Nowadays, with the amount of competitiveness that we’re seeing in professional sports, athletes all over the world are always looking for the best and most innovative methods to increase their physical performance in order to dominate their opponents. One of these methods is called plyometrics. It’s a well-known form of training that a lot of people use, especially in sports that require a lot of physical power such as basketball. And due to the impressive amount of power and speed that it increases in short periods of time, one may think that this method of training might be banned. With that being said, are plyometrics banned?
Even though plyometrics can significantly boost agility, speed, and power which presents a massive advantage for athletes, they aren’t banned since they’re considered just like any other form of resistance training.
In this article, we’ll talk about why plyometrics aren’t banned, and why most athletes use them.
Why Aren’t Plyometrics Banned?
Why Certain Methods Get Banned In Sports?
In order to answer this question, we first need to understand the reasoning behind why certain methods get banned when it comes to sports. And when I say methods, I mostly mean performance-boosting supplements, doping, and so on.
Anything that can give an easy advantage to an athlete over his competition without putting too much work and that isn’t accessible to everybody is prohibited.
Just imagine how frustrating it can be when you’ve worked so hard during a long period of time to prepare for a competition just to get crushed by someone that didn’t put even 30% of your efforts and only used a shortcut that allowed him to dominate everyone. That’s the main reason why most performance boosters are banned. If that wasn’t the case, no one would get motivated to participate in competitions anymore and it would be filled with fake athletes.
Now I know what you’re thinking, what does this has to do with plyometrics? If you understand the logic behind the decision of banning most other methods, you’ll know why this particular type of training can’t possibly be banned no matter what.
As I mentioned earlier, there are three main reasons why certain methods get banned:
- They’re easy to use and don’t require any effort
- They provide an unnatural boost to all physical attributes
- They’re not accessible to everybody
Difference Between Plyometrics and Other Banned Methods
Now let’s try to apply the main three points that I mentioned earlier to plyometrics and see if we have a match.
Are plyometrics easy and don’t require any effort? If you think about it, plyometrics is one of the hardest methods of training out there since it revolves around the explosiveness of the muscles by exerting maximum force in short intervals of time. It’s definitely a challenging technique which is the main reason why it brings so many rewards.
Do plyometrics provide an unnatural boost to physical attributes? It’s true that this method of training can significantly increase your power, agility, speed, and any other attribute that you think of but it doesn’t come easy and it’s 100% natural since you’re using your own body and muscles for growth. Any increase in attributes that comes with using plyometrics is a result of your own hard work.
Are plyometrics accessible for everybody? This is the most important factor. When a method is only accessible to a specific number of people, it builds up a huge disadvantage in competitive play. What’s great about plyometrics is the fact that it can be performed by anyone and that doesn’t include athletes only. It can be done with or without equipment and at the gym or at the comfort of your own home. It all depends on how much hard work and effort you’re willing to put in.
As you can see, there isn’t a single match between plyometrics and the main factors why certain methods get banned. They’re not easy to perform unless you’re willing to put in some hard work and dedication, all the results that you’ll get from performing them are natural, and they’re definitely accessible for everybody. So with all this being said, there is no point in banning plyometrics.
Why Plyometrics Can’t Get Banned
Besides the fact that plyometrics doesn’t match with the main factors behind the banning of other performance-boosting methods in sports, there are some other reasons why it’s impossible to ban it.
The most obvious one is that many athletes are using it to improve their overall performance. And when something is heavily used and accepted by many people, banning it without an explanation is really not a good idea especially if it’s not causing any harm.
Another reason why plyometrics can’t be banned is that, unlike the typical performance-boosting supplements that can be found using a simple medical test, it’s impossible to figure out if athletes are really using them or not. From an outside point of view, it’s just a normal form of resistance training that can significantly improve your physical attributes.
Conclusion:
Plyometrics, just like any other form of resistance training can’t possibly be banned since there is no logical reason why it should. If you’re seeing some great results in terms of physical performance from using it, be sure that you’re not doing anything wrong. It’s just a result of your own hard work and dedication.