How Can I Jump Higher - The Top 3 Secrets of Vertical Jump Training
If you ask yourself "How can I jump higher?" you are not alone.
A lot of basketball players want to improve their vertical jump.
In fact, in basketball it's extremely useful to have a high vertical.
Here are the advantages: you'll grab more rebounds, block more shots, become quicker and more explosive, it will be much more difficult to block your shots.
And - for some the most important benefit - you finally will be able to dunk! If you already can dunk, continue to work on your vertical as you will be able to do a two-hand-, tomahawk-, reverse-, windmill-, hand-in-the-rim- or a 360-dunk.
However, in the beginning it's important to lower your expectations a bit - it's extremely difficult if not impossible to learn to dunk in just one or two weeks.
Especially if you are a beginner and can't even touch the rim.
But it doesn't mean that you can't learn to dunk if you are 5'7''! Spud Webb and Nate Robinson are both only 5'7'' and Slam Dunk Champions! Vertical jump training is about constant workouts - and smart training.
Smart training means that you understand that your body is not a machine and muscles need time to develop and to regenerate.
This leads to the Top 3 Secrets of Vertical Jump Training: 1) Quantity.
Limit the length of your vertical jump workouts.
A lot of people who want to increase their vertical real fast simply over-train.
They don't see any results except muscle pain over even injuries and give up.
Keep in mind: Your vertical workouts shouldn't last more than 30 minutes! It's also important to do the vertical jump workouts every other day as your muscles need time to regenerate.
One of the most common mistakes in vertical jump training is doing too many repetitions (and at middle intensity).
2) Quality.
Believe it or not - jumping as much as you can isn't effective at all if you want to increase your vertical.
Here's the reason: this way you only train your "jumping endurance".
In order to increase your vertical jump effectively you need to train your "jumping explosion".
That simply means it counts how you jump, not how often you jump.
The right execution of the exercises and the right amount of repetitions are the key to success.
One jump at 100 % of your power is worth more than 30 half-ass leaps.
3) The Right Exercises.
Plyometric exercises are a must if you want to increase your vertical seriously.
Here is an example: find two high boxes (low enough that you can still jump on top and high enough that it takes some effort to jump on top) that are heavy and sturdy enough to hold your weight and place them about 80 inches (ca.
2 meters) away from each other.
Get on top of one of them.
Drop of the box and as soon as you land jump on top of the other box.
Start with 2 sets of 6 repetitions.
A lot of basketball players want to improve their vertical jump.
In fact, in basketball it's extremely useful to have a high vertical.
Here are the advantages: you'll grab more rebounds, block more shots, become quicker and more explosive, it will be much more difficult to block your shots.
And - for some the most important benefit - you finally will be able to dunk! If you already can dunk, continue to work on your vertical as you will be able to do a two-hand-, tomahawk-, reverse-, windmill-, hand-in-the-rim- or a 360-dunk.
However, in the beginning it's important to lower your expectations a bit - it's extremely difficult if not impossible to learn to dunk in just one or two weeks.
Especially if you are a beginner and can't even touch the rim.
But it doesn't mean that you can't learn to dunk if you are 5'7''! Spud Webb and Nate Robinson are both only 5'7'' and Slam Dunk Champions! Vertical jump training is about constant workouts - and smart training.
Smart training means that you understand that your body is not a machine and muscles need time to develop and to regenerate.
This leads to the Top 3 Secrets of Vertical Jump Training: 1) Quantity.
Limit the length of your vertical jump workouts.
A lot of people who want to increase their vertical real fast simply over-train.
They don't see any results except muscle pain over even injuries and give up.
Keep in mind: Your vertical workouts shouldn't last more than 30 minutes! It's also important to do the vertical jump workouts every other day as your muscles need time to regenerate.
One of the most common mistakes in vertical jump training is doing too many repetitions (and at middle intensity).
2) Quality.
Believe it or not - jumping as much as you can isn't effective at all if you want to increase your vertical.
Here's the reason: this way you only train your "jumping endurance".
In order to increase your vertical jump effectively you need to train your "jumping explosion".
That simply means it counts how you jump, not how often you jump.
The right execution of the exercises and the right amount of repetitions are the key to success.
One jump at 100 % of your power is worth more than 30 half-ass leaps.
3) The Right Exercises.
Plyometric exercises are a must if you want to increase your vertical seriously.
Here is an example: find two high boxes (low enough that you can still jump on top and high enough that it takes some effort to jump on top) that are heavy and sturdy enough to hold your weight and place them about 80 inches (ca.
2 meters) away from each other.
Get on top of one of them.
Drop of the box and as soon as you land jump on top of the other box.
Start with 2 sets of 6 repetitions.
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