Exercises

For example; a bodybuilder or someone looking to increase muscle bulk will likely wish to train a particular muscle group with a repetition range between eight and twelve repetitions, three to four sets, with two to three minutes rest in between sets. Exercise choice should contain plenty of compound exercises, but isolation exercises will probably be included to target specific muscle groups. Such a plan will likely lead to enhanced muscle hypertrophy (growth), assuming the individual is healthy and follows a suitable diet and lifestyle for their training goals.

On the other hand; someone interested in increasing their strength would find a repetition range between three and eight more fruitful, with three to five minutes rest in between each set, two to three sets per exercise. Isolations will rarely be used, instead emphasis is placed on full body movements which recruit multiple muscle groups, such as deadlifts, squats, bench presses, bent over rows, and over head presses. One workout may target the upper body or lower body, opposed to individual muscle groups like with a bodybuilder.

Plyometrics differ somewhat to traditional power exercises, such as Olympic power lifting exercises, as the emphasis is very much placed on the speed of the movement opposed to the force or load. Why is this important? Well, in many sporting and athletic disciplines, a more powerful movement is very much desired to enhance performance. The problem with just relying on heavy weight training or Olympic style power lifting is the speed at which the muscle contracts to generate the force. A 100m sprinter will have a contact phrase of roughly 100-200 milliseconds, in which time they have to produce an extremely high force to propel their body forward. The speed at which a muscle contracts during a weight lifting exercise is often hundreds of milliseconds greater than this, and is therefore not fully transferable. Weight lifting exercises and Olympic power lifting are very useful for enhancing force and strength, yet plyometrics can help transfer this strength and force into quicker, more powerful movements.