1

INTRODUCTION
So you want to jump higher
congratulations! Looking to dunk over the
competition, blow by the defenders and own the
air above the rim? You are well on your way by
taking the most important first steps already
taken by thousands of athletes to improve their
athletic performance !s you have most
certainly already noticed, your ability to jump is
central to your success in your athletic career
!thletic !dvantage "he #omplete $ertical
%ump &rogram will provide you with all the tools
you will need to dramatically increase your leg
strength, speed and vertical leap over the
coming weeks You can e'pect this program to
enhance your athleticism in the following
aspects(
)ncrease your vertical *+ to ,-+
)ncrease your first step .uickness
)ncrease muscular endurance
)ncrease muscle fiber recruitment
/ecrease your -0yd dash time by
01 to 0-s
!thletic !dvantage "he #omplete $ertical
%ump &rogram is a very powerful tool with all
the resources you will need e'cept one
#ommitment 2ven the best program will do
you no good if you don3t stick with it )magine if
4ichael %ordan decided to just .uit when his
high school basketball coach cut him from the
team 5ecause he was committed he pulled
through and became one of the biggest
legends of the 65! )n order for you to obtain
all the gains this program has to offer you must
be committed to following each part of this
program to the letter
6o one part of this program is more
important than any other 2ach part has a
special aspect to offer that none of the others
do "his program incorporates power weight
training, dynamic weight training, plyometric
training, nutrition and positive mentality
7ithout power weight training you will not have
the strength base for any of the other stages of
this program /ynamic weight training
incorporates speed with strength to break the
power plateau reached in power weight
training Some very strong athletes do not
possess the power to dunk a basketball or
sprint a fast -0 yard dash "his is because
most athletic movements re.uire a time factor
much smaller than the time it takes to
ma'imally contract a muscle "his is where
plyometrics come in! &lyometric training
provides the environment for eccentric
contraction which has been proven to build
muscle and power faster than any other
contraction 6utrition is the glue that holds it all
together Your body is a hormonal
rollercoaster 6o, this is not the 8se' talk3, )3m
talking about the hormones responsible for the
muscle growth and body chemistry needed by
every athlete 7ithout proper nutrition, you will
not achieve ma'imal strength gains and the risk
of injury is greatly increased especially during
plyometric training
5efore we go directly into !thletic
!dvantage "he #omplete $ertical %ump
&rogram, we will .uickly visit other programs
and see why this program has so much more to
offer than most programs out there !lso we
will work through a detailed description of what
happens behind the scenes when you jump
followed by a technical look at muscle variety
and how it affects your vertical jumping
potential
WHATS IN A PROGRAM
92Y )/2!S( 4ost programs fall short of
their promises for one of the following
reasons( "hey over train causing injury
"hey lack variety to properly change up
training to avoid workout adaptation "hey
do not allow proper rest periods leading to injury "his
program incorporates : main parts including power weight
training, dynamic weight training, plyometric training,
nutrition and positive mentality
7hy this program? You may be asking
what makes this program different from every
other program out there "o answer this
.uestion, let3s first start by taking a look at what
other programs have to offer and why they
cannot necessarily be as good as promised
4ost programs out there offer a single phase
program with only one means to train your
muscles "hese programs generally have you
jumping ropes or running stairs until you cannot
move anymore or until you over train "hese
programs tend to produce a dramatic increase
in your vertical over the first few weeks but
plateau .uickly or produce over training and
injury "his is because doing :00 repetitions of
; to ,0 different e'ercises : days a week
2
causes your muscles to adapt to the work outs,
adaptation is the number one reason for
plateaus in your vertical gains and can only be
remedied by changing up work out routines and
e'ercises every - to ; weeks
<ne component of training that is almost
always overlooked is rest #ontrary to popular
practice in vertical jump programs, rest is just
as important as the work outs you do )t takes
-* hours to rebuild the damage caused by
power weight training and plyometric training
7ithout proper rest your routine will
progressively tear your body down until, finally,
you will either reach plateau stage or over train
"hese are only a few of the reasons why most
programs out there aren3t as good as they
claim or are at the very least lack the variety to
truly tap into your body3s vertical leaping
potential
!ny program that says it is the ultimate
without some element of weight training is
wrong )t is true that purely plyometric
programs can yield astonishing results but
studies and e'periments have shown time and
again that vertical jumping ability is enhanced
most when a training regiment incorporates
plyometrics and weight training
/on3t be mislead, though, this program
does incorporate many e'ercises and possibly
lifts that are found in many other programs )t
is the order and implementation of these lifts
and e'ercises that makes this program so
successful and powerful 2'ercise should
always be done working the largest muscle
groups first and working through to the smallest
muscles repetitively cycling through all muscle
groups "his allows your muscles to be pushed
to failure more efficiently "hat is where this
training program differs from all the others
"his program incorporates superior=inferior
cyclic training techni.ues which train the
.uadriceps first, the largest muscle group, and
work down to the calves, the smallest of the
basic jumping muscles repetitively
"his program features a three tiered work
out schedule that is broken into three sections
2ach section incorporates the : main parts to
successful training( power weight training,
dynamic weight training, plyometric training,
nutrition and positive mentality
&ower weight training will provide a strength
base for your training program 4ost of your
gains will be delivered by this part of the
program for the first few weeks if you are a new
comer to weight training and will be responsible
for some of the e'tra gains you will e'perience
over and above other programs would offer
"he second component of proper training is
not introduced until a bit later in the program,
after a sufficient strength base has been
established "his is the dynamic weight training
phase in which some of the lifts in the power
weight training phase are replaced with
weighted jumps or e'plosive lifts that focus
more on speed than weight while the lifts that
are still present are increased in weight and
decreased in repetitions
&lyometric training is the part of this
program that you may be most familiar with if
you have looked at other programs out there
/uring this part of the program you will be
jumping using different muscles a lot You will
be using your different muscle groups to failure,
which studies have shown to produce ma'imum
strength and power gains 2ach e'ercise
focuses on a different muscle group until you
have fatigued them all
6utrition is our ne't stop in this program
"his is the part of the program that may take
the most self=control You will be eating a
controlled ratio of protein, carbohydrates and
fats along with proper hydration to put your
body in the optimum hormonal and metabolic
>one for growth
Last is positive mentality 2ven though this
part of the program has no physical
development, it is an important element in your
training because confidence and mental
preparation are a big piece of the pu>>le "his
benefit can be seen in pep talks from coaches,
listening to music or watching your favorite
athlete in action 2ach of these : parts of the
program are compliments of each other and
their combination is the key to your jumping
success!
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU JUMP
92Y )/2!S( %umping is a complicated
combination of movements incorporating
three muscle contractions, eccentric,
isometric and concentric "hese three
muscle contractions form the stretch=shorten
cycle which is responsible for our jumping ability
6euromuscular memory is your body3s way of learning to
jump

7hen you jump you may not give a second
thought as to what happens in your muscles,
you just run to the rim, lower your body and
jump Simple enough, right? 7rong! %umping
3
is a very complicated series of biomechanical
events that re.uire coordination, neuromuscular
memory and a great deal of power
Let3s begin with the run up 7hen you run
up to jump it serves the purpose of adding
energy to the system ?aving momentum
going into the jump gives you e'tra energy to
incorporate into the jump 7hen you begin the
jump you lower your body@ this might seem
backward )f you want to go up why go down
first? "o stretch the spring! 7hen you go
down you stretch your .uad, hamstring, and
calf muscles putting increased tension in the
muscles "his is known as an eccentric
contraction, one of three types of muscle
contractions 2ccentric contractions may seem
hard to understand because it is a contraction
that lengthens the muscle instead of shortening
it )t is easiest to think of it as the e.uivalent to
curling so much weight that even if you try your
hardest your arm goes down and lengthens
your muscle %ust after you stop going down in
your jump you stop to reverse direction "his is
known as an isometric contraction, which is a
contraction in which the muscle doesn3t
lengthen or shorten )sometric contraction is by
far the contraction with the most muscle
tension "his is also the contraction that is
most responsible for a .uick takeoff "he
faster you can switch from going down to going
up, the .uicker you will leave the ground "he
third and final type of contraction happens
when you begin to go back up )t is known as
concentric contraction and is when the muscle
contracts and shortens "his is the type of
contraction weight lifters use to body build
"hese three contractions in rapid
succession such as happens in jumping are
known as the stretch=shorten cycle "his cycle
goes as follows "he muscle lengthens in the
eccentric phase Little sensors in your muscles
feel the .uick stretch and alert your brain Athis
stretch my be potentially dangerous, contract!+
So your muscles contract hard trying to reverse
the stretch, passing through the isometric
phase into the concentric phase )f this
transition from the stretch to the shorten
happens within 01 seconds the energy stored
in the stretch gets converted in the shorten
cycle and that is why you jump higher with a
little run up )f, however, the stretch=shorten
cycle takes more than 01 seconds, the energy
in the stretch is lost "his is why it is so
important to do each e'ercise and lift with
ma'imal speed "his is the main function of
plyometric training, to put a much greater strain
on the muscle than would otherwise be
possible
7hat do you think about when you jump
4ost people would say, 8nothing3 they just jump
"his is because when its time to jump your
body relies on something called neuromuscular
memory "his is what it is called when your
brain learns to jump "hrough this program you
will develop new neuromuscular memory You
will program you legs to just jump, but this time
they will learn to do it .uicker and with more
force causing you to jump higher
MUSCLE MAKE-UP
92Y )/2!S( ?uman muscle comes in two
types, Bast "witch "ype ))5 and Slow "witch
"ype ) 4ost people have nearly a :0C:0
concentration of both types "ype ))5
contracting nearly D times faster than "ype )
allows speeds in e'cess of 1:mph in sprinting athletes
and is the chief muscle fiber trained in plyometric training
7hen you look at professional basketball
players or <lympic jumpers, their legs are
skinny ?ave you ever wondered why they
jump so well with such thin legs? "he answer
is simple if a bit hidden )t3s not the si>e of a
muscle but the type which determines the
ability of an athlete to jump "his brings up the
important reality that jumping potential is largely
a genetic issue 6otice ) said potential not
ability "raining will help you increase your
vertical dramatically, in this program by *=,-+!
"his earlier stated fact just shows that genetics
has a great deal to do with how a person with
or without training will jump
"here are two types of muscle present in
the human body, fast twitch type ))5 and slow
twitch type ) Slow twitch type ) muscle is
aerobic meaning it uses o'ygen to function and
is capable of burning fat as fuel "his is why
running distance is such a good fat burner
Bast twitch type ))5 muscle on the other hand is
anaerobic meaning it does not use o'ygen to
function and uses chiefly carbohydrates as a
fuel source Bast twitch type ))5 muscle
contracts at a rate approaching 1: milliseconds
whereas slow twitch type ) muscle contracts
much slower at about E: milliseconds &eople
with a higher percentage of fast twitch type ))5
muscle will make better sprinters or jumpers
Bor e'ample, running at speeds in e'cess of
4
appro'imately *: mph utili>es almost
e'clusively fast twitch type ))5 muscle Speeds
in e'cess of 1: mph can be reached under
propulsion of fast twitch type ))5 muscle as is
achieved in the <lympic ,00m and 100m
dashes "he majority of people have an about
even makeup of fast twitch and slow twitch
muscle fibers with gifted athletes tipped slightly
toward fast twitch )t has not been proven that
training increases the number of fibers in a
muscle, all we know is that plyometrics is
proven to increase the dramatically the size of
e'isting muscle fibers "hese fast twitch type
))5 fibers are the type you will be building
during this training program
STRETCHING
92Y )/2!S( 7arming up and then
stretching your muscles prevents injury and
can actually increase your vertical leaping
ability in only 10 minutes a day

5efore every workout, whether it be
plyometrics or weight training, it is very
important that you properly warm up and then
stretch You can properly warm up by jogging
or jumping rope for : minutes "his gets the
muscles warmed up properly and gets the
blood flowing 5esides just warming the
muscles up, warming up and stretching can
increase your vertical by , to D inches in 10
minutes as compared to jumping cold You
should then spend ,:=10 minutes stretching all
major muscles ?ere are is an e'ample of a
proper stretching routine
FG!/H)#2& S"H2"#?
Sit on the floor in a hurdler position, one leg
e'tended forward and the other knee bent with
the ankle back near your buttock Lean back
until you feel a stretch in the top part of the leg
?old this position to the count of ,: /o this to
each leg three times
?!4S"H)6I S"H2"#?
Sit with your legs in front of you apart with your
knees locked Heach for one foot until you feel
a stretch in the back of the leg ?old for a
count of ,: /o this for each leg three times
5G""2HBLY S"H2"#?
Sit with your legs bent and soles of you feet
together &lace your palms on your feet and
elbows on the inside of your knees Gsing your
elbows push you legs down until you feel a
stretch in your groin area ?old for a count of
,: /o this three times
#!LB S"H2"#?
Lean against a wall putting one foot back ?old
that foot flat and lean forward until you feel a
stretch in your calf ?old for a count of ,: /o
this three times to each leg
S?<GL/2H S"H2"#?
&ut one arm hori>ontal against a wall, shoulder
on the wall Hotate your body away from the
wall with the arm still flat until you feel a stretch
in the chest=shoulder area ?old for a count of
,: /o this three times to each shoulder
POWER WEIGHT TRAINING
92Y )/2!S( &ower weight training provides
a strength base for the rest of this vertical
leap program "his section contains mainly
<lympic lifts as well as upper body lifts as
nearly ,0J of jumping power sources from
upper body impulses
!s was outlined earlier in this program,
power weight training is the key to a sufficient
strength base for true improvement in your
vertical leap "his is true not only in vertical
leap training but also in all sports &ower
weight training will be responsible for the bulk
of any mass gain during this program "hese
lifts consist mainly of the <lympic lifts of power
cleaning and s.uatting also including bench
press, shoulder press, bicep curls and
hamstring curls You may wonder why there
are so many upper body e'ercises incorporated
in a vertical training program !bout ,0J of a
vertical leap is generated by arm and upper
torso movements, therefore considerable
attention is given to upper body power
Bollowing are descriptions of the power weight
training lifts
&<72H #L2!6S
&osition the weighted bar directly in front of you
with your feet shoulder width apart 5end at the
knees keeping your head up and back straight
and grasp the bar at shoulder width 7hen you
begin the lift, lift with your legs keeping your
back straight !s you straighten your legs,
shrug your shoulders and fle' your calves to
pull the weight higher, faster #oncentrate on
speed 7hen you have shrugged your
shoulders, drop down under the weight
5
snapping your arms under the bar, elbows
forward Stomp your feet as you stand upright
in one motion You should end with the bar
resting across your chest, collar bone region,
supported by your arms "his is one repetition
SFG!"S
&osition the bar on your shoulders and grab the
bar with your hands Lower the weight keeping
your back straight until your thighs are parallel
to the ground 5e sure to go down far enough
"hen reverse and stand back up "his is one
repetition #oncentrate on slow down and
.uick reverse and up fast
LG6I2S
&osition the bar on your shoulders and grab the
bar with your hands Step forward with one leg
and lower the weight until your knee almost
touches the ground 5ring the weight back up
/o this again stepping with the other leg "his
is one repetition "his e'ercise can also be
done with dumbbells
?!4S"H)6I #GHLS
Lay stomach down on the leg curl machine
&ut your heels under the lifting pad and curl the
weight through the full range of motion until
your heels touch your buttock Straighten you
legs out in a controlled fashion #oncentrate
on speed "his is one repetition
526#? &H2SS
Lie on your back and grip the bar at about
shoulder width and lower the bar until it touches
your chest 7ithout pause lift it back up to the
top concentrating on speed "his is one
repetition
5)#2& #GHLS
?old the curl bar or dumbbells at your sides
#url the weight through the full range of motion
"his is one repetition
/o bench press and bicep curls in a
superset fashion "his is when you do one set
of each back to back with no rest 7eights
during this phase should be such that you can
only do the prescribed repetitions )f you can
do more reps than prescribed increase the
weight and vice versa
DYNAMIC WEIGHT TRAINING
92Y )/2!S( /ynamic 7eight "raining is
the link between &ower 7eight "raining and
&lyometric "raining incorporating lower
weights with .uick movements

Fuickness! "his is the key to vertical
jumping 7hat good is an athlete that can
s.uat :00 lbs but doesn3t have .uickness?
6othing! /ynamic weight training is the bridge
between power weight training and plyometric
training )t is the work out that loads weight
with speed /uring your dynamic weight
training phase of this program you will be
introduced to a few different lifts that now focus
on speed with lighter weight "hese include
step=ups, jump s.uats, shoulder raises, dips
and chin=ups ?ere is a description of these
lifts(
S"2&=G&S
Stand with the bar on your shoulders Irab the
bar with your hands &lace one foot on a step
or stool *=,1+ high Step up onto the stool with
one leg and drive the opposite knee up then
step back down Hepeat this with the other leg
"his is one repetition Gse appro'imately K the
weight that you used on power cleans
%G4& SFG!"S
Stand with the weight on your shoulders
Irasp the bar with your hands 5end at the
knees to a L s.uat Mthighs at -:NO then
e'plode up, jumping as high as possible "his
is one repetition !ttempt to do jump s.uats
and s.uats as a superset if e.uipment allows
Gse L the weight of s.uats for jump s.uats
#?)6=G&S
?ang from a bar both palms toward you &ull
yourself up until your chin is even with the bar
Io back down "his is one repetition
/)&S
Suspend your body from your arms on the dip
bo' Lower your body, bending at the elbows
and shoulders until your upper arms are parallel
to the ground #ome back up "his is one
repetition
S?<GL/2H H!)S2S
Sit down on a chair with lighter weights in each
hand : =,:lb dumbbells will do 5ring
dumbbells out wide and to your sides )n a
.uick motion bring them up diagonally and
6
touch them together 5ring them back down
"his is one repetition
!5/<4)6!LS
You have surely done ab crunches before You
will be doing many repetitions and to ensure
that you evenly work all abdominal muscles,
you need to do more than one type of ab
e'ercise "he - main e'ercises you will
concentrate on will be Hegular #runches, Side
#runches M#runches on your sideO, Leg Lifts
MLegs straight, hands on your stomachO and
#rossovers M#runch touching opposite elbows
to kneesO /o all repetitions evenly between
these - e'ercises
4ake sure you do dips and chin=ups in
supersets as you do the bench press and bicep
curls 7eights for this phase are to be lighter
!bout K to L of power weight training weights
PLYOMETRIC TRAINING
92Y )/2!S( &lyometric "raining is a
relatively new concept in the GS responsible
for dramatic improvements in all sports )t
concentrates on developing starting strength
and e'plosive strength through .uick elastic
e'ercises
&lyometric training is probably thought of as
a training techni.ue that had been around as
long as people have been lifting but in the
Gnited States plyometrics is a relatively new
concept "he first to use plyometrics in the GS
was Bred 7ilt, a former <lympic runner in
,PE: )t was first used in the Soviet Gnion for
<lympic jumpers as far back as the ,P:03s
&lyometrics was partially responsible for his
dramatic improvement in the ,00m dash when
he went from ,D0s at age ,- to ,00s at age
10 &lyometrics gets its name from the greek
roots plio and metric meaning 8more3 and
8measure3
&lyometrics concentrate on two key aspects
of training( starting strength or instantaneous
recruitment of as many muscle fibers as
possible and e'plosive strength or maintaining
that recruitment through a resistance "hese
two aspects, especially the first one, are the
main determinants of vertical jumping ability
&lyometrics is the training consisting of loading
muscles .uickly and firing them just as .uickly
"his type of training will be the primary means
of vertical gain after the first four weeks !s
plyometrics causes e'cessive strain, it is
important to warm up thoroughly before every
session and to only do the prescribed
repetitions and sets and no more to prevent
injury or overtraining Bollowing are the
descriptions of the plyometric e'ercises used in
this program
L!"2H!L %G4&S
Start on one side of a cone or obstacle ,*=1-+
high %ump laterally Mside to sideO over the
cone continuously 7hen you touch the ground
instantly jump to the other side #oncentrate
on speed, the less time on the ground the
better 2ach time back and forth is one
repetition
!69L2 %G4&S
Gsing only you calf muscles, fle'ing at the
ankles and keeping your knees straight,
bounce up and down concentrating on getting
off the ground as fast as possible and as high
as possible 2ach touch on the ground is one
repetition
H)4 %G4&S
Stand under a rim or against a wall %ump as
high as you can touching the wall or backboard
!s soon as you touch the ground jump back as
high as you can concentrating on hitting the
same spot on the backboard or wall each time
and getting off the ground .uickly
S"2& %G4&S
&ut your right leg on a chair or platform about
,*+ high Gsing only the right leg jump as high
as you can scissoring your legs in the air
landing with your left foot on the platform now
/o the same with the left leg 2ach jump is one
repetition
S&L)" %G4&S
Stand with one leg a few feet forward of the
other Lunge down until your front thigh is
parallel to the ground and back knee is almost
on the ground %ump using both legs as high
as possible Scissor legs in the air landing with
legs in the opposite position %ump again "his
is one repetition
S9)& B<H ?2)I?"
)3m sure you have skipped as a child before so
now do the same e'cept skip and get as high
as you can on each rep #oncentrate on
driving your knee on each skip
7
#!LB H!)S2S
Stand on a step with one heel over the edge
Lower your body on that foot and then raise
your body as high as you can on that leg /o
the prescribed reps for each leg
5<G6/)6I
"his is just a pronounced stride e'cept you are
concentrating on getting high as well as far
driving and holding each forward knee You
may use either a single arm approach as in
running or a double arm approach in which both
arms go forward at the same time each time
you bound
S)6IL2 L2I ?<&S
"hese jumps are similar to rim jumps only with
one leg at a time 2ach rep, go down to a L
s.uat and using your arms jump as high as
possible Heset and do it again /o the
prescribed reps for each leg "hese cause
e'treme muscle fatigue and will not be done
every time
!##2L2H!")<6S
Sprint, accelerating to Q ma' speed then
accelerate to full speed and back to Q ma'
speed 2ach time you hit ma' speed is one
repetition
4any of these e'ercises you will be doing
will involve a large amount of reps )t is very
important that you continue to perform them to
the last rep and with as much force as you can,
especially toward the end of the program
"here will be many times when you will feel like
you are only getting a few inches off the ground
and it is doing you no good )t is not
necessarily the height you jump but the amount
of muscle fibers you recruit when you do
"hese e'ercises will be increasing your vertical
even when they feel worthless
NUTRITION
92Y )/2!S( 6utrition is the fuel for
competition and recovery ! D to - ratio
of protein to carbohydrates is optimum
with protein needs dictated by the
amount of activity an athlete undertakes
7hy nutrition? 7hat is so important about
how you eat? "he answer may be .uite
surprising 2verything! ?ave you ever heard
the saying Ayou are what you eat+? 7ell it3s
,00J correct Your body breaks down from
training and attempts to rebuild itself using what
it3s given )f it doesn3t receive a proper balance
of macronutrients Mprotein, carbohydrates and
fatO it will not rebuild properly or function
properly 2ating correctly puts your body in the
metabolic and hormonal 8>one3 to build muscle
and perform as it3s trained to Sports
nutritionists have determined that the most
important ratio in your diet is that of protein to
carbohydrates )t is thought that for every D
grams of protein you need - grams of
carbohydrates So how much protein is
needed? "here is a relationship between
activity and protein needs which is outlined in
the table below(
Less than 1 hr e!er"#se $a#%&
1 t' ( hrs e!er"#se $a#%&
)* +ra,s -er -'.n$
)/ +ra,s -er -'.n$
M're than ( hrs e!er"#se $a#%& )0 +ra,s -er -'.n$
!s is shown in the above table, you will
need to know your lean muscle mass "his is
what you weigh minus the weight of body fat
You can have your body fat tested at many
fitness centers or even possibly at your own
high school or college )f you do not have
access to this test it is a good appro'imation to
assume the average athlete has between ,0
and ,1J body fat Lean body mass is
calculated as follows(
M5ody 7eightO ' M,00J = 5ody Bat JO
2'ample(
7ith an athlete that weighs ,*:lbs and has ,0J
body fat
M,*:lbsO ' M,00J = ,0JO
M,*:lbsO ' MP0JO
,;Elbs lean muscle mass
)n this program 0*gClb lean muscle mass is
enough &rotein re.uirements are found as
follows(
M,;ElbsO ' M0*gClbO
,DDg &rotein daily
8
!nd using the - to D ratio of carbohydrates
to protein, carbohydrate re.uirements are
found as follows(
M,DDgO '
-
CD
,E*g #arbohydrates daily
Bat is used to build hormones and other for
other vital body functions but is not as linked as
protein and carbohydrates are so
monounsaturated fat intake is arbitrarily set at
,
CD of carbohydrates Gsing this multiplier we
can find the fat intake as follows(
M,E*gO '
,
CD
:Pg fat daily
#arbohydrates should be mostly from
fruits and vegetables not breads and grains
5reads and grains should be treated like
condiments because they have a high glycemic
inde' which when eaten will spike insulin levels
taking you out of the optimal 8>one3 for growth
)f you are interested in finding the caloric
intake of your diet you can find it using the
following table(
Pr'te#n
Car1'h&$rate
2 "a%'r#es -er +ra,
2 "a%'r#es -er +ra,
3at 0 "a%'r#es -er +ra,
)f you have decided that losing some weight
is in order, you should take the e'tra calories
from monounsaturated fats and leave your
protein and carbohydrate intakes alone "he
caloric intake of this program is rather low
already and therefore there should be no need
to reduce your intake any further
)f this nutrition regiment proves to be too
few calories for you Myou find yourself fatigued
easily or have a lack of energyO revert to a
1000=1:00 calorie diet composed of D0J
protein, :0J carbs and 10J fat
POSITI4E MENTALITY
92Y )/2!S( #onfidence, 5elief in
Yourself, Ioal Setting, $isuali>ation and
4otivation are the five components of
positive mentality that use your mind as
a powerful training tool to achieve your athletic goals
"he final component of this program is one
that is limited literally only by your imagination
&ositive mentality is the icing on your proverbial
vertical jumping cake 4entality is one of the
most important elements of your athletics that
you can control You cannot always control the
physical condition you are in but your mindset
will make or break your performance, period!
?ave you ever walked into a situation with full
confidence and reali>ed how easy it was to
perform@ or when you are up in a game, how
easily things just come to you Sports
announcers call this momentum, but it all
comes down to the same thing, mentality
5elief in your self is the key to success /on3t
let people tell you that this program or any
goals you have won3t work or you won3t make it
!s soon as you stop believing in yourself you
will have a hard time following your dreams as
well as this program <ne thing that ) have
learned through the past few years is that if you
don3t believe in yourself no one else will either
"he first and most important point to positive
mentality is belief in your self
6ow that you have anchored your dreams
firmly in the rocks of confidence, you need to
find yourself a goal )n this program goal
setting will help you have a sense of purpose
and give you something to measure progress
against "here are two limitations you should
impose on yourself while goal setting ,O /on3t
set your sights too low 1O /on3t set your goals
too high )f you set your sights on increasing
your vertical - inches over the course of this
program you are making it too easy on yourself
You will either slack off because you think you
are right on track or you will reach your goal too
early and endanger your chances of reaching
your potential <n the other hand don3t set
your goal as increasing your vertical 1-+ in ,:
weeks &lyometric training is a miraculous tool
but 1-+ in ,: weeks is just plain ridiculous
Setting your goal too high will instill a false
hope in you as well as set you up for
disappointment when you don3t reach your
goal 6o program in e'istence will give you
results like 1-+ in ,: weeks so don3t think this
program is sub par ! good goal to set for your
self is ,1+ in ,: weeks "his will put you in a
range where you will have to work for your
goals but will yield reinforcing results steadily
throughout your ,: week program
"he ne't mentality tool you will need is one
of imagination $isuali>ation is a process in
which you use your imagination to trick your
subconscious, the place where confidence is
based, into believing you have done something
9
repeatedly that you may have never actually
done $isuali>ation is something that takes
nearly no time at all and can be done lying in
bed before you fall asleep !lright here3s the
!thletic !dvantage visuali>ation e'ercise(
,O Lying in bed close your eyes and
visuali>e a rim in front of you
)magine the feel of the floor and
everything around you
2) &osition yourself in front of the rim
)n your mind imagine a mark a
couple inches above where you think
you can touch
3) $isuali>e yourself jumping up and
touching that mark $isuali>e the
muscles in your whole body firing in
order .uickly and your body rising to
that mark /o it again ,0 more time,
more vividly each time
4) Hemember the feeling of e'hilaration
from doing this and say to yourself A)
did it+ ,0 times Hepeat steps 1 and
D a few times
/o this e'ercise every night before you fall
asleep attaching a number to the heights you
imagine jumping "his e'ercise has a parallel
with hypnosis and will help you boost your
confidence and motivation
"he last piece of positive mentality is
motivation "here are going to be times during
your training that you won3t feel like doing your
work out or you will feel la>y "hese are the
times when having a source of motivation will
help you press on Iood e'amples of
motivation are basketball games, highlights,
dunking contests or athletes e'celling at
anything you enjoy 6e't time you are feeling a
little la>y or unmotivated pop in a tape of $ince
#arter highlights and imagine yourself doing
some of those same things in a few weeks
You will find motivation to be your best friend
some days
3OLLOWING YOUR PROGRESS
92Y )/2!S( "esting your vertical leap
weekly when fresh will allow you to track
your progress as well as give you
confirmation that this program is actually
working
/uring the course of this program you will
be testing and retesting your vertical leap to
track your progress "his will continually
reaffirm that you are making gains regularly in
your vertical leap 2very week on 4onday after
the weekend of rest and before you do any
training, you will test your vertical leap "his
can be done more than one way "here are
vertical testing machines that you may have
access to in which you set to your reach height
and then you try to jump as high as you can
touching multicolored strips at certain heights
)f you do not have access to one of these, here
is a method that works very well Stand in front
of a wall or backboard Gsing masking tape,
make several small tape loops, about a half
inch long or so, so that you have a loop that is
sticky on all sides Stick one loop to your
middle finger on the hand you will be reaching
with Birst you need to make a mark at the
ma'imum height you can reach without
jumping So reach up as far as you can
flatfooted and slap the wall sticking the tape
loop to the wall 6ow take another tape loop
and stick it to that same finger "his time
without a step, jump as high as you can and
slap the wall again, depositing the tape at the
height of your jump /o this three times
4easure the distance between the lowest tape
mark and the highest tape mark "his is you
vertical leap
INJURY
92Y )/2!S( )njury is always a possibility )f
you sustain an injury stop training
immediately and consult a physician
"here is a chance that during this program
you will sustain an injury of some sort
5ecause ) am not a doctor ) will not give much
advice about injury e'cept that if you think that
you have sustained one, stop the program
immediately and consult a physician )f you
develop pain in your muscles or bones after a
few weeks in this program, chances are you
are suffering from over use "his can be
alleviated by rest and icing /on3t be worried
about stopping the program because you have
an injury You will sustain far less damage to
your vertical leap by stopping and correctly
treating your injuries than by trying to train
through them and hurting yourself severely
Bor the first week or so of each phase of this
program you will e'perience soreness &roper
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stretching and warming up before and
stretching and icing afterwards should take
care of it )f, however, you e'perience
continued soreness through the ne't few
weeks, stop immediately and consult a
physician
D#s"%a#,er5 As 6#th an& tra#n#n+ -r'+ra,7
th#s -r'+ra, #n"'r-'rates re-et#t#8e
e!er"#ses that ha8e the -'tent#a% t' "a.se
#n9.r& Ath%et#" A$8anta+e an$ #ts "reat'r
1ear n' res-'ns#1#%#t& :'r the "'n$#t#'n
an$ hea%th ': the ath%ete;s< .s#n+ th#s
-r'+ra,
RESULTS
!s in any sport or discipline the old saying
8practice makes perfect3 rings truer than ever
You must remember this )f you do and
practice what you preach you will reap the
benefits that you dream of achieving )f you
continue with this program and follow it to the
letter you can e'pect to be dunking over your
competition in no time "his program will have
you high flying above the rim giving you an
e'tra *=,-+ on your vertical in ,: weeks ) have
no doubt in my mind that if you are still reading
this you have what it takes to put to use the
valuable resources you have in front of you and
inside you You will be hands and shoulders
above the competition soon Iood bye and
good luck with your new and improved athletic
abilities
LETS GET STARTED
6ow it3s time to start training "he ne't ,:
weeks will be an intense series of muscular
break down and rebuilding 4ake sure to drink
enough water and stay energi>ed !thletic
!dvantage will teach your muscles how to jump
over the ne't ,: weeks You will do so much
jumping that your body will reprogram what is
called neuromuscular memory "his is your
brains learned, almost subconscious memory of
how to jump "his program will get so intense
that there are two e'tended breaks in which
you will take a complete break from all training
incorporated in the program to encourage
muscle rebuilding and recuperation M7eeks E
and ,1O
Attention: Because of the extreme nature
of this program it is recommended that you be
at least 12 to 14 years of age before beginning.

HOW AND WHEN
Staying energi>ed will re.uire you to follow the
nutrition phase of this program closely and get
at least * hours of sleep You will have best
results if you break your meals into D meals
and 1 snacks daily with plenty of water "ry to
train a couple hours after a good meal "his
will ensure enough energy to complete the
e'ercises each day
7hen doing your weight training remember to
use weight that allows you to do only the
specified number of reps while at the same
time concentrating on speed of each rep
&ower 7eight training is to be done twice a
week on "uesdays and "hursdays e'cept on
weeks E and ,1 when you will not be lifting and
on weeks ,- and ,: when you will only be
lifting on "hursday "he lifts should be done in
the following order( 7arm Gp and Stretch,
&ower #leans, Step=Gps, S.uats and %ump
S.uats, Lunges, ?amstring #urls, 5ench &ress
and 5icep #urls, Shoulder Haises, #hin Gps
and /ips, !bs, #ool /own and Stretch skipping
over the lifts you don3t do in a particular week
&lyometric training is to be done D times a week
on 4ondays, 7ednesdays and Bridays e'cept
on weeks E and ,1 when you will be resting
/uring plyometric training you should take no
more than 1 minutes rest between sets for the
first ; weeks and no more than D minutes rest
between sets for the last P weeks "he
e'ercises should be done in the following order(
7arm Gp and Stretch, Single Leg ?ops,
Lateral %umps, #alf Haises, Him %umps, Skip
for ?eight, Step %umps, Split %umps, !nkle
%umps, 5ounding, !ccelerations, #ool /own
and Stretch skipping over the e'ercises you
don3t do in a particular week Single leg hops
are to be done only on Bridays of the weeks
they are assigned e'cept during week ,: when
you will be doing them on 4ondays as well
Your workouts are outlined in this book, !thletic
!dvantage "he #omplete $ertical %ump
&rogram, as well as on your separate %ump
&rogram #ard Bollow the workouts e'actly
and in ,: weeks you will be ama>ing everyone
with your insane dunking skills
11
!fter you have completed this program you will
want to retain your gains You can do this by
doing the workouts for 7eek * "ake a week
off before this as 7eeks ,D=,: are designed to
give your muscles ma'imum breakdown )f you
plan to do this program again it is
recommended that you wait several weeks
"his will allow your body to recuperate properly
for the ne't ,: weeks of intense jump training
#ongratulations on your new ups and good
luck!
4Y $2H")#!L L2!& )4&H<$2426" I<!L
During the next 15 weeks I intend to increase my
vertical leap by ____ inches! My goals also
include ________________
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