Explosiveness Isn’t Just For Athletes. Boost Yours With These 6 Moves for Speed and Power

The word “explosive” probably brings to mind something like a firework: a projectile going far, fast, and with a lot of oomph. When you look at explosiveness in terms of exercise, the word maintains that same association, referring to your ability to quickly generate maximal force or power. 

That might sound like something reserved for athletes—and it can boost your performance in just about any sport—but everyone can benefit from explosive power training, says Alex Rothstein, exercise science program coordinator at the New York Institute of Technology. You tap into your explosiveness likely more than you realize in your daily life.

What does it take to train explosiveness, exactly? Keep reading as we dive into the nitty gritty of this fitness concept, explosiveness exercises to try, and why they’re worth your energy.

What Is Explosive Training?

Explosive strength entails producing a maximal amount of force in a minimal amount of time, according to the American Council on Exercise (ACE). True explosiveness happens when a muscle lengthens (eccentric contraction) then rapidly accelerates through the shortening phase (concentric contraction). Rothstein says you can think of explosiveness as the ability to rebound quickly—like landing after a jump and then jumping again—or the initial burst you need to get off the blocks in a sprint. 

The latter type of movement, which requires a quick concentric contraction, can also be referred to as power training. Truthfully, explosiveness and power go hand in hand and are pretty much interchangeable, Rothstein says. “Power, by definition, is the amount of force you're applying and then the speed at which you apply it. So the equation in physics is P=Fv, power equals force times velocity.” To train explosiveness and power, you need work on one of the elements in that equation, either increasing force (i.e., lifting more weight) or moving faster, Rothstein explains.

In Peloton workouts, power and explosiveness training might appear in a strength or HIIT cardio class, says Peloton instructor Callie Gullickson. “A lot of training that we classify as metabolic conditioning training is explosive or power training,” Rothstein adds.

How Explosiveness Helps You Achieve Maximum Fitness

The main payoffs for training explosiveness are more speed and power. “Basically, you improve your ability to generate force quickly,” Rothstein says. “If you're an athlete doing any sort of performance task in your sport—which, most athletics are based more on power than strength—you'll be jumping higher, throwing farther, moving faster, changing directions quicker, any of these things and more.” 

Explosive strength training improves how quickly your nervous system can activate muscle fibers, boosts coordination, speeds up reaction time, and activates your powerful type II muscle fibers, according to ACE. A review of research published in the Strength and Conditioning Journal found that plyometric training (which is explosive by nature) helps to improve sprint times, increase maximal muscle strength and power, and prevent injury by refining landing mechanics, decreasing ground reaction forces, and optimizing hamstring to quadriceps ratios (key for those who may be quad dominant).

These benefits sound key for competitive athletes, but casual runners and cyclists will tackle their sports stronger with the help of explosive training, too. Research shows that just a few weeks of explosive and heavy weight training increases running economy (a major marker of running performance), while 20 weeks of a heavy explosive strength training program significantly improves cyclists’ bike-specific explosive strength (think: sprinting) and VO2 max. 

When included in your workouts, elements of power and explosive training can come with their own bonus perks. For example, adding speed to your workouts can help elevate the intensity of moves without adding more weight—super useful if you’re working with a limited home gym or can’t load your body with weight due to injury. “If you train a movement faster, it automatically becomes harder,” Rothstein explains. Not to mention, going faster can up the thrill. “Doing things faster, adding a competitive edge, competing against the clock, and matching the tempo of high-speed music can be really fun and include elements of power and explosiveness,” Rothstein says.

Fitness advantages aside, developing increased explosiveness helps you stay ready for everyday obstacles. “I incorporate explosive exercises to help with muscle recruitment allowing me to become stronger and less prone to injury whether I'm working out or in everyday life,” Callie says. Truthfully, “when it comes to daily life, we don't recognize how important power is,” Rothstein adds. Imagine your kid is about to fall, and you need to kick into high gear to sprint over and catch them—that requires explosiveness. If you lose your balance, the act of quickly and forcefully moving your leg to regain your base of support is also an explosive movement. In these instances, strength matters, but the ability to apply strength to move something quickly comes down to power, Rothstein explains.

Are Explosive Exercises Good for Muscle Gains?

Honestly, if your main goal is to build muscle, explosive training isn’t the ideal approach. “It does recruit a lot of muscle, which stimulates muscle growth to an extent,” Rothstein says. But it’s hard to do a high volume of explosive training since it’s so taxing on the body—and higher volume training is generally best for inducing hypertrophy (muscle growth). 

Take metabolic conditioning workouts, for example. “Everything is fast and explosive, but it's also a lot of volume. That can cause hypertrophy, but it also comes with a lot of injuries because explosive training is fatiguing, and form can be lost,” Rothstein explains.

If your main fitness goal is muscle gain, you can (and should) still incorporate explosive training into your workouts, but just as a cherry on top of more strength and volume training for muscle growth, Rothstein says.

The 6 Best Explosive Exercises to Train Speed and Power

“It's important to incorporate both speed and power exercises to train explosiveness,” Callie says. In general, to develop explosive strength, ACE recommends doing one to six reps as fast as possible for two to five sets, with 30-90 seconds of rest in between. If you’re doing a weighted move, ACE recommends lifting 40-75 percent of your one-rep max (1RM). Try these moves below, recommended by Callie and Rothstein, to tap into your explosive strength, speed, and power.

Explosive Exercises to Train Power

1. Kettlebell Swings

“Kettlebell training has an explosive component, especially when you're doing heavy kettlebell swings or cleans and snatches with a kettlebell,” Rothstein says. Kettlebell swings are a favorite of Callie’s, too, and help build power in your lower body.

2. Barbell Cleans

Callie loves barbell cleans for training speed and power, but you can do this with a dumbbell or kettlebell instead. Like swings, cleans also help you develop power in your lower body, Rothstein says. 

3. Trap Bar Deadlift to Broad Jump

To do this advanced move recommended by Rothstein, you’ll need a trap bar (the hexagonal bar that circles around your feet). You’ll be building strength and explosive power simultaneously.

Explosive Exercises to Train Speed

1. Depth Jump

Depth jumps are Rothstein’s go-to move for training explosiveness since it drills the quick transition between eccentric and concentric contraction. It also works on power via your maximum vertical jump. “It's not an easy thing to do to train, so I suggest taking it slow. Over time, as you add it in, you'll become more reactive and better at the exercise,” he says.

2. Box Jump

This exercise is a favorite of both Callie and Rothstein. It trains you to hit triple extension of your hip, knee, and ankle joints and very quickly create hip flexion, bending at your hips so your feet clear the top of the box. Truthfully, because you’re shortcutting your vertical height by moving into hip flexion, it’s not the best exercise for training true explosiveness, Rothstein says; however, it still has value and can be a great way to limit some of the impact associated with explosive training work.

3. Skater Hops

Rothstein loves footwork drills and ladder training for drilling speed and explosiveness. A simple way to get a taste? Skater hop. Try this Rothstein-recommended version: Start slow, sticking the landings and demonstrating stability and body-position awareness, then turn up the tempo.

Tips to Keep In Mind When Doing Explosive Exercises

Explosive exercises may make you feel invincible, but be careful as you incorporate them into your routine. “For all of the above exercises, form is vital, so it's important to understand where your body is in space before adding weight,” Callie says. 

Explosive strength exercises are generally very strenuous to the nervous system, so it's hard to maintain high power outputs and form when doing a lot of them. “As you add speed to movement, you sometimes increase injury risk,” Rothstein adds. “Anytime you do something faster, you lose accuracy. You also fatigue faster. Both of these things mean you might lose form and put yourself at risk of injury.”

Start by incorporating a few moves at a time rather than dedicating your entire workout to explosiveness drills. When in doubt, rely on a coached workout class or program, or consult with a fitness professional who can dose your workout with explosiveness appropriately.

Takeaway 

Anyone can benefit from training explosiveness in their workout routine, and you’re sure to feel the positive effects if you do, whether you’re serving more slams on the pickleball court, improving your 5K time, or just moving through your day ready for anything. If you’re determined to hone in on improving your explosiveness, it can pay to tap an exercise pro who can help you safely execute moves with your goals in mind. Otherwise, there’s no need to get caught up in the technicalities and physics equations of it all—any exercises that have you moving quickly and powerfully will help you tap into your inner firework.