After covering the strength foundations of the pop up in part 1 and part 2, now it is time to look at how to build explosive power for pop ups in those tough situations.
This exercise covers the movement that you need to get to your feet quickly so you can stand in one fluid motion. If you feel stiff, you can find the relevant stretch for this at the bottom of the post.
To make your pop up more explosive, do ground pop ups to deep squat for 3 x 8 reps (every day once, for the next 3 days)
To help master this, I created a simple cheat sheet to track your pop up progress. It includes this drill and four others that will build your pop up foundation.
Do the drill in this sequence:
- Assume the push up position (with straight arms)
- Jump and try to land with your feet on the outer side of your palms (This is supposed to look like a deep squat position upon finish)
- Jump back to the starting position
Make sure you do the drill the right way:
- Keep those arms straight during the jump
- Land right next to the outer side of your palms
- If you find this too easy, place your palms on a platform, or unstable surface and try to land on the platform with your feet (this basically simulates the moving board on the water)
Avoid typical mistakes:
- You may be unable to perform the correct deep squat position, as you don’t have enough range of motion in your lower body (hip-knee-ankle complex). Do this stretch for at least 7 days.
- Avoid landing with the knees on the inner side of the elbows
Let me know how this helped you, or what you want me to cover next by emailing me at gershon@boostyoursurf.com.
