Recently I decided to add plyometric training exercises to my workout routine. Along time ago, I experimented with different types of exercises to increase myvertical. Plyometrics training not only helped increase my vertical leap but alsoprovided a great strength training routine for my legs. I’ve found the bestplyometric exercises as part of programs that teach you how to jump higher todunk.Way back in high school, I was obsessed with my vertical leap. As it did withpushups, my competitive spirit always came out when we tested how high wecould jump in gym class. I remember that I was 2
nd
in the school at 34” during my junior year. The person above me jumped 36” and went on to be a starter for theUConn basketball team. I decided that I would really focus on plyometric trainingexercises to increase my vertical. I tried a program called Air Alert II. Let’s justsay it taught me everything I shouldn’t do.
Air Alert II was one of those big hype programs that guaranteed you would add10” to your vertical leap. It all sounds good as a teenager, but essentially it was awaste of $10 for a thin packet of paper. The program involved 5 differentexercises: squat jumps, calf raises, step ups, leap ups, and burnouts. However, itwasn’t the exercises that made this program so terrible, it was the workoutfrequency.
Plyometrics Training Frequency
The biggest flaw of Air Alert II (and many other jump higher programs) was that itinvolved 5 straight days of plyometrics training. In addition, the volume of training was ungodly with 3-4 sets of 50-100 reps per exercise. It’s great forbuilding leg endurance but really just leads to over training. Moreover, how candoing 100 reps of an exercise really help my vertical leap?A vertical leap is an explosion upward. The best way to gain explosive strength isnot high rep training. Think of performing bench press. If you want to get reallystrong, you’d perform multiple sets of 1-3 reps with really heavy weights. If youapplied the principles of the above program, it would be like trying to increaseyour bench press by doing 100 reps with just the barbell. Maybe your endurance
would improve, but you won’t get meaningfully stronger. In addition, you wouldnever try to bench press every single day for 5 days straight.Take it from me, the best way to increase leg strength and vertical leap is to do lowrep plyometrics training. The type of plyometric exercise somewhat dictates howmany reps are best. Some plyometrics exercises work best with only 5 reps, while10-15 reps for others will help you gain explosive power. Regardless of theexercise, just remember to put in an intense effort. If you can jump 2ft in the air,then don’t train by jumping 1ft in the air.
Exercises to Increase Vertical Leap
Everyone has a different definition of plyometrics, but the best definition I’vefound is that plyometrics training includes exercises designed to produce fast,powerful movements. Plyometrics exercises are great for improving explosivepower and speed. In fact, vertical jump programs generally improve a person’s 40yard dash time as well. It’s also a common misconception that calf muscles are theprimary driver of a higher vertical leap. Try jumping without bending your kneesand then try a normal jump. You should notice that you get a lot higher when youbend your knees because you are utilizing the strength of your quads and
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Plyometric Training Exercises - How to Jump Higher to Dunk
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