Improving Vertical Jump

uconnwinsnc

I'm just under 5'10 (ugh) with basketball shoes on and can just skim backboard on a standard 10' rim with a good running start. Anyone know of good leg exercises to do to work on to improve vert? Obviously I won't be dunking but I still want to be able to elevate more on my jump shot and rebounds. I've been playing basketball since I started losing weight (it is pretty much what got me going) and my vertical jump has not really improve much despite my leg strength improving and my weight going down.

I assume squats and calf raises would be the core of the workout? Michael Jordan says the best way to jump higher is to simply jump more. Are there special techniques to look into?

rogerOb1

Lunges (various variations) with dumbbells, leg press, calf raises, barbell squats + olympic lifts for a more explosive lifting technique (start v.light - get instruction on form if you can)

Flexibility work

Plyo training - e.g box jumps, jump squats, tuck jumps, drop jumps, side jumps,
+ jump rope

la_te_ra_lus

a friend of mine who is 5'8 concentrates on the exact things roger mentioned a ton of emphasis on front squats.. after a year and half of consistent training can dunk.

ninerbuff

Also Vertimax (if you can get to one). I've also trained people using weighted vests.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

uconnwinsnc

Lunges (various variations) with dumbbells, leg press, calf raises, barbell squats + olympic lifts for a more explosive lifting technique (start v.light - get instruction on form if you can)

Flexibility work

Plyo training - e.g box jumps, jump squats, tuck jumps, drop jumps, side jumps,
+ jump rope

Thanks Rog, this is what I was looking for. I'll look into these things.

BigVeggieDream

Bump

12by311

There's a program called air alert. I think you can find versions for free online. It's plyo stuff. My basketball team does it.

It improved my brother's vertical several inches.

jlclabo

as said before, box jumps, heavy back squats and front squats coupled with explosive movements like jump squats. i personally like to do jump squats on a hack squat machine. calf raises will help too.

12by311

Also, we use the thick resistance bands to do plyo work and also power moves (the bands are really thick). Someone holds one ends while you make your power move or even drive to the basket.

You can use the smaller bands by wrapping around your foot then criss crossing your body while doing box jumps and stuff.

ExtremePhobia

First things first - if you want to improve at basketball then there's two things you need to do.

1) Realize that 5' 10" is not particularly short (5' 11" is average for a full grown man and if you're still in college, you could still get an inch or two before you are done as men don't really stop growing until 21-22). For a non professional player, 5' 10" is good size for a guard. In fact, when I played intramurals, I was actually a power forward at just 5' 11". A power forward is actually a position usually occupied by a player who grew drastically late - they were short and learned how to handle the ball well and when they grew they had both mass AND agility.

Which leads to:

2) If you are shorter than the other players you're playing with, concern yourself less with jumping and more with agility and ball handling. Don't try to beat somebody where they have a natural advantage - instead, use what YOU have to your advantage. If you are smaller, try to improve on your agility which is something that larger players will have a harder time doing. They have more moment and more gaps around their body that you can sneak by.

---

More to your question - the most efficient exercise you can do is what you want to do. There are lots of small muscles in your knees, feet, and ankles that won't be worked on most of the exercises you do but they are crucial to agility and stability. They need to be exercised too. The best way to exercise them efficiently in proportion to your other muscles is to do exactly what you want to do.

If you want two particular exercises that you can do that are pretty helpful:

small hops - you're only aiming for maybe 3" off the ground at most. Hop up and down and for improved agility (as opposed to just vertical jump height), hop side to side. Do this for a little while and you'll be amazed at how fatigued your lower calves, ankles, knees, and feet get.

Squats - These exercise what are largest muscles in your lower body. This will give you power rather than stability. This actually has great effect on your agility as well as it allows you to get MUCH lower to the ground, something that you can take advantage of over your larger opponents.

You can get good results with weights, for sure but it's really not worth it without a knowledgeable trainer. Working on the larger muscles would be easy but all the smaller muscles (which most people don't work and you can use to your advantage) are hard to exercise in a gym setting.

uconnwinsnc

First things first - if you want to improve at basketball then there's two things you need to do.

1) Realize that 5' 10" is not particularly short (5' 11" is average for a full grown man and if you're still in college, you could still get an inch or two before you are done as men don't really stop growing until 21-22). For a non professional player, 5' 10" is good size for a guard. In fact, when I played intramurals, I was actually a power forward at just 5' 11". A power forward is actually a position usually occupied by a player who grew drastically late - they were short and learned how to handle the ball well and when they grew they had both mass AND agility.

Which leads to:

2) If you are shorter than the other players you're playing with, concern yourself less with jumping and more with agility and ball handling. Don't try to beat somebody where they have a natural advantage - instead, use what YOU have to your advantage. If you are smaller, try to improve on your agility which is something that larger players will have a harder time doing. They have more moment and more gaps around their body that you can sneak by.

---

More to your question - the most efficient exercise you can do is what you want to do. There are lots of small muscles in your knees, feet, and ankles that won't be worked on most of the exercises you do but they are crucial to agility and stability. They need to be exercised too. The best way to exercise them efficiently in proportion to your other muscles is to do exactly what you want to do.

If you want two particular exercises that you can do that are pretty helpful:

small hops - you're only aiming for maybe 3" off the ground at most. Hop up and down and for improved agility (as opposed to just vertical jump height), hop side to side. Do this for a little while and you'll be amazed at how fatigued your lower calves, ankles, knees, and feet get.

Squats - These exercise what are largest muscles in your lower body. This will give you power rather than stability. This actually has great effect on your agility as well as it allows you to get MUCH lower to the ground, something that you can take advantage of over your larger opponents.

You can get good results with weights, for sure but it's really not worth it without a knowledgeable trainer. Working on the larger muscles would be easy but all the smaller muscles (which most people don't work and you can use to your advantage) are hard to exercise in a gym setting.

Thanks for the tips. I work on my ball handling, agility, and shooting all the time. I'm generally a well-rounded player who can play lock down defense and spot up shoot very well. I just want to start working on my vertical because it really hasn't changed much since I started.