How To Increase YOUR Vertical Leap!!!

If you want to increase your vertical leap, there are two major muscle groups that we must focus on....the quads, and calves. When it comes down to it, jumping is all about generating POWER and explosion. Let's start with the biggest muscle group first.

The Quads

Squat exercises are BY FAR the best way to work on your quad strength. Another main reason I like squats is because it is very similar to the jumping motion. So before you do any other training get yourself onto the squat machine.

When you are performing squats you will want to go down until your thighs are parallel to the ground. Make sure you get the full range of motion to increase glute activation, which is a large muscle involved in propulsion.

Also, after you have lowered yourself to the parallel position, you need to EXPLODE UP! This will help to develop your fast twitch muscle fibers.

It's important to switch up your routine regularly so I recommend working in some one-legged squats as well. Since most people jump off one leg, single-leg squats can be very beneficial.

The Calves

Your calf muscles help to perform that final propulsion into the air so it is important that we train them as well. Remember we want to develop EXPLOSIVE power and in order to do this we need to lift REALLY heavy weight with our calves.

Go to the gym and hit the calve machine. Instead of ripping out 3 sets of 20 which most people do, we are going to be doing 5 sets of 8 with REALLY heavy weight. Make sure the weight is heavy enough so that it is difficult to finish all the reps. Trust me, this workout WORKS and it will leave your calves drained.

Developing flexibility is often neglected, however, it is an important factor in increasing your vertical jump. If your tendons, muscles and ligaments are tight in your lower body they will not be able to leverage the force as much and this will decrease your jumping ability.

The specific areas that you should focus on are the quads, hamstrings, hip flexors, and calves.

Quads: When stretching the quads, stand so that your hips are squared and pulled up as much as possible to lengthen the quad muscles. Next, hold onto a bar for balance and bend one leg at the knee so that you are able to grab your foot behind you. Pull it as close to your rear as possible and, keeping the knee as close to the standing leg as possible, pull back slightly. Remember to keep the hips square and up throughout the entire movement. As soon as these get slightly out of alignment, the resulting stretch will not be nearly as great. Hold the position for 20 seconds before moving on to the other leg.

Hamstrings: To perform the hamstring exercise, sit down on a mat with your legs straight out. Next, keeping your feet flexed, bend forward and try reaching your palms to your feet. If you're able to, grab onto your feet and pull your body forward even more, but keep your back straight -- this will ensure that you are effectively stretching the hamstrings and not just your back. Hold this position for 30 seconds before relaxing and repeating it.

Hip flexors: To increase the flexibility of your hip flexor muscles, get onto the floor in a kneeling position. Then, move one leg out so it's in front of you, with your foot planted firmly on the floor and your knee at about a 90-degree angle. Next, slowly lean your body toward that knee until you feel a pull in the upper thigh area on the other leg (this is the hip flexor muscle). Your arms can be placed on the bent knee in front of you or they can be held out to the side for balance. Hold this position for 15 seconds, and switch legs.

Calves: To stretch the calf muscle, stand on a step with your heels slightly off it, while balancing on the balls of your feet. Next, drop one heel down (slightly shifting your weight backward to apply pressure to the muscle and tendon) until you feel a slight stretch. Hold this for 10 seconds while taking a deep breath in and out. Afterward, push slightly further and hold it. Switch sides once you are finished.

In order to improve your vertical leap you must incorporate heavy lifting with plyometric exercises. Below I have listed many of my favorite exercises that I use. I recommend performing some of these exercises 2 to 3 times a week on your non-strength training days.

Box Jumps: an excellent plyometric exercise which can help you see results quickly. Stand on top of a tall box or bench, jump off, as soon as your feet touch the ground EXPLODE UP and jump as high as you can. Perform 3 sets of 10.

Heel and Toe touches: Stand with your feet shoulder width apart. Jump as high as you can and bring your heels toward your butt. As you are in the air touch your toes. Land, jump again, and then touch your heels.

Split-Lunge Jump: This exercise will really get your glute muscles firing, which is key in producing force. Assume a lunge position. Drive yourself off the ground from the lunge, switch legs in the air, and land back in the lunge position. The lower the lunge, the more muscle work is required. Go as low as possible while completing 10 to 15 reps.

Sprints: Running the 50 and 100 yard dash will build your leg muscles, increase your speed, and help your vertical.

Jumping rope: Getting proficient at jumping rope will improve your reflexes and cardiovascular system.

No Arm Hop: Don't use your arms so that all the force is generated from your legs. Stand tall, bend down slightly and jump off the ground, while keeping your arms glued to your sides. Upon landing, jump again so that you complete 10 continuous reps.

These are just a few of the exercises that will help you increase your vertical jump. If you would like more exercises please visit www.40inchvertical.net

I obviously can't tell you everything you need to know about increasing your vertical leap on a small one page site on Squidoo. So, I recommend heading over to www.40inchvertical.net
and check out The Jump Manual. If you stick to the workout program and hit it HARD, I GUARANTEE you that you will increase your vertical by AT LEAST 10 inches!

The Jump Manual is the best vertical jump training program I have ever come across. It is the only product that effectively targets every aspect of vertical explosion. Jacob Hillar has trained college, NBA and Olympic athletes and has consistently gotten them to 40+ inch verticals. So check it out at www.40inchvertical.net

You won't be disappointed.