How to Gain a Higher Vertical Jump
Very few athletic measurements evoke awe-inspiring glances like vertical jump of forty inches. While incredibly important when dunking a basketball or spiking a volleyball, the vertical jump test is a standard measurement of the explosive power of oneself; that is, the force one can generate in a specified, in this case instant, amount of time. To attain a high vertical jump the athlete is required to coordinate a whole body movement for driving a downward force onto the ground sufficient for propelling the body against the force of gravity and into the air.
While the best way to achieve athletic success and consistent long-term muscular development is through strength training, Olympic lifts and plyometric exercises, a lot of athletes still attempt to improve their verticals through buying items like strength shoes and other gimmicky products over the Internet.
The vertical jump is a complex multi-joint movement that requires muscle coordination best improved by specific skill development. Traditional strength training, explosive types of weight training, plyometrics and Olympic lifting can be effective for increasing vertical jump. The form of training that is most effective is determined by the relative strengths and weaknesses of the athlete.
Improving muscle coordination is an important compontent to increase force application and examples of exercises which can achieve this are front and back squats. Plyometrics are also important as they help to develop speed and strength to help an athlete gain more explosive power. Other recommended exercises are Olympic lifts because they train the ankle, knee and hip – areas that need to work in tandem in order to push off the ground.
After studying the role of various lifts on improving vertical jumps, many researchers have concluded that using all the abovementioned methods in a periodized fashion yielded the best training results; that there were no differences between power cleans and squats; that no lift was more influential than another in terms of improving anaerobic power production; and that, in fact, virtually all the above exercises would succeed in this arena.
Click here to find out more on how to improve your vertical jump. Read the latest tips and advice in this field.
Comments
Pingback from Tweets that mention Blog Basketball » How to Gain a Higher Vertical Jump NBA Sports Videos Teams News Scores Info Articles — Topsy.com
Time: December 25, 2009, 9:54 am
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Larisa Culicova, Bob Gragson. Bob Gragson said: Blog Basketball » How to Gain a Higher Vertical Jump NBA Sports …: To attain a high vertical jump the athlete.. http://bit.ly/6r7bMb [...]
Write a comment