Vertical Jump Training - Secrets of Success

If your vertical jump is more like a vertical hop, then you may be wondering what options you have to improve your jumping skills. Working out to improve your jumping height doesn't have to feel like training for the Olympic tryouts. There are a variety of simple, straightforward techniques you can do to increase your leap in just 10 weeks. Take a look at the following seven suggestions to get you started on the road to higher, more impressive vertical leaping.

Improve What You Are Already Doing

The best place to start your leap training is to gauge what your current physical regime is actually doing for your jumps. Once you have a clear picture of how your muscles are being worked, you'll be better prepared to spot the parts of your training that need improvement. If you have a trainer, you'll want to discuss your revised fitness plan with him or her. If you don't but are a member of a gym, ask one of the staff members there to guide you.

Achieving Powerful Leaps Begins On the Ground

Any serious athlete will tell you that an all around muscular physique is key for maximum leaps. The full squat is an ideal exercise for increasing back strength, core muscles, and hamstrings. You can also use basic weight lifting to improve your overall strength and even out any muscular strength imbalances you may have developed.

Don't Overdo Yourself

Dead lifts, military squat thrusts, and ankle weights are all great ways to work your muscles, but you also need to be careful. Remember that for your muscles to grow, they also need rest. Try to switch up your endurance training with low impact cardio work, or perhaps even just stretching. Whatever else you include in your training, it's important to realize that over exerting your body may actually hurt your vertical leap more than help it. If you do overexert by accident, take good care of your body so you heal quickly and correctly.

Avoid Injuries by Using Safe Techniques

Just as important as resting, practicing safety precautions to avoid injuries is essential. Vertical jumping itself isn't too strenuous of a sport, but the training required to accomplish it usually is. Performing your exercises incorrectly or in a sloppy manner is both dangerous and unnecessary. Allow your body approximately 3-5 weeks to adjust to your training routine prior to increasing the difficulty of your workouts. When done correctly, spending time developing your base strength can lead to visible gains in jumping height once you do start to increase your weight difficulty.

Speed Training

Explosive jumps begin on the ground. Consider your quickness as an extension of your vertical leap training. In the first few weeks of training, include a series of medium length wind sprints before engaging in your weight work and other training. Once your body adjusts to the type of running you're doing, gradually decrease your tempo to lower impact short sprints. By the middle of your training, you'll be ready for higher intensity runs and over-speed downhill sprints. All of this will increase your flexibility and agility and, therefore, increase you leaping height.

Combination Training

Your strength and speed are just two different sides of the same coin. Whatever your sport of choice is, you're going to need to use both speed and physical strength during game play. It's important to realize you don't need to sacrifice your time and energy just working on a particular set of exercises. Your vertical leap will be improved by all the different tasks you do. Overall fitness greatly impacts the height of your vertical leaps.

Don't Let the Weights Work You

By the middle of your ten-week period, you should be thinking about decreasing the weight you lift on a regular basis. As long as you've built your base muscles at the beginning of the program, by the middle of the program your body will probably feel sore. Use lighter weights to let your body recover and you'll be amazed at how powerful your jumps are, even while your body feels sore.

Training Your Mind

If you're serious about improving your vertical leap, then you should be working on more than just your hamstrings and quadriceps. As in any sport and all exercise, your mindset can radically affect the outcome of your efforts. Sports psychologists recommend using visualization practices to improve physical performance. Try imagining that your legs are coiled springs, ready to shoot your body upwards. For an experiment try a series of jumps without visualizations, and then again with. You should be able to notice your body feeling lighter. If you can't visualize your vertical leaping goals, you can't reach them.