I recently wrote an article that touched on the (updated) science behind plyometrics. This post will be more practical in nature and while not a prerequisite, I’d still recommend checking out part 1 of this series.
Before we dive into this post, understand that playing tennis actually improves the stretch-shortening cycle (SSC). In essence, there are many ‘sister’ and ‘brother’ movements in tennis that utilize the SSC.
For instance, the split-step action is more reactive/elastic (and has a shorter ground contact time - GCT) compared to a recovery step - which is more concentric/muscular (and thus, a longer GCT).
So while performing these actions during tennis can enhance SSC abilities, what we often find is that a ceiling exists - mainly in terms of how the ‘sub-qualities’ of these movements are developed over time.
That’s what we’ll look at in this article. Not only will we classify the various plyometric activities - based on the work by my colleague and PhD plyo researcher - Matt McInnes Watson - we’ll also highlight movements in tennis that will be accentuated as a result of each specific plyometric activity.
Classifying Plyometric Training - 3 Main Tiers
There are 3 primary plyometric tiers - light, medium and ping. They’re the ones that fall under the 0.25s GCT (ground contact time) threshold that we alluded to in part 1. We’ll outline them below and highlight a few key characteristics that define each.
Light Tier Plyos
Normally, I call these types of plyos ‘rudimentary’ (this was taken from my mentor, Dan Pfaff’s, nomenclature - in other words, they are basic) but I also call them light tier (from Matt’s work).
Matt exclaims the following about this tier:
“The light tier movements are fundamentally extensive plyos that look to develop the reactive capacities of joint structures under light loading patterns.”
For our purposes (i.e. tennis folks), the key word to focus on is reactive. That’s why these are really fundamental when it comes to enhancing split-step abilities (along with the initial contact with the ground following a split-step). Below is an example of a ‘split-step’ drill we do on the tennis court. Notice the reactive nature of these actions - they’re the ones that will benefit from light tier movements.
Light Tier - Key Characteristics:
Small amplitudes at ankle, knee and hip joints
Stiff landings but still fairly compliant (low eccentric - ECC - loading overall)
Low ECC loading is due to the intent of these jumps being relatively low
Can be performed unilaterally, bilaterally or in a split-stance position
Because they are lower intensity, can be performed in a variety of directions, planes and can even be prescribed with med ball throws (making the activity more open-chain)
Low GRFs (ground reaction forces)
Fast GCTs (even though it’s light, we still get off the ground quick - and that should be our aim)
Submaximal landings
Great with beginner athletes but can also be revisited with high-performance athletes (as an activation, neural prep, various mapping/nervous system reorganization, reboot etc)
Medium Tier Plyos
Matt calls this tier the ‘fundamental base’ of an athlete’s plyometric training program. The movements are not yet maximal - in terms of the intent and the way an athlete should ‘attack’ the ground - but they produce enough force and limb velocity to elicit a higher nervous system stimulus.
Matt describes these movements in the following manner:
“The medium tier plyos deliver landings at a submaximal intensity and aim to provide velocity + overload in a relaxed manner that mimics human locomotion.”
Essentially, these bridge the gap between what Matt calls ‘ping’ tier plyos (which we’ll get to next) and the light tier plyos we discussed above. From my perspective - given what I’ve seen when incorporating these - the medium tier is kind of your more ‘elastic’ type of plyos. They’re more rhythmical, graceful - we want to have some sort of balance between fluidity and aggression.
These can be best correlated to medium length movements in tennis. Think of a recovery step where a player doesn’t have to cover too much ground. Often times, it’s not necessary to perform a crossover step - an elastic shuffle is not only the better choice, it’s more efficient.
An example of a cross + shuffle movement pattern during a recovery sequence. A prime example of efficiency to cover more of the court (elastically).
Medium Tier - Key Characteristics:
Intent to attack the ground is higher compared to light tier, but still not maximal
Potential for high GRFs
GCTs are likely more moderate (slightly longer compared to light tier)
Because these are still submax, a level of relaxation throughout the body is key
Bounds fit really well here
I have found these to be a great way to introduce bounding with athletes (and in particular, tennis players as they generally don’t have a background in athletics - where bounding, hopping etc are more prevalent).
Similar to the light tier, the medium tier can be prescribed in many variations (multiple planes, directions, bilaterally, unilaterally, contralaterally and so on).
This is ideal for many change-of-direction sports (like tennis), where movement variability is so high.
Personally, I also like to add this category into in-place jump circuits. For those unfamiliar, in-place jumps are just that, jumping performed in a repeated manner, while staying in one spot.
I like these because we can also perform them in many ways but they are also a touch easier compared to more locomotive variations - so beginners can get a good handle by doing these first (or at least in conjunction with more elaborate variations).
Ping Tier Plyos
These are the high-intensity stuff we all want. And while important, they are the least incorporated because of the amount of stress they can impose on various tissues (and on the athlete at large).
Matt says that:
“Ping tier plyos are of maximal intent - where the individual is looking to create the highest of forces in the fastest amount of time. Think of pinging off the ground with each landing.”
In tennis, this type of movement stimulates the qualities necessary for a highly reactive split-step (think of a higher than normal split-jump action...normally, these happen when players are anticipating to be in trouble). But beyond that, I see these being useful in developing change-of-direction qualities where the aim is to produce a lot of force, in a real short period of time.
A high split is an example of an action that requires high reactive strength - otherwise the player will not be able to utilize store elastic energy (i.e. the fall from the jump will crush them + impede their movement to the ball).
In terms of the types of movements, many of you probably have seen things like depth/drop jumps - these types of plyos develop the same quality as ping plyos.
Ping Tier - Key Characteristics:
Highest GRFs that you’ll find during plyos
Key here is to attack the ground with MAX intent
Because the intent to attack the ground is so high, the GCT (ground contact time) should generally be short
I like how Boo Schexnayder phrased it when talking about training in general (but it applies well here) - “you can be intense or you can be fancy, but you can’t be both”.
So because of this high level of ‘intensity’, these differ from low + medium tier plyos in the following ways:
Not as many variations - bc it’s hard to be intense when doing diagonal jumps, for instance (think of sprinting linearly vs agility drills around cones)
Can’t be done as frequently because of the stress-adaptation response
90% intensity or higher is required
Movements:
Bounds (GRFs next but fastest time on ground)
Leaps (lowest GRFs)
Hops (for GRFs, highest)
Highest intents in all these movements are done when traveling forward (i.e. GRFs will be highest here)
Programming the Tiers
In terms of programming, many will follow a more extensive to intensive model - in other words, performing lower intensity but higher volumes (and likely higher variability) of jumps early on in the calendar year. And then progress that to more low volume/high intensity work later on.
But many elite coaches (Dan and Boo being just 2 that come to mind right away) have put that model to bed. It’s common practice now to start with maximal acceleration or sprint work in week 1 of the training year. You may think of that as being strange but is it? Recall that jumping and sprinting are self-regulating. A 100% effort sprint in week 1 is not equal in stress to a 100% sprint in week 12 (or from year 1 to year 5 of a high-performance athlete’s career). That’s the intensity side of things - in terms of the volume side of the equation, those will undulate and vary drastically.
The Supporting Tier
Like we mentioned in part 1 of this series, some movements might appear to be plyometric but are not. To be considered plyometric, in the simplest form, the movement must include a landing-to-takeoff (L-T) action. On top of that, the amortization phase needs to be relatively short (about 0.25s or shorter).
Single-effort jumps (like the broad jump below) are NOT plyometric because there is no L-T action - it’s simply a takeoff.
Repetitive jumping actions (like an in-place squat jump) isn’t plyometric either because the time on the ground is too long. This basically means that instead of utilizing stored elastic energy, we’re using more muscular effort to execute the movement.
And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It just means we’re using them for a different purpose. Matt calls these ‘the supporting tier’ or ‘deep tier’. Their supporting because they act as support to other qualities. In particular, they are a great substitute to strength training - particularly during in-season training as players may not have access to weights (or aren’t doing as much weight room work because of potential fatigue/soreness).
But for tennis, I think these are great for another reason - they’re actually specific to a lot of movements and positions players encounter on the court. Think about the time you receive a really hard hit ball that stays low - what you should be doing is getting into a low position to receive that ball - and then get out of that position once you’re finished the strike. That’s really similar to a deep split-stance jump.
An example of deep lunge position when receiving a fast + deep ball.
On top of that, Matt offers additional benefits of these movements:
“Deep Tier movements may not be considered plyometric, but they provide support in developing stability and mobility through deep ranges of motion that ultimately feed the improvements of the other three tiers.”
Here are some additional characteristics that identify this deep tier movements:
Above 0.25s GCT
Deeper in range at hip, knee and ankle - this is why they have longer GCT (takes longer to get down into a deeper position, and then to get out of that position)
More muscular based compared to the tendon-centric plyos that we discussed above.
This means it’s also more metabolic rather than neuromuscular
We can still do a variety of movements here - and in a variety of planes (below are some examples of the diversity that exists):
A Couple Final Thoughts on Plyos
Lastly, you might be wondering why Matt advises athletes to perform plyos in a locomotive manner, and not in-place. What’s the deal?
Note - Matt still prescribes some movements in-place (probably not as much as me) but they still have lots of value.
Performing plyos in a locomotive manner is more akin to how we move. In other words, it’s what athletes do in sport.
Here’s Matt’s take:
“Plyometrics now have to take a step forward as a training method and look more towards evolving the way we holistically move. Almost all locomotive movement is based around landings and takeoffs which are inherently plyometric in nature and feed the way we move in sport.”
In tennis, players move around the court, adapting to the changes in the environment. Plyometrics can then act as a bridge to enhance a player’s movement abilities - from easier in-place variations, to locomotive options and finally to open-chain movements that we see on the tennis court.
Also, if you're looking for more practical plyometric training info, I strongly urge you to have a look at PhD Matt McInnes Watson' Plus Plyos platform. It includes hundreds of plyo exercise variations, a number of structured programs - and he's created a massive discount for Mattspoint readers. Take a look - and follow Matt on Instagram for daily plyo insights.