Plyometrics In-Season: Keeping Your Explosive Power Sharp

Hockey Horizons Staff Writer | Fitness Kits

The information in this article is for general educational purposes only. The author is not a certified personal trainer or strength and conditioning specialist. Always consult a qualified fitness professional or sports medicine provider before beginning or modifying a training program, particularly if you have any existing injuries or health concerns.

Explosive power — the ability to generate force rapidly — is one of the physical qualities that begins to fade most noticeably during the in-season period if it's not maintained. The game of hockey does provide some maintenance stimulus for explosive power through skating, but the volume and specificity of game-play alone is not sufficient to prevent meaningful detraining of the power qualities developed in summer plyometric training. A small amount of dedicated in-season plyometric work goes a long way toward keeping your explosive edge through the entire season.

In-season plyometric maintenance does not require the volume of summer training. One to two brief plyometric sessions per week — performed as part of a pre-practice warm-up or before a strength training session — are sufficient to maintain explosive power adaptations through the season. The key is quality and intent: each jump, bound, or explosive movement should be performed with maximum effort and complete recovery between repetitions. A small volume of truly explosive movements is worth far more than a large volume of fatigued, diminishing-quality efforts.

Practical in-season plyometric options that can be completed in ten to fifteen minutes before practice: box jumps — five sets of three repetitions with complete rest between sets; broad jumps — five jumps for maximum distance; lateral bounds — three sets of five contacts per side; and squat jumps — three sets of five. These exercises require minimal equipment, take minimal time, and provide the neuromuscular stimulus needed to maintain the explosive quality that summer training built.

Connect It to Your Game

As you do your plyometric work in-season, connect the training mentally to specific game situations. A box jump is your push to beat a defender to a puck in the corner. A lateral bound is your first aggressive push in a defensive zone gap. A squat jump is your battle positioning in front of the net. When training has a game context attached to it, your intent is higher and your effort is more genuine. Train with purpose, not just with mechanics.

At Hockey Horizons, we believe that physical preparation is one of the most controllable variables in a player's development. The work you put in away from the rink is reflected in every shift you take on the ice.

For guidance on the complete development picture, visit us at hockeyhorizons.com.