Plyometrics: Get Up and Down Off the Floor
Do you do squats?…yea. Do you do leg presses?….yea. Do you do lunges?….yea. Do you walk on a treadmill or elliptical every day?…..yea.
Can you get up and down off the floor 10…20…30 times with ease? No……..
What’s wrong with this picture?
How things are connected. We may not think about how deeply different systems of the body rely on each other and influence our overall health. For example, our cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, and vestibular systems are always working as a whole. So different things we do like lifting weights, walking on a treadmill or stretching, etc. have an interdependent outcome on our health.
Will the way you walk on your treadmill have an impact on how you lift weights? YES. Will you be healthier or will you be more vulnerable to an injury? Good question! There is a place for separating the different ways the body responds to conditioning when we need to scientifically study the way it responds to certain stimuli. Yet when we get back to practical application (practical is the key word here) we need to bring all the parts together as a whole in real-life experiences. More specifically, when it comes to ANY movement you do, the first thing needed is a good foundation. So try this little drill here before you jump into your workout routine. It’s a great way to start building that foundation.
1. Work on it until you can do it with little effort 10 times. Then keep doing it to maintain the benefits you gain.
2. The main intent/focus while doing it is mastering the little parts. Getting up and down off the floor well is easy peasy if you get the small steps down.
3. THEN take this smarter body to the gym and see if you don’t feel better, and feel more “body smart.” Being “body smart” is a RARE thing in the world of fitness. Many (not all) elite athletes and black belt martial artists are much more body smart than the average person. We all started off “body smart” as children. But our Western lifestyle has us sitting on our bums so much we have lost a lot of those intelligent moves we were born with.
So enjoy freeing yourself from your stiff, uncoordinated, tense body, and let me know what happens!