Reactive Strength is exhibited when your muscle and tendon are extended before contracting. Reactive strength is also known as reversal strength, reflexive strength, rebound strength or plyometric strength. This form of strength is obvious when you execute a sudden countermovement, like bending down before jumping. You are able to jump a lot higher this way, than you are by pausing and then jumping.
The reason this happens is that the countermovement stretches the tendons throughout your lower body very quickly. This allows your muscles and tendons to accumulate energy and generate a rubber band like recoil. This reaction occurs very rapidly unlike a voluntary reaction to muscle stretching, which would take too long and wouldn't enhance the force generated.
When you sprint, your Achilles tendon stretches and recoils back with each stride and foot contact like a spring or rubber band. This stretching reflex responds to the speed at which your muscle and tendon are stretched before to the movement, so the faster and larger the stretch, the larger the corresponding reactive force.
When your reactive capability is very good, the more force you can take in the more force you can put out. If your leaping ability is not the best, you will have a hard time utilizing reactive force in the hips and quadriceps; therefore you won't perform the countermovement with speed, smoothness and proficiency. The good news is it can be improved. And the best way to do this is by utilizing speed and agility training.
Most of the force that is generated from reactive contractions is involuntary, which basically means you don't have to think about it. This is why when executing a bench press, you can bounce more weight than when you pause the weight on your chest before lifting it.
People use reactive force naturally, without even thinking about it. Reactive force is there naturally and all training does is enhance it.
So the power in a vertical jump and in a sprint comes from a combination of explosive and reactive strength.
You can actually break the training methods down into categories of limit strength exercises, explosive strength exercises, and reactive strength exercises.
The goal of limit strength exercises is to improve the force producing effectiveness of your muscles. Progress will be obvious in the amount of weight you can move using basic movements. The goal is not to mimic sports movements, but to increase the force generating effectiveness of the muscles that are involved in these sports movements.
The purpose of explosive strength exercises is to perform the movement with more speed or with more height. Explosive strength movements emphasize on building maximum starting explosive strength, without using reactive strength. In other words, you focus on applying maximum voluntary force as quickly as possible.
Reactive strength exercises are performed with either more height or less time spent on the ground. Each exercise and repetition focuses on stretching the muscle and tendon, thus boosting your reflexive capabilities.
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