VIDEO SCRIPT
Many athletes want to jump higher, but most of them don’t train the right way. Improving your vertical jump takes more than just jumping.
You have to use specific training techniques and different styles too!
In this video we are going to discuss what goes into improving your vertical jump.
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So if you want to understand how to increase your vertical jump, we first have to go over the concept of the force velocity curve.
This graph has 3 components, Force is on one axis, velocity is on the other, and the curved line represents how much power can be created.
To create the most power, and achieve a great vertical jump, you have to fall somewhere in between force and velocity.
If you train mostly just force, like heavy squats, you won’t develop much velocity.
If you train mostly velocity, like Squat jumps with a band, then you won’t have much force.
But, if you can workout in a way that incorporates both effectively, then you can see the most efficient improvements in your power output which will increase things like your vertical jump and speed.
Let’s look at an athlete who can demonstrate the potential explosiveness you can aim for when training like this.
Someone like Basketball player Ja morant. As he is considered one of the, if not the most, explosive players in the NBA.
Before Morant was drafted in 2019, he mentioned a few key things about his pre-draft workouts.
He said that on his busy day, he was working out of course on the basketball court, but also on the turf and in the weight room. Meaning that he was implementing the exact concept we just talked about, training both Force and velocity with purpose and intensity.
If you look at athletes known for their physical ability this becomes a common storyline. And this will continue to grow as jump training becomes more used along with resistance training.
So what does training for vertical jump, using this thinking, look like?
Well first let’s look at resistance training.
Starting from a novice viewpoint you would want to focus on fixing any muscle imbalances and posture issues. Focusing on learning and using good form would also be the goal here in all movements but especially ones like squat variations.
After that, working on developing muscle and strength will help you develop the force portion of the velocity curve.
As a note, hypertrophy, building muscle, is best trained at 6 – 12 reps with 75% of your estimated 1 rep max.
Strength on the other hand is best trained at 1 – 5 reps with 80 – 100% of your 1 rep max.
Then finally, developing power with weights would involve ballistic movements like olympic lifts, medicine balls or kettlebell work.
That is a general idea of how you would progress through resistance training to develop power for jumping.
Next, plyometrics.
If you want to learn how to jump higher, then you need to practice doing so.
Just like lifting weights, there are different progressions to go through.
Plyometrics are the main tool here.
You would start by first practicing correct jumping and landing mechanics. You aren’t going for speed here, but instead aim for form.
For example, a jump squat and then stabilizing yourself when you land.
Next, you will want to use more dynamic movements and start connecting your landing to the next take off. Learning to control all directions of movement. Like doing continuous broad jumps and side broad jumps.
Once those two phases seem to be under control, you can move to the real plyometrics. Doing the movements like before or something like box jumps.
The goal here is to go from the eccentric landing to concentric take off as fast as possible.
That is how you would generally progress weight training and plyometrics together to improve your vertical jump.
But also remember a few things,
- If you are unsure in your ability to perform these drills safely, consider getting a coach to ensure safe movements.
- Don’t get ahead of yourself. Go step by step and master each phase before moving to the next.
- If you decide to do plyometrics and weight training on the same day, do the plyometrics first while you have high energy. This will help make meaningful training with correct form and effort.
If you guys have any questions Tweet me or DM me on instagram, you can find me on both platforms under the name official troxfit.