Experimental Study on the Influence of Unilateral and Bilateral Plyometric Training on the Lower Limbs Explosive Power of Male Students in Junior High School

Purpose: Plyometric training is effective for improving the lower limbs explosive power of athletes, but less is known regarding if male students in junior high school equally benefit from plyometric training. The purpose of this study was to compare changes in male students’ lower limbs explosive power across plyometric training. Method: A sample of students (45 males) in junior high school was cluster randomly assigned to the conventional lower limbs explosive power training group (CLT), the bilateral plyometric training (BPT) and the unilateral plyometric training group (UPT). Pre-tests were conducted on the basic information and five explosive power indices of 45 participants across three groups, followed by post-tests on the experimental indices after the experiment. Subsequently, one-way ANOVA was performed among the three groups for the pre- and post-test data, and paired-samples T-tests were conducted within each group. Results: There were significant differences in the five lower limbs explosiveness test indexes between the three groups and those after the experiment (P<0.01). Conclusion: After an eight-week experiment, UPT BPT and CLT can effectively enhance the lower limb power levels of ordinary junior high school male students. UPT group was better than that of the BPT group and the CLT group in the 50-meter run and 20-meter hop jump index. BPT group was better than that of UPT group and CLT group vertical jump and triple leap frog.