◄PERFORMANCE ENHANCEMENT►

"Jumping" Into Good Health

The performance enhancement division of Wilmington Physical Therapy, Inc. offers plyometric training and speed / agility enhancement training to athletes of all ages.  Plyometric exercises have been defined as eccentric loading of a muscle group followed by a concentric contraction.

Plyometric exercises are very functional training techniques and can be used for most any sport.

Several studies over the past decade have concluded that female athletes involved in jumping and "cutting" or pivoting activities are at greater risk for sustaining non-contact anterior cruciate ligament injuries when compared to their male counterparts.  A variety of differences have been identified between the sexes that may attribute to this;  however some recent findings suggest that some of the differences are lower extremity mal-alignment related to insufficient neuromuscular control strategies. 

Plyometric training has been found to enhance neuromuscular function and help prevent knee injuries by increasing dynamic stability.  Proper plyometric exercises may increase performance and decrease injury risk in competitive female athletes.  While plyometric training has been an established technique for enhancing athletic performance for sometime, this training may also facilitate adaptations in the sensorimotor system that enhance dynamic restraint mechanisms and correct faulty jumping / landing or pivoting mechanics.  We incorporate proprioception neuromuscular facilitation, closed chain static / dynamic stabilization and perturbation training techniques into these programs.

Please contact us if you would like to know more about how we can help you incorporate proper plyometric training techniques with your athletes.

Dan Duffy, ATC-L
Director of Sports Medicine