
completely roll an ankle.
Angie (36:18):
Exactly.
Um, so that's how you would kindof.
incorporate them into runningdays.
You can also put plyometrics onstrength days, which is when I
like to do them as well.
Um, plyometrics are a great wayto get kind of sprint interval
training types of things inwhere you're doing a more high
intensity type of activity for ashort amount of time.
Um, so you can kind of kind ofkilled two birds with one stone
(36:41):
there.
Um, So if you're doing them on astrength day, again, you would
want to warm up first, then doyour plyometrics and then go and
do your heavier lifts.
You wouldn't want to lift heavyand then try to do plyometrics
at the end.
No,
Kevin (36:54):
definitely plyo on the front end of a strength day.
Like, let's have the muscles benice and fresh for those.
Angie (36:59):
Yes.
So that's kind of how you wouldincorporate plyometrics into
your routine.
Um, any Are there furtherclarifications or anything you
think there?
Kevin (37:09):
No, I mean, I like, you know, some easy drills at the
end is, is one of my favoriteways just to get in some easy
plyo.
I do it more often than two tothree times per week if, if you
add in the very low intensitylike running drills.
I try and do those on a veryregular basis.
Right,
Angie (37:24):
but how intense are those running drills when you do them?
Kevin (37:27):
Super low intensity.
Angie (37:27):
And that's why?
Kevin (37:28):
That's why I can get them in all the time.
So if you're, if you're startingto try and advance your
plyometrics, Two to three timesper week, max.
But if you're like, Oh, well,I'm just doing these like very
easy form drills at the end,technically it's plyometrics,
but it's also just, it's, it'spart of my cool down.
Angie (37:43):
Right.
And so I think that always goesback to quality over quantity
and also knowing the intentionbehind what you're doing.
Are you trying to do this foryour running mechanics and to
kind of improve and to just kindof loosen up your joints, right?
A lot of times I'll do slowrunning drills at the end of my
run to just kind of get myjoints moving and less stiff,
(38:04):
like kind of work out some ofthat stiffness that develops
during the course of my runversus doing plyometrics that
are actually.
With the goal and the target ofdeveloping speed and rapid power
explosion.
Kevin (38:16):
Yeah, less power explosion, more increased range
of motion and just feeling goodand mobile afterwards.
Angie (38:21):
Exactly, exactly.
So, some beginner plyometricexercises, if you're new to this
world, things that you can startto incorporate.
The first one is just anklehops.
So, what that looks like isessentially pretending like
you're jumping rope where you'rejust doing these very small,
short, quick hops.
The motion is coming from theankle, so it's not like you
know, you're getting a big bendin the knee and the hip.
(38:43):
You're not trying to jump forheight.
You're just kind of bouncing upand down as if you're jumping
rope.
So, of course, there is someMovement in the knee, but most
of the movement is coming fromthe ankles where you're just
landing and then pushing up fromthe ground with your toes.
Kevin (38:57):
Yeah, most of the movement in the knee is to help
soften the landing.
Correct.
Because And that's why
Angie (39:01):
there's such good beginner exercises because it's
teaching you how to land softlyas well.
Kevin (39:05):
Right, this is like, find the loudest thing you can land
on.
Like your exercise mat is superloud because of it's like the,
the stickiness of it.
If you can figure out how toland on, on an exercise mat like
that silently, You're, you'reready to move on to the next
step because you're softlanding.
Angie (39:21):
It's just because I do things barefoot.
I think that it's not as loud ifI were to wear socks and other
things.
Sorry, that was
Kevin (39:25):
a personal commentary and not at all about the sound that
you make on the mat.
As much as any time I've triedto hop on that, I'm like, what
the heck is wrong with me?
Why am I just echoing throughthe entire house?
That was no commentary on you atall.
Angie (39:37):
Alright, so ankle hops are a great place to go.
Um, Pogo jumps are basicallyankle hops, but just a little
bit higher.
So ankle hops are focusing onlike that rapid quick movement,
and you don't get very high offthe ground.
Pogo jumps are basically thesame, but you're just jumping
higher.
It's not a squat jump.
(39:58):
So a squat jump would be likeactually bending the knees and
bringing your hips down closerto the ground and then exploding
upward.
A pogo is like you're still inthat very upright position.
You're just trying to jump alittle bit higher, but the
motion still comes from theankles as if you were on a pogo
stick as a kid.
Kevin (40:14):
Okay.
So pogos versus jump squats, youcan kind of just keep a regular
rhythm on pogos.
Whereas with squat jumps, everytime you land, you're going back
into a squat, like it's a slowermotion.
To get through just like onefull round of it.
Angie (40:31):
Yeah, exactly.
And so, so those are some reallygood, um, beginner ones.
Skipping is a great one.
So just literally skipping inplace or skipping forward is a
great running drill that you cando.
There's different types of skipsthat you can do.
Um, but when we look atprogression and this is why I
always start people off withankle hops, the first thing that
you want to do is do.
(40:52):
In place so you're not movingforward or side to side you're
starting in place So you'rejumping and landing in the same
spot and you're doing it on twofeet Okay, because when you
think about progressing safely,which is very very important
with plyometrics you will alwayswant to start with double legs
and then move to single legs andstart with in place and then
(41:13):
move on to as you get stronger,then you can move on to things
that will actually move you likeso forward hops versus hopping
in place.
Kevin (41:22):
Right.
So in terms of intensity, wheredo you put hopping versus
skipping?
Cause I think skipping is lessintense, but I feel like it
might also depend on the type ofskip you're doing.
Are you talking
Angie (41:31):
about double leg hops or single leg hops?
Kevin (41:33):
Single leg hop versus skipping.
Angie (41:35):
Single leg hops versus skipping.
Well, are you talking aboutskipping in place or skipping
forward?
Kevin (41:40):
Forward.
In both cases we're movingforward.
Angie (41:43):
In both cases we're moving forward.
I would say skipping becauseyou're alternating legs.
Kevin (41:47):
That was my thought.
There's like a fluidity to it.
Angie (41:50):
Right.
So I think that makes it alittle bit less, um, Tough on
you and also easier to do.
Kevin (41:55):
Okay.
Angie (41:56):
Okay.
So, those are some beginnerplyometrics that you can start
to incorporate.
Again, do not just jump intoplyometrics if you don't have a
good base of strength, if you'reconsistent with your current
strength routine, you're doingstrength training at least twice
a week, then you can think aboutadding in some plyometric drills
and things like that to developyour speed and your power.
(42:18):
If you're not doing strengthtraining at least twice a week,
you're going to want to hold offon this.
If you do have a good base ofstrength and you want to start
incorporating plant metrics, Iwould love to invite you to
check out our YouTube channel.
I have not been posting a tonover there over the course of
the past few years, but I amstarting to add more videos to
our YouTube channel.
(42:39):
It's at Real Life Runners overon YouTube as well, so go check
it out.
I have examples of all of thebeginner plyometric exercises
that we talked about up on.
The YouTube channel.
So check us out over at reallife runners on YouTube.
If you want some examples ofplyometrics and also there's
some strength training exerciseson there, and I'm really going
(42:59):
to be adding more to thatYouTube channel this year.
So check it out, give us afollow.
Uh, and I hope it's helpful.
So as just a final summary, plyometrics aren't just
for sprinters or jumpingathletes, they can make any
runner faster, stronger and moreresilient.
They help you to improve yourrunning economy, your stride
power, your injury resistance,and just a few minutes of
(43:21):
targeted plyometrics each weekcan create Big results, but
don't jump in.
Don't do too much too soon.
Start small quality overquantity.
Your body will adapt and you'regoing to start to feel the
difference in your runs.
I'd love to hear your thoughts.
I'd love to answer any questionsthat you guys might have.
if you're not following us yet,head over to Instagram and
(43:42):
follow us at real life runners.
Um, send me a DM if you have anyquestions.
And again, I'll just going toput in that plug again for.
You know, please leave us areview if you like this episode.
If you have another favoriteepisode, you can reference that
episode in your review, but justtake a minute, um, and write us
a couple sentences to help usspread the word and help us
(44:03):
share the plot, the podcast withother people that can benefit.
And as always, thanks forspending this time with us
today.
This has been the Real LifeRunners podcast, episode number
400.
Now get out there and run yourlife.
It's episode 400 of the Real Life Runners podcast, and
I'm so glad that you're here.
For today's episode, we arediving into a game changing
training tool that can help yourun faster, improve efficiency,
and reduce injury risk.
All about the power ofplyometrics.
So many runners think thatplyometrics are just for
sprinters or for elite athleteswhere some have never even heard
(00:23):
of them.
But the truth is every runnercan benefit from adding
explosive movements into theirtraining.
So whether you want to increaseyour stride power, improve your
running economy, or stay injuryfree as you age, or just get
faster and stronger, plyometricscould be the missing piece in
your training.
So today, We're breaking it alldown.
We're talking about whatplyometrics actually are and why
(00:44):
they're different from strengthtraining.
The science behind whyplyometrics make you faster and
more efficient, how to useplyometrics safely, even if
you've never done them beforeand the best plyometric
exercises for runners.
So let's jump in.
(01:21):
What's up, Runners?
And yes, that pun was definitelyintended, because plyometrics
are also known as jump training.
Kevin (01:27):
I can't believe you took the let's jump in joke.
I was so ready for the let'sjump joke myself.
I was, I was gonna dominate thatone.
It was gonna be great.
Angie (01:34):
Puntastic.
Kevin (01:35):
It was Yes.
It was ponderful.
Angie (01:37):
Oh, it will be anyway.
So welcome to today's episode tothis week.
Um, first of all, thank you somuch for those of you that have
been on this journey with us.
Can you believe that we haverecorded 400 episodes?
Kevin (01:51):
That's even more in metric.
Angie (01:52):
It is.
Yes.
Okay.
I was not expecting that one,but I mean, what a cool journey,
you know?
I mean, I can.
Came up with this idea back in20 16 20 17?
2017.
2017.
Yeah.
Hey, like, Hey, Kevin, let'sstart a podcast.
And you're like, what are youtalking about?
Like, did you even then I,
Kevin (02:11):
I had a seizure in response to it.
Angie (02:12):
No, stop it.
It was not, I mean, you did havea seizure relatively soon after
that.
But it was not in response tomy, it was not
Kevin (02:20):
in response.
to
Angie (02:21):
my podcast idea.
Um.
So what a cool and wild journeythis has been.
I mean, we can probably talk allday and reflect about how.
Great.
The last 400 episodes have been,um, we've really recorded and
released a podcast once a weekfor the last seven plus years,
(02:42):
which is wild.
Kevin (02:43):
Like there were a few episodes in there that were like
interview episodes that wedidn't get together, but I love
the, yeah,
Angie (02:48):
so I've recorded 400, but you have not.
This
Kevin (02:51):
is true.
There have been some where I'velost my voice also.
Angie (02:54):
There have.
Yeah.
So there was a couple, I've donea couple solo episodes, some
interview episodes, which wedefinitely have more of those
in, uh, planned for this year,so I'm really excited to be
bringing on some really stellarguests.
And you're going to have some ofyour own interview episodes as
well, where it's just you andnot me.
Kevin (03:11):
Also true.
I don't know
Angie (03:13):
how I feel about that.
I
Kevin (03:14):
know you're going to jump.
You're going to jump in on thoseones also, but I've really
enjoyed just being able to spendthis time with you and discuss
all of this to help other peopleand try and improve everybody.
We've clearly improved ourpodcasting.
If you go back and listen to.
Episode one, we sound a littlebit like robots.
Um, and now we sound much, somore comfortable.
Angie (03:31):
And thank you to all of you who have been with us since
episode one, or those of youthat found the podcast and then
decided to go all the way backto the beginning.
I remember, um, I got an emailfrom somebody.
a couple years ago that said hehad found the podcast and was so
excited because he had gone backand started listening from
episode one, which is bingingall the episodes.
(03:54):
And he found himself coming upon like 2019 and the beginning
of 2020, knowing that thepandemic was going to hit, you
know, he's like, so what's goingto happen in the podcast.
So that was, I thought that wascute.
Kevin (04:06):
Yeah, it's, it's really been quite the, the journey.
Our podcasting has improved andI think that it's because we
just started doing a thing.
Like we weren't like, Hey, we'regoing to be awesome at
podcasting.
So now let's, now let's startactually hitting the record
button.
We just started to record, whichI think ties in really nicely to
today's episode is you don't getreally good at plyometrics and
(04:26):
then incorporate them into yourtraining.
It's just a thing that you startkind of easing into.
Angie (04:31):
Yeah, that's true.
And so before we jump into theepisode, I am going to make a
request as a way for you to helpus celebrate our 400th episode,
can you please hit pause rightnow on this episode and go leave
us a review.
Even if you already left us one,you can leave us another review.
If you have not left us areview, please, if you could
(04:52):
leave us a review, that would besuch a great way for you to Say
thank you for the last 400episodes for you to help
celebrate 400 episodes of theReal Life Runners podcast with
us.
Uh, we obviously wouldappreciate those five star
reviews and especially if youleave us a review, um, you know,
a couple sentences because youcan leave a rating.
Oh, that's the other word.
Rating and a review.
The rating is how many stars yougive us and then the review is
(05:15):
you can write as little as onesentence if you want or a couple
words, um, or just one thingthat.
This podcast has added to yourrunning or to your life.
One way that we have helped youto improve as a runner, that
would be so amazing.
So thank you in advance foreverybody that takes me up on
that.
And that, you know, goes, goesforward with that request and
(05:35):
answers that, that call in thatrequest, because I would just
love to help more runners.
That's really our goal.
On this podcast, we produce thispodcast every single week for
free.
We don't have any sponsors.
If you notice, there's nocommercials or anything like
that.
So we're literally just doingthis out of our desire to help
more people.
And if you could help us to helpmore people and to reach more
(05:55):
people by leaving us a review,that really does help us.
Like when people go into Applepodcasts or Spotify and they're
searching for running podcasts,the ones that are rated more
highly tend to pop up.
You know, first, so that willhelp more people to find us and,
um, if you share it on socialmedia or share it with a friend,
that's another great way for usto spread the word as well.
Kevin (06:15):
I should go in and review the ones where you're
interviewing other people andI'm not on them.
It feels, it feels awkward togive myself a five star review,
but the ones where I'm notthere, they're phenomenal
episodes.
Oh,
Angie (06:24):
thanks.
That, we had a great one lastweek with Dr.
Christine Lee.
I've been getting a lot ofreally good messages about how
powerful that.
Episode was for people.
Kevin (06:34):
Yes.
I have not I'm like part waythrough that episode.
It's a good one I'm just partway through.
Angie (06:38):
All right, so let's jump in to today's episode Nailed it.
We're gonna probably do quite afew of those.
So hopefully you don't get tootired It's gonna be the
Kevin (06:46):
same pun every time.
It's always jumping.
Angie (06:48):
Yeah, so plyometrics have been in athletics for a very
long time, and they weretraditionally known as jump
training.
Hence all of the jumping punsthat we're making.
So let's first talk aboutexactly what they are other than
just jumping and why they matterfor runners.
So, So throughout this episode,you're going to kind of hear us
referring to a spring metaphorlike so think about a spring,
(07:13):
not like a slinky, a very loosespring, like a very tight spring
where like your garage, likeyour garage spring, you do not
want to get your fingers stuckin those springs or let those
things pop off because that willlike take off your limb.
Kevin (07:24):
Yes.
Yeah, no, that'll shoot rightthrough you.
Angie (07:26):
So yes, we're talking about like a spring that when
you compress it, it buildstension.
And then once you release it, itsprings back and creates power,
right?
So if you think of your legs,like springs, the more stiffness
that you have in your legs orthe more stiff that spring is,
the harder it is to compress.
But also when you release it,the more spring back it has, the
(07:49):
more recoil that spring has.
And it's the same thing goesfor.
Your muscles and your tendonsspecifically your tendons.
Okay, like when we talk aboutthe spring back We're not as
much talking about the muscles.
We are to an extent but it'sit's a kind of a different Way
that your muscles operate thedifferent benefit to your
muscles from plyometrics then toyour tendons But when we talk
(08:13):
about your tendons, I alwayslike to think of the Achilles
because it's jumping and sothat's an is easy one for us to
visualize.
And we all know where theAchilles tendon is.
So when you compress it, you'restoring energy.
And then once you push off theground and you're like, you
basically release it, thatenergy gets transferred to help
push you up or forward if you'rea runner.
So it's giving you essentiallyfree speed without extra effort,
(08:37):
just because you are utilizingthis passive energy reserve that
your tendons can
Kevin (08:44):
Yeah.
I mean, that's why there,there's a lot of running coaches
out there that suggest thatrunning is generally a passive
action that it's at that one legkind of moves and it doesn't
Angie (08:54):
feel passive at
Kevin (08:56):
all.
Like the first time I heardsomebody that was like, they
were adamant.
They're like, no, no running isa passive thing.
If you just lean forward, youtake one step.
The next leg will naturally moveforward in response to your
first leg moving forward.
You've got like the fall reflexand your body literally just
keeps kind of bounding forward.
I'm like, that doesn't seemright, but it's.
It's part, I agree partially,
Angie (09:15):
it is partially true because I would say that running
is reflexive action than apassive action.
Kevin (09:21):
Yeah, I think they were trying to equate those two words
and I didn't fully agree, but Iget that it's reflexive.
Um, so where do we actually gowith plyometrics?
Like what specifically isplyometrics?
Cause I remember when I did thisin like.
Junior high, I was trying topretend like I was going to be
really good at basketball.
I was thoroughly confident inseventh grade I was going to be
in the NBA.
(09:41):
And so I had like a two by fourin the backyard that I was like
jumping over.
My dad had this all set up forme.
I'm sure that he had a bookinvolved that led to my
plyometric just jumping all overthe backyard.
Is that what it is?
Do I have to get a two by four?
Angie (09:53):
We, I mean, you can absolutely get a two by four and
put it in our backyard if you'dlike to.
There's some falling off of ourfence right now so that you
could maybe use one of those.
But That's why I think that I'mglad you brought that up because
a lot of runners or a lot ofpeople they think about
plyometrics Like that, you knowin jump sports, right like
basketball volleyball Sportsthat obviously require jumping.
(10:17):
They're like, oh, yeah, ofcourse You would do jump
training because in basketballand volleyball it matters how
high you can jump and so peopleEquate it with that but don't
always necessarily equate it toWith running and basically
plyometrics help train your bodyto be springier, which helps you
to push off the ground fasterand more powerfully.
(10:38):
So plyometrics basically arethese quick explosive movements
that often involve jumping,hopping, bounding, those kinds
of things, and they involverapid muscle contractions.
Okay, that is the key toplyometrics is that they are
very quick.
Movements that involve the rapidcompression and release of
muscles and tendons.
(10:59):
So these are different thantraditional strength training
because strength training ismore of like slow, controlled
movements, whereas plyometricsfocus on speed, elasticity, and
power.
So I would put plyometrics kindof under the strength umbrella.
Like if we're looking at a verybroad um, umbrella because they
do make you stronger, they makeyou faster, they increase your
(11:20):
power, but they're kind of likea different leg than traditional
strength training.
Kevin (11:26):
Okay.
So they are a hundred percentnot replacing strength training.
I just want to, I want to dropthat down as a clear statement.
You can't just be like, allright, plyometric sounds more
fun.
Can I avoid strength training?
That is a no.
Angie (11:38):
That is a definite no.
And it's actually.
Important for you to have a baseof strength training before you
jump into plyometrics nailed it.
I did it again But essentiallywhen you think of running
running it is a series of jumpsIt's a series of plyometric
movements where you are actuallyjumping or bounding from one
foot to another and with eachstride your muscles and your
(12:02):
tendons absorb the force andthen push you forward like you
were just saying like in A lotof it, you know, a lot of that
action does happen quote unquotepassively like where you are
storing and releasing energybecause that's one of the ways
that elites set themselves apartfrom more recreational types of
runners is that they've learnednot only do they have ridiculous
(12:23):
genetic Genetics behind them,you know, and, uh, but they have
also learned how to maximizetheir running economy and
efficiency so that they canutilize all of that passive
return of energy.
So basically what happens isevery with every step your your
body exerts a force on theground and then the ground do.
It exerts what's called a groundreaction force.
Kevin (12:44):
Thank you, Newton.
I was
Angie (12:45):
going to say, you're the physics teacher.
This is
Kevin (12:47):
our third law.
Angie (12:47):
Right, so the ground reaction force, so the third law
is for every action there's anequal and opposite reaction.
Kevin (12:53):
Yeah, but that, when Newton said action and reaction,
it always messes people upbecause he used the word action
and reaction as a synonym forforce.
For every force, there's anequal and opposite force.
So when you're foot hits theground, the ground hits right
back up on your foot.
Angie (13:08):
With the same exact force.
They match each other.
Otherwise, your foot would gothrough the ground.
Kevin (13:12):
Yes, which would be tragic.
Angie (13:14):
Well, and that's one of the reasons why, like, running
on ice, for example, like,people, your foot can go through
the ice or, you know, Or thesnow, if you're,
Kevin (13:21):
if you're, uh, Yeah.
What's it called?
Where your foot just drops allthe way in?
Pulling, like, uh, No
Angie (13:26):
idea.
Kevin (13:29):
Nope.
Angie (13:30):
Nope.
Don't don't have it.
Don't have it.
Okay.
I don't know what you're talkingabout, but yeah, so that's one
of the things that happens isthat ground reaction force is
essentially pushing up on yourbody and helping to push you
forward if your body is at theright angle and if you're
utilizing the forces properly,
Kevin (13:45):
right?
If your body is at the rightangle.
So when we talk about running isessentially Jumping from one
foot to the next.
I've seen people that that'swhat it looks like.
They're running.
They literally look like they'rebounding from one foot to the
next.
And like, well, that, that doesnot look efficient at all.
That's
Angie (14:01):
not, you're correct.
Kevin (14:02):
It looks remarkably inefficient.
If you've ever watched like theOlympic long jumpers, their
first few steps are super longbounds down the runway.
And it's trying to kind of getthem to the point where they're
able to put out this huge amountof.
Force and power with everystride, but it's a remarkably
inefficient way to run.
There's a reason why they don'teven cover like a straightaway
(14:23):
of the track when they're doingthat, because it's super
inefficient to run thatdirection.
And there's other people thatjust shuffle the entire time.
That's like the completeopposite of bounding along.
If you're shuffling, you're notgoing to get much rebound off
your leg either, because you'renot hitting the ground with very
much force.
Cause you're never reallypicking your foot up.
Angie (14:40):
Right.
And that's one of the reasonsthat people that shuffle tend to
have.
Pain, especially like in theirhip flexors and other muscles
because they're overworking themuscles instead of using some of
that force That's passivethrough the tendons,
Kevin (14:52):
right?
And then you get this thirdcategory which I think that,
that track coaches put peopleinto this thing or people found
something online and it's aterrible running cue of any
coach that's ever told you,well, make sure you pick up your
knees when you run.
If you see people that shuffle,they're like, Oh, pick your
knees up.
You get this very weird marchingform when you do that.
(15:12):
And you're, you're basicallytrying, you're almost
eliminating the bounce back ofyour Achilles, because instead
of letting your Achilles justdrive your leg correctly, you're
hitting the ground and then,Actively lifting it back up
instead of like hitting theground and letting your leg
recoil back up It's sort of ifyou've ever been on a trampoline
with somebody else you try anddouble bounce them It's the
(15:34):
opposite of that if you try andjump right as somebody lands on
the trampoline and your legslike buckle underneath you,
you're getting no recoil.
Angie (15:42):
That's the worst.
I hate it when that happens,right?
But that's what double bouncingsofa double
Kevin (15:46):
bouncing is super fun.
And that's essentially whatyou're getting.
If you strengthen the Achillesand you get this rebound and
it's coming back up, you'removing up because the tendon is
just compressing and springingyou forward.
If you're trying to do this sortof like, Oh, I'll get my knees
up and really make sure that I'mgoing, you're essentially like,
it's the opposite of that.
If you've ever been on thetreadmill or on a trampoline and
(16:06):
had it like bounce underneathyou right as you're ready to
jump and you just drop to theground, that's what's happening
with every single stride.
Angie (16:13):
So what does the research say?
Right?
So hopefully you kind of have anunderstanding of what
plyometrics are, why they'reimportant for runners.
But what does the research say?
The research has shown that.
Plyometrics increased yourrunning economy.
So, what does that mean?
It means that you can use lessenergy at the same pace.
So, that improves the efficiencyof your running as well.
(16:35):
So, you don't get as tiredrunning the same pace, which
means you can maintain that pacefor a longer period of time.
It also shows increased stridepower and speed.
So, basically, there's thisConcept inside the muscle that
plyometrics utilize, which iscalled the stretch shortening
cycle, and it's what, like whenyou shorten the muscle and like
(16:55):
release it and like you do, uh,I'm trying to like figure out
how to explain this in a verysimple way.
It's like it's a reflexivestretch and then the muscle
shortens and then stretches andthen releases and you get that
power.
Does that make sense or is thatnot, is that more confusing?
Kevin (17:12):
No, try saying it one more time, I'm gonna see if I
can come up with it.
The stretch shortening
Angie (17:15):
cycle.
Kevin (17:15):
I know, I'm not good at trying to explain it, I know
what it muscle
Angie (17:18):
spindles and the Golgi tendon organs.
Like in my brain is like all thescience behind it.
Um, but basically it's like thisquick contraction of like when
you stretch a muscle, you getthis reflexive contraction.
So it's this rapid Stretch andshortening cycle of the muscle
and you're kind of trying totrigger that.
It's a neuromuscular thing
Kevin (17:38):
If you've ever actually learned how to type on a
keyboard Which maybe peoplelistening to us have learned how
to type on our keyboard Our kidsonly know how to type on their
phone with their thumbs, butit's possible if you ever type
with your keyboard It's thedifference between having your
fingers up above and literallyhunting and pecking Versus if
you get your hand placement,right your fingers literally pop
right back off the key and sendyou towards the next place It's
(18:00):
a very crude metaphor for what'shappening inside of this.
Angie (18:04):
I've never would have put those two things together.
But yes, you're essentiallyhelping your your muscles to
work more efficiently.
So you spend less time on theground, which is going to allow
you to move forward fasterbecause running the thing that.
Separates running from walkingis the float phase, which is
when both feet are off theground.
You are literally flying, right?
(18:25):
And I'm literally figuratively.
No, you're literally literallyfine because both feet are off
the ground You
Kevin (18:30):
just made me smile because I love all the slow
motion Replay of the speedwalkers in the Olympics where
they're like, oh both feet offthe ground both feet off the
ground,
Angie (18:38):
right?
So when you're spending lesstime on the ground you can move
forward faster again As long asyou're moving forward and not up
and this is another point thatwe're going to make later.
Um, you know, which is whyyou're running form overall
matters because plyometrics isnot about giving you more upward
motion.
It's about giving you moreforward motion.
Um, and plyometrics can alsoreduce your injury risk when
(18:59):
used correctly.
Um, if plyometrics also haveIncreased inherent risk within
them.
So you have to be careful andwe're going to talk about how to
incorporate them safely later intoday's episode.
So the stronger your tendonsare, there's, that means that
there's less strain on yourjoints and lower risk of
Achilles problems, kneeproblems, and hip injuries.
(19:20):
So incorporating plan metricscan.
Decrease your risk of injury aswell.
And that's what also has beenshown in the research.
As
Kevin (19:27):
long as you're doing it correctly and not just searching
Instagram for plyometrics andthen trying to do the coolest
looking ones.
Angie (19:34):
Right.
Because you know, you don't wantto do what I did last week.
I actually forgot.
I was going to tell this storyat the beginning of the episode
of one of the reasons why we'retalking about plyometrics this
week, um, because you don't wantto be like me.
So last week, I, in my Mondaystrength session, I decided I
was going to do box jumps and Ihad been doing box jumps pretty
consistently for a few monthsand then I basically took a
(19:57):
month off ish, about a month offand didn't do box jumps for
about a month.
And then last Monday I was like,I really should start doing
those again.
Those are really good for me.
And so.
Not only did I start doing boxjumps again, I increased the
number of sets that I did and Ialso made them harder by
including a depth jump, whichmeans like I jumped up onto the
(20:18):
box and then jumped back downinstead of doing it the way that
I had been doing it before,which is jump up and then just
gently and slowly step back downand then jump up with two feet
and then step back down.
Um, I just decided to jump upand then jump back down and that
is much harder on the body.
And so I tweaked my back doingthat.
It was a stupid thing to do.
(20:39):
That shows you that we ascoaches often know better, but
that doesn't always mean that wedo better because we like to
trick ourselves and our brain,you know, likes to lie to us
sometimes.
And, uh, yeah, so So, I want youto start incorporating
plyometrics, but I want you todo so safely and not follow my
lead there.
Kevin (20:57):
Yeah.
It's nuts to me that youdecided, I've taken off several
weeks, I'm going to come back,but I'm coming back in a more
difficult manner than I left.
Angie (21:05):
It was dumb.
Yeah.
It was very, very dumb.
Okay.
And in part three, we're goingto talk about how to incorporate
everything safely.
So, um, all right.
Now we're going to talk abouthow plyometrics help you to run
faster and more efficiently.
You start to understand a littlebit, you know that there's
research behind it, butbasically let's explain how this
is working.
Mr.
Physics major, would you like totake the microphone?
Kevin (21:27):
Sure.
I mean,
Angie (21:28):
you're not physics major, but you are a physics teacher,
Kevin (21:31):
physics teacher, engineering major.
I've got all sorts of things.
All right.
So Essentially, your tendons arestoring potential energy.
Every time you hit the ground,the spring that is your tendon
compresses, and then when youtake your foot off the ground,
it's able to spring back.
And that potential energy,stored in your tendon, turns
into kinetic energy, which movesyou forward.
(21:51):
We skip some steps along theinside, but that is essentially
what is happening, is thepotential of your tendon turns
into kinetic energy, shootingyou forward.
Angie (22:00):
Right, so it's kind of like a rubber band, except in
the opposite direction.
Like, with a rubber band, whenyou Pull a rubber band and you
lengthen that rubber band.
You build up the potentialenergy in that.
And then when you release it, itshoots much further, right?
So the tendons, it's not thatwe're stretching the tendons per
se, like, but we kind of arebecause it's, it's a stretch and
then a shortening that that'sthat muscle stretch shortening
(22:22):
cycle that we were talking aboutbefore.
So that's what essentiallyplyometrics help your muscles
and your tendons do whichimproves that elasticity Making
you more powerful with lesseffort
Kevin (22:33):
Which is like the holy grail of training if you can
increase power and speed withoutincreasing your effort level
That's as good as it canpossibly get whatever Training
method you can come up withthat.
That's the result you're winningbecause you're going faster and
it's not harder
Angie (22:50):
Yep, and so Those of us that are over 40, which I think
is the majority of our audience.
I mean, there might be some ofyou youngins listening, which
is, you know, wonderful.
And for you to know thisinformation and start
incorporating this informationinto your training now is a
great idea.
So this is A universal principlethat runners and athletes of all
(23:11):
ages need to be incorporating,but especially for runners over
40, it's important for us toknow that plyometrics help us to
maintain the stiffness andelasticity of our tenons that we
tend to lose with age, becauseas we age, we Not only lose that
stiffness in that tendon, theelasticity, but we also lose
(23:31):
fast twitch muscle fibers, whichare the key for speed and power
and plyometrics help us topreserve more of those muscle
fibers.
So you don't feel like you'relosing that pop in your stride
as much it.
That's really the key here.
Plus, stronger tendons also meanless stress on your hips, your
knees, and your ankles, whichreduces your injury risk.
Kevin (23:52):
We kind of skimmed over this, but just for, for some
anatomy assistance on this,tendons are the ones that
connect muscles to bones, right?
Angie (23:59):
Yes.
All right.
So as ligaments connect bone tobone.
Kevin (24:03):
Okay, so if we're connecting, if we're
strengthening the connectionbetween muscle and bones, that's
what's happening at every singlejoint, which is why plyometrics
are super helpful.
When you're hitting this, you'relike, Oh, is that going to be
good for, for this part of me?
It's good for all of the partsthat bend.
So ankles and knees and hips,which one of those is.
probably given you problems inthe past or could potentially
(24:25):
give you problems in the future.
So if you can reduce thelikelihood of some sort of
aching soreness in a joint,that's, that's a win.
Give me, give me someplyometrics.
I'm going to go get a two byfour.
Angie (24:36):
Excellent.
All right.
So let's talk about how to startincorporating them safely into
your training without gettinghurt like I did.
So number one, start small.
Plyometrics are all aboutquality.
Not quantity.
And this is a very importantconcept that is really Carrying
over to pretty much all of ourtraining as we get older quality
(24:58):
over quantity You don't need tobe out there just doing endless
jumping exercises but if you doa few targeted plyometrics
drills done correctly andConsistently they can make a
huge impact in The results thatyou get from them,
Kevin (25:14):
you
Angie (25:15):
can't
Kevin (25:16):
actually be out there doing endless jumping drills
because as you start stacking updrill after drill after drill
and all sorts of exercise on topof each other, you're going to
immediately lose the quality ifyou can't actually get the
spring off of we're going to gothrough some of these different
exercises.
If you're not getting the quickspringiness or you're not
landing stable, that's going toput you in a position of hurting
(25:39):
yourself.
And then you're not actuallygetting any of the benefit of
the plyometrics.
If you're moving really, reallyslow through the plyometrics,
you're not getting the wholeidea of actually building the
spring, actually working on theelasticity of your tendons.
It's, it's just taking.
Uh, it's taking a spring andinstead of like compressing it
and letting it pop back out,it's just taking that spring and
(26:01):
just slowly stretching it out soit doesn't actually recoil.
That's not the benefit ofplyometrics.
Everything needs to go at afaster cadence.
Angie (26:10):
Yes.
And so these do need to bethose, again, those rapid
explosive types of movements,and they should be done when
your muscles are fresh.
Like Kevin said, when you havefatigued, tired muscles.
Like so if you go out and do aheavy lifting session or a speed
session and then try to doplyometrics afterwards, your
muscles are already very tired.
(26:31):
So when you do the plyometricsalso makes a big difference
because if you try to doplyometrics on already tired
muscles and tendons, number one,it's going to increase your risk
of injury.
You're much more likely to gethurt doing them.
And then number two, you're notgoing to be getting the same
effects.
You're not going to be gettingthe same benefits.
And so Why are you doing things,anything in your training plan,
(26:52):
if you're not getting goodbenefits from them?
You know, people might say, Oh,well, there's the mental health
benefit and this benefit andthat benefit.
And sure, there is some of that,that, you know, maybe.
The training plan or the exactweekly routine that you're
following is not completelyoptimized and that's fine It's
real life, right?
Like it doesn't have everythingdoes not have to be optimized in
(27:15):
our lives, but at the same timePlyometrics are one of those
things that you can't do a lotof them because it increases
your injury risk So you need todo a small amount of them for a
short period of time, put themin when they're going to give
you the most benefit and be themost effective.
Kevin (27:32):
All right.
So if you were, let's take some,before we get into what we've
got here in the outline, if youwere looking at somebody who's
like, I want to bring inplyometrics consistently on a
weekly basis and they're, theygo out for a run and they get in
there, they're, you know, Idon't know, 30, 45 minutes, like
their regular run.
And they realize, Oh, I doactually have a little bit of
time.
(27:52):
Is it better to put plyometricsOn the end of a run, if you
might be fatigued or should yoube like, Ooh, I missed my
plyometrics.
I should have done it at thebeginning of the run when I had
time.
I didn't think I had time.
Is it a safer move, especiallyfor athletes over 40 to be like,
I'm going to have to skipplyometrics this week and do it
again next week?
(28:12):
or to do it on tired legs?
I know it's a pure opinionquestion that you've got here
but that's what I'm going for.
Angie (28:17):
I think it depends on what kind of plyometrics you're
doing.
Kevin (28:20):
Oh, good one, gray area answer.
So if you're doing plyometricsthat will be less demanding,
then you could probably get awaywith it?
Angie (28:28):
Yeah, you can get away with some but you wouldn't want
to do some of the harder ones.
So
Kevin (28:33):
depth jumps?
Angie (28:33):
Depth jumps is in there.
Okay.
Okay, so before we jump intokind of some common exercises
that we can recommend for youand ways for you to get started,
Let's first start with commonmistakes to avoid.
So number one is the Angie boxjump problem, which is doing too
much too soon.
And even though I have abackground in plyometrics, I was
doing them consistently.
(28:54):
A month ago, I took off a monthfrom doing them.
And so my body wasn't Still usedto them, especially in that
volume.
I think that if I would havedone, um, in that volume and
that intensity, I should say.
Because if I would have justdone my normal set of box jumps
to get back into it, it wouldhave been fine.
I think that I increased thesets and I added that depth,
(29:16):
that jump back down, which was areally dumb idea.
That was the dumbest of all ofthe ideas.
Increasing the number of setswould have probably been okay as
well.
But doing too much too soon.
is one of the worst things thatyou can do.
Okay.
So you want to start with a lowvolume and with controlled
landings, you have to make surethat your body can control this.
So again, you don't want to justjump into plyometrics.
(29:38):
You want to have a base ofstrength training and mobility
and stability before you startworking on power, because
plyometrics helps you to developyour power.
And it's not a good idea to justjump into power and speed
training.
If you don't have a foundationunderneath you, because again,
your risk of injury is muchhigher.
Kevin (29:55):
Right.
The plyometrics themselves aregoing to strengthen the muscle,
like the tendons around yourankle.
But if you're so weak in theankle that you can't stand on
one foot for like 10 seconds,then plyometrics might not be
the place to start.
You might want to start bypracticing standing on one foot
and then stretch that out towhere you can stand on a foot
(30:15):
for a minute.
And then can you stand on a footfor a minute on an uneven
surface or with your eyesclosed, get to the point where
you can actually supportyourself on a foot before you
start jumping all over theplace.
Angie (30:25):
Yep.
Second common mistake to avoidis ignoring recovery.
These are intense.
exercises.
And I know that some of thebeginning examples that I'm
going to give you, you'reprobably thinking, okay, Angie,
really, that's what you call anintense exercises.
But for your tendons, they are,you know, that's the thing.
It's, you know, it might notseem that intense since you are
(30:46):
a runner, but But to yourtendons, these are things that
they have to kind of get usedto.
So recovery is really important.
That's why you're only going todo them a couple of times a
week.
This is not something thatyou're going to necessarily do
on a daily basis because overusecan lead to tendon fatigue.
Tendon fatigue can lead tochronic, you know.
Uh, it can lead to acuteinflammation.
It can lead to chronictendinosis and other changes in
(31:08):
the tendon, which you're alreadyhaving age related changes in
our tendons.
So we don't need to add overuseand fatigue on top of that.
Kevin (31:15):
Okay.
Tendon fatigue.
I know what it feels like whenmy muscles get tired.
Can I actually feel when mytendons are getting tired or is
this sort of like I need to takeit easy and slowly advance
because otherwise I'm likely toget to tendon fatigue and before
I even notice it it's moved intoYou know inflammation in the
(31:36):
area.
I'm heading towards tendonitis
Angie (31:38):
Yeah, I think it's probably the second one.
I don't think it's like, Oh, mytendons are fatiguing because we
noticed muscle fatigue before wenoticed tendon fatigue.
That's what I thought.
So that's one of the reasonsthat you're, you're less likely
to actually understand it, thatand tendons are avascular.
Kevin (31:54):
That was my other thought is like, we're not getting good
blood flow to our tendons.
Like, I don't really notice thatmy tendons are getting tired.
And that's what you call themintense.
I've done these things with myhigh school kids and they're
like, that's, All we're doingfor our workout today.
I'm like, uh, yes, cause I don'tneed you getting hurt.
And it's, it doesn't seem like ahuge amount, but for your
tendons, there's such a smalllittle part of your body and
(32:17):
they don't repair very rapidlybecause there's no blood flow
going to them essentially.
So you've got to ease your wayinto these guys.
Angie (32:24):
Yeah.
Um, the other mistake thatpeople make is.
Letting their form break downand not being aware of their
form, and this is one of thethings I tell all of my clients
is as soon as your form startsto break down, you need to stop
that.
Like, I don't care if you'vedone three repetitions.
If the fourth repetition feelslike I can't maintain that form,
(32:46):
then that's the answer.
Like you have to stop.
You have to focus on softlandings like where you You when
you're jumping and you soundlike it if there's an elephant
in the room, that is not a goodsign, right?
You want to focus on keeping theknees slightly bent do never
ever land with straight knees Soyou want your knees slightly
bent at all time and you want totry to absorb those forces and
(33:10):
Make your landings as quiet andas soft as possible.
And again, making sure thatyou're controlling that movement
and that you're not wobbling allover the place.
Kevin (33:18):
Right.
Because if you feel like yourform is breaking down, you're
probably two reps beyond whereyour form actually started to
break down.
If you were filming yourself.
You might be good with like thefirst three or four and then it
starts breaking down and then itgets to a point where it's so
broken down that you're like,Ooh, I feel like I landed wobbly
on that one.
Those first signs where you'reactually sensing that you're not
(33:42):
quite in control is definitelythe time to stop and not the
time to be like, I couldprobably get a couple more in.
Right?
Angie (33:49):
I agree.
Okay.
All right.
So when should you be doingplyometrics?
How often should you be doingplyometrics?
So basically you want toincorporate these 2 to 3 times a
week for about 5 to 10 minutesper session.
This doesn't take a lot ofvolume.
Again, less is better.
Quality over quantity.
You can do these for 5 to 10minutes and that includes rest
breaks.
So it's not 5 minutes straightor 10 minutes straight of
(34:11):
plyometrics.
It's doing them for about 15seconds, 30 seconds.
Maybe up to a minute, dependingon what you're doing and then
taking a break in between them.
So two to three times a week,five to 10 minutes per session.
So maybe about three to fiveexercises per plyometric session
is essentially what you'relooking for.
You want to make sure that yourbody is warmed up before you get
(34:34):
into plyometrics.
So, if you want to do thesebefore a run, which is when I
would suggest to do them if youcan, I would, uh, suggest to do
essentially a dynamic warm up ofabout 5 to 10 minutes, where
you're getting the bloodflowing, you're getting your
muscles and your joints warmedup and the body moving.
Then you do your Set ofplyometrics, and then you can go
(34:54):
off on your run, especially ifyou have a speed workout that
day.
You definitely want to get yourplyometrics done before.
If you have a shorter, easierrun, you can probably do them
afterwards.
But again, you're going to wantto make sure that if they're
after a run, they're more oflike a low intensity type of
plyometric, not the moredifficult versions,
Kevin (35:13):
right?
Because it's, it's quality overquantity.
If you're already fatigued fromyour run, it's likely that your
first couple of reps are alreadygoing to not have the proper
form and then you would have tostop anyway,
Angie (35:24):
right?
But there's a lot of runningdrills that we give to our
clients as well that you can doeither before or after you can
do them before as part of yourwarmup or you can do them after
a run when you do them after arun again, they're low intensity
and the goal is.
Running mechanics, right?
Like really focusing on thebiomechanics of your run and
trying to improve your runningform and to improve the
(35:45):
springiness.
And again, it's better if it'safter an easier run or a shorter
run versus a speed session.
Kevin (35:51):
Yeah, and I mean, the, the running drills as a, as a
light form of plyometrics istotally different than saying,
I'm going to go off on Mynormal, it's an easy run, I
should be fine.
And then coming back and doingsomething intense, like box
jumps.
It's always the one I go to isbox jumps.
Cause it just seems like one ofthe most intense forms of
plyometrics or something whereyou're jumping excessively from
side to side,
Angie (36:11):
lateral one.
Yeah.
Kevin (36:12):
Because like the last thing you need to be is like,
Oh, I'm slightly fatigued for myrun.
And then you try and dosomething side to side and
completely roll an ankle.
Angie (36:18):
Exactly.
Um, so that's how you would kindof.
incorporate them into runningdays.
You can also put plyometrics onstrength days, which is when I
like to do them as well.
Um, plyometrics are a great wayto get kind of sprint interval
training types of things inwhere you're doing a more high
intensity type of activity for ashort amount of time.
Um, so you can kind of kind ofkilled two birds with one stone
(36:41):
there.
Um, So if you're doing them on astrength day, again, you would
want to warm up first, then doyour plyometrics and then go and
do your heavier lifts.
You wouldn't want to lift heavyand then try to do plyometrics
at the end.
No,
Kevin (36:54):
definitely plyo on the front end of a strength day.
Like, let's have the muscles benice and fresh for those.
Angie (36:59):
Yes.
So that's kind of how you wouldincorporate plyometrics into
your routine.
Um, any Are there furtherclarifications or anything you
think there?
Kevin (37:09):
No, I mean, I like, you know, some easy drills at the
end is, is one of my favoriteways just to get in some easy
plyo.
I do it more often than two tothree times per week if, if you
add in the very low intensitylike running drills.
I try and do those on a veryregular basis.
Right,
Angie (37:24):
but how intense are those running drills when you do them?
Kevin (37:27):
Super low intensity.
Angie (37:27):
And that's why?
Kevin (37:28):
That's why I can get them in all the time.
So if you're, if you're startingto try and advance your
plyometrics, Two to three timesper week, max.
But if you're like, Oh, well,I'm just doing these like very
easy form drills at the end,technically it's plyometrics,
but it's also just, it's, it'spart of my cool down.
Angie (37:43):
Right.
And so I think that always goesback to quality over quantity
and also knowing the intentionbehind what you're doing.
Are you trying to do this foryour running mechanics and to
kind of improve and to just kindof loosen up your joints, right?
A lot of times I'll do slowrunning drills at the end of my
run to just kind of get myjoints moving and less stiff,
(38:04):
like kind of work out some ofthat stiffness that develops
during the course of my runversus doing plyometrics that
are actually.
With the goal and the target ofdeveloping speed and rapid power
explosion.
Kevin (38:16):
Yeah, less power explosion, more increased range
of motion and just feeling goodand mobile afterwards.
Angie (38:21):
Exactly, exactly.
So, some beginner plyometricexercises, if you're new to this
world, things that you can startto incorporate.
The first one is just anklehops.
So, what that looks like isessentially pretending like
you're jumping rope where you'rejust doing these very small,
short, quick hops.
The motion is coming from theankle, so it's not like you
know, you're getting a big bendin the knee and the hip.
(38:43):
You're not trying to jump forheight.
You're just kind of bouncing upand down as if you're jumping
rope.
So, of course, there is someMovement in the knee, but most
of the movement is coming fromthe ankles where you're just
landing and then pushing up fromthe ground with your toes.
Kevin (38:57):
Yeah, most of the movement in the knee is to help
soften the landing.
Correct.
Because And that's why
Angie (39:01):
there's such good beginner exercises because it's
teaching you how to land softlyas well.
Kevin (39:05):
Right, this is like, find the loudest thing you can land
on.
Like your exercise mat is superloud because of it's like the,
the stickiness of it.
If you can figure out how toland on, on an exercise mat like
that silently, You're, you'reready to move on to the next
step because you're softlanding.
Angie (39:21):
It's just because I do things barefoot.
I think that it's not as loud ifI were to wear socks and other
things.
Sorry, that was
Kevin (39:25):
a personal commentary and not at all about the sound that
you make on the mat.
As much as any time I've triedto hop on that, I'm like, what
the heck is wrong with me?
Why am I just echoing throughthe entire house?
That was no commentary on you atall.
Angie (39:37):
Alright, so ankle hops are a great place to go.
Um, Pogo jumps are basicallyankle hops, but just a little
bit higher.
So ankle hops are focusing onlike that rapid quick movement,
and you don't get very high offthe ground.
Pogo jumps are basically thesame, but you're just jumping
higher.
It's not a squat jump.
(39:58):
So a squat jump would be likeactually bending the knees and
bringing your hips down closerto the ground and then exploding
upward.
A pogo is like you're still inthat very upright position.
You're just trying to jump alittle bit higher, but the
motion still comes from theankles as if you were on a pogo
stick as a kid.
Kevin (40:14):
Okay.
So pogos versus jump squats, youcan kind of just keep a regular
rhythm on pogos.
Whereas with squat jumps, everytime you land, you're going back
into a squat, like it's a slowermotion.
To get through just like onefull round of it.
Angie (40:31):
Yeah, exactly.
And so, so those are some reallygood, um, beginner ones.
Skipping is a great one.
So just literally skipping inplace or skipping forward is a
great running drill that you cando.
There's different types of skipsthat you can do.
Um, but when we look atprogression and this is why I
always start people off withankle hops, the first thing that
you want to do is do.
(40:52):
In place so you're not movingforward or side to side you're
starting in place So you'rejumping and landing in the same
spot and you're doing it on twofeet Okay, because when you
think about progressing safely,which is very very important
with plyometrics you will alwayswant to start with double legs
and then move to single legs andstart with in place and then
(41:13):
move on to as you get stronger,then you can move on to things
that will actually move you likeso forward hops versus hopping
in place.
Kevin (41:22):
Right.
So in terms of intensity, wheredo you put hopping versus
skipping?
Cause I think skipping is lessintense, but I feel like it
might also depend on the type ofskip you're doing.
Are you talking
Angie (41:31):
about double leg hops or single leg hops?
Kevin (41:33):
Single leg hop versus skipping.
Angie (41:35):
Single leg hops versus skipping.
Well, are you talking aboutskipping in place or skipping
forward?
Kevin (41:40):
Forward.
In both cases we're movingforward.
Angie (41:43):
In both cases we're moving forward.
I would say skipping becauseyou're alternating legs.
Kevin (41:47):
That was my thought.
There's like a fluidity to it.
Angie (41:50):
Right.
So I think that makes it alittle bit less, um, Tough on
you and also easier to do.
Kevin (41:55):
Okay.
Angie (41:56):
Okay.
So, those are some beginnerplyometrics that you can start
to incorporate.
Again, do not just jump intoplyometrics if you don't have a
good base of strength, if you'reconsistent with your current
strength routine, you're doingstrength training at least twice
a week, then you can think aboutadding in some plyometric drills
and things like that to developyour speed and your power.
(42:18):
If you're not doing strengthtraining at least twice a week,
you're going to want to hold offon this.
If you do have a good base ofstrength and you want to start
incorporating plant metrics, Iwould love to invite you to
check out our YouTube channel.
I have not been posting a tonover there over the course of
the past few years, but I amstarting to add more videos to
our YouTube channel.
(42:39):
It's at Real Life Runners overon YouTube as well, so go check
it out.
I have examples of all of thebeginner plyometric exercises
that we talked about up on.
The YouTube channel.
So check us out over at reallife runners on YouTube.
If you want some examples ofplyometrics and also there's
some strength training exerciseson there, and I'm really going
(42:59):
to be adding more to thatYouTube channel this year.
So check it out, give us afollow.
Uh, and I hope it's helpful.
So as just a final summary, plyometrics aren't just
for sprinters or jumpingathletes, they can make any
runner faster, stronger and moreresilient.
They help you to improve yourrunning economy, your stride
power, your injury resistance,and just a few minutes of
(43:21):
targeted plyometrics each weekcan create Big results, but
don't jump in.
Don't do too much too soon.
Start small quality overquantity.
Your body will adapt and you'regoing to start to feel the
difference in your runs.
I'd love to hear your thoughts.
I'd love to answer any questionsthat you guys might have.
if you're not following us yet,head over to Instagram and
(43:42):
follow us at real life runners.
Um, send me a DM if you have anyquestions.
And again, I'll just going toput in that plug again for.
You know, please leave us areview if you like this episode.
If you have another favoriteepisode, you can reference that
episode in your review, but justtake a minute, um, and write us
a couple sentences to help usspread the word and help us
(44:03):
share the plot, the podcast withother people that can benefit.
And as always, thanks forspending this time with us
today.
This has been the Real LifeRunners podcast, episode number
400.
Now get out there and run yourlife.
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