How to Increase Speed with Leg Strength and Explosive Power
Most swimmers (triathletes and surfers, too) want and need to increase leg strength to develop lower body muscle mass, build explosive vertical jumping power, or rehabilitate from leg injuries. Swimmers can gain “free speed” with explosive starts and push-offs with every turn at the walls.
By developing leg strength and power on land, swimmers can have more power to explode off the blocks faster and push off the walls harder.
Dryland strength training for the lower body will improve swimming performance in several ways:
- Increasing ankle mobility can result in a more propulsive kick;
- Strengthening the legs helps develop more powerful starts and push-offs;
- Core muscle strengthening will also help maintain a long, taut bodyline;
- Lower body strength training will improve range-of-motion mobility, and balance, and possibly decrease injury.
The Vasa Trainer Pro with Leg Power Platform is an ideal strength and conditioning tool. It’s uniquely designed to leverage two primary lower body movements… the squat and the plyometric jump squat. It engages the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, calf muscles, and core stabilizers, which tones and strengthens the legs while providing excellent anaerobic or cardio workouts.
Increasing Leg Strength & Power
Here are four exercises shown to improve lower body strength and power:
- Calf Raises
- Single-Leg Squats (lunges)
- Sprinter Squat
- Plyometric Jumps
The Trainer Pro padded bench supports the spine during every exercise so users can comfortably and safely perform a variety of movements. Resistance settings come by combining the slope angle of the monorail, the athlete’s body weight, and adding rubber tubing power cords. Athletes can select the resistance setting appropriate for each exercise challenge.
Leg strength training with the Vasa Trainer Leg Power Platform builds explosive jumping power and improves vertical leap and lower body muscles.
The plyometric leg push-off exercise produces concentric and eccentric loading of the lower body muscles. This translates into safe, controlled acceleration and deceleration during the jump squat.
The Vasa Leg Power Platform provides eccentric and concentric work for efficient, time-saving, progressive fitness gains.
Closed-chain or open-chain exercises are progressive and measurable. That makes it ideal for physical therapy & rehab exercises requiring a controlled range of motion and quantifiable progress.
