Specific Effects of Aqua and Land Plyometric Training on Jump Performance Across Diverse Stretch-Shortening Cycle Types

ABSTRACT: Cavar, M, Marsic, T, Sentija, D, Culjak, Z, and Morales, JG. Specific effects of aqua and land plyometric training on jump performance across diverse stretch-shortening cycle types. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000-000, 2026-The effects of aqua plyometric (AQP) versus land plyometric (LP) training on jumping performance have been inconsistently reported and primarily examined using the countermovement jump (CMJ). This study compared AQP and LP training across 4 jump tests with diverse stretch-shortening cycles (SSCs). Thirty-three trained adult men were divided into AQP, LP, and control (CON) groups. To enhance training outcomes over a 6-week, 12-session intervention and reflect common practice, jump training was combined with short sprints performed in group-specific water or land environments. A significant group × time interaction was observed for the CMJ (p < 0.05). Both AQP and LP significantly and similarly improved CMJ performance, whereas CON did not. Program-specific effects were evident, as LP significantly outperformed AQP and CON in the Four Jump Test (4JT; p < 0.05) based on the reactive strength index, whereas AQP showed significantly greater improvement in the standing broad jump (SBJ; p < 0.01). No between-group differences were observed for the squat jump (SQJ). These findings suggest that AQP is at least as effective as LP for jump tasks with slow or absent SSCs, such as the CMJ, SBJ, and SQJ, which rely primarily on voluntary force production, likely due to the beneficial training effects of increased resistance in water. By contrast, for jumps involving fast SSCs and reliance on elastic energy utilization, such as the 4JT, AQP is not an effective alternative to LP because key fast-SSC characteristics, such as impact forces and short contact times, might be compromised in water.