Jump Training

You may be wondering why vertical training is so important to athletes in a wide array of sports. Well increasing your jumping ability has several benefits associated with it. It is a good way to enhance and maintain leg strength. Plyometric training also helps prevents injuries.  Many coaches and trainers use these methods in the routine.  When training, athletes should use movement that match the movements in their sport.

The main key to plyometrics is explosive drills that not only help with increase height of jumps, but improves reflexes, balance and coordination.  It also develops  muscle memory. and releasing large amounts of power in a short time span.

There is another, often overlooked benefit of vertical training- the ability to run faster. The ability to accelerate quickly and jump high correlate very well with each other. It is pretty hard to find a great leaper that is slow or a speedy sprinter with no ups.

Perhaps it depends on the sport that the athlete is training to excel. For volleyball players, getting up quickly is most important. In basketball, the high vertical is crucial for rebounding, lay ups, dunks, and jump shooting. Jumping is a necessary skill for football players in the role of cornerback, wide receiver, and running back. Even outfielders in baseball can take advantage of better jumping ability to catch balls going over the fence.

In conclusion, regardless of your sport increasing your vertical game can only up your game!

I am looking for a jump training program for my son. He loves basketball and wants to improve his vertical jump. I think the best option is detailed plyometric training from what I’ve heard.

I wonder how many inches he can add to his vertical- six inches? ten? a full foot? That would be great. But how do the great athletes improve their jumping? That’s the real question. From what I have been told, increasing your vertical will also help quickness and speed. Guards and forwards always can use a faster first step.

Now some old school methods like working out with ankle weights give minimal results, in fact may slow down foot speed. A trainer also told me it does not train the correct muscles. He also said people focus too much on the calves as they play little role in vertical jumping.

I also have read online that strengthening the toes will help. Well my feet and toes are messed up! I barely can wiggle them…lol. Perhaps my son is better off in that department.

A friend that is a coach told me the other day that there are three types of strength training programs to increase vertical jump performance. One choice is good old traditional weight lifting or training like squats; with heavy loads with low reps. Then there is dynamic weight training, which is light loads done faster with speed against the resistance. The final is of course plyometrics training that combines strength and speed.

I remember when I was in track and field in high school (God that was a long time ago) , we had basic or elementary methods of training. Nowadays amateur athletes have access to modern training techniques that really gets them ahead of the curve. I hope I can make a wise choice and my boy benefit from it.