Vertical Jumping Program

Keys To Picking A Good Vertical Jumping Program

There is probably no athletic movement that is a more effective measure of speed and power than the standing vertical jump. Across the board, typically athletes who measured higher in the vertical jump also out perform other athletes in sprints, kicking, and throwing.

This may seem strange to the ill informed, but the reality is that there is no better measure for the ability to apply force in a quick, explosive manner than the standing vertical. I am sure most of you have witnessed an athlete who seems to float over the court or field effortlessly, and then with sudden explosive movement can dodge an opponent or throw down a monster dunk.

Do not be discouraged, even if you were not born to fly, with a proper scientifically applied program you can increase your jumping and explosive ability to an extent that you may have never dreamed possible. There are many vertical jump programs out there, but some are superior to others and you will soon know why.

The vertical jump needs to be broken down into its raw components to better understand how you can manipulate these components through training.

Essentially, a jump is just the counter movement your body does in reaction to force applied to the ground in a sharp and powerful manner. In its simplest form, jumping is simply kicking the earth with enough force to throw your body into the air. In order to effectively apply force to the ground you need both speed and strength. Total explosiveness is your ability to utilize as large amount of muscular force in the shortest amount of time.

Anyone who can jump extremely high essentially has the ability to activate his muscle in such a short amount of time that he can accelerate his bodyweight into the air so quickly that it overwhelms the gravity that holds him against the earth.

Now, there are many ways to increase both your maximal strength, which for simplicity we will call the engine, and your ability to utilize that strength quickly, which we will call the transmission. A vertical jump happens in less than 2 hundredths of a second. This means that if you have super strong legs, but cannot activate that strength in under half a second, you will not be able to jump to your maximum potential until you teach your legs to contract faster.

On the other hand, if your legs can contract very quickly but you do not have much strength, you still will not be able to leave the ground as far as you would like. So. The key to a proper training regiment is essentially training in the most efficient way to increase both the size of your engine and your transmission. The engine size is a function of muscular limit strength, and the transmission or rate at which your body generates force is a function of neural activation.

Keys To Picking A Good Vertical Jumping Program-Part 2