Hey t-gang, sorry for my long departure from the forum. Anyway, my years of bodybuilding oriented training have left me below par when it comes to overall athletic ability. I really want to dunk! I have been playing ball for a few weeks and am about a half inch shy of dunking. I am 6 ft. tall, and about 175 lbs. really lean. I am also very strong for my size, but I obviously need to get that extra boost in my jump, any suggestions?
Check out Ian King’s “White men can jump”.
What are your current stats in these exercises and lifts.
- full squat
- power clean
- vertical jump (from standstill)
- vertical jump (with 3 steps)
Also how many days a week do you train and how many days per week do you play ball etc.
In a recent paper issue of T-Mag there was an article entitled “White Men CAN Jump” or something similar. Check it out (sorry I can’t be more specific).
A half inch? And you’ve only been playing for a few weeks? Keep playing and you’ll probably be dunking in a few more weeks? Also, check out King’s article as mentioned.
im a dissenter here. Im gonna say you most probably need to work on raisng your max front and or back squat. Once its close to 2x bodyweight, focus more on plyos and OLs. I dont see the point in doin a hypertrophy geared program for jumping.
work on your explosive jump squats. laters pk
a lot of times people focus on the lifting part of explosion or explosive movements such as the vertical too much. If your strength is up to par then you need to emphasize your training in the plyometric department. Plyometrics can increase your vertical by 8 inches atleast in two months if done properly, assuming that your strength levels are high. What everyone has recommended so far “White men can jump” is a very good program focusing on both aspects.
Some ‘power’ oriented leg routines/protocols may prove beneficial. It’s usually the phase after a strength phase in a macro-level periodization program I believe.
Usually simple things will work, hold heavy dumbells in your hands and jump like a madman for a few weeks. Of course I don’t REALLY know what I’m talking about here.
Go on a powerlifting cycle and quit any hypertrohpy protocls so that you can get the most out of it. Plyo is hit and miss from what I’ve seen. However, I’ve yet to see an increase in 1RM squat #'s NOT translate to a higher vert.
I like were Kelly is going, there are several ways to improve ones vertical. You must first find out were you need work. It might be Max strengh or it could be strech shorting cycle. these are the two most common. if you test these things then it will be easier to tell you what exercises you should work on.
current stats in these exercises and lifts.
- full squat-285 for 8 reps below parralel 2. power clean-175 for 8 reps
- vertical jump (from standstill)not to sure, I really haven’t the facilities to gauge this 4. vertical jump (with 3 steps)again, not sure
I play ball about 4 days a week.
BTTT
I do want to add that attend the university of north carolina, if anyone is familiar with the facilities we have you may be able to chime in and aid me
Well your strength levels sound more than adequate for what you want to accomplish. What you have to do is improve your rate of force development and teach your body how to utilize your strength in an efficient manner. The easiest way to accomplish this is through ballistic and dynamic methods such as jump squats, cleans, snatches, and plyometric exercises. I’d read Ian Kings white men can jump article and pick a couple of plyometric drills to do and do those a couple of times a week. It shouldn’t take much at all to get you dunking as you’re so close already. The one thing you have to be wary of is overtraining. Increasing your vertical jump is a lot like increasing your strenght on a lift. If you work at it every day and play ball every day you’re gonna burn out really quick so make sure you allow plenty of time for recovery. Most basketball players i’ve trained get significant increases just from staying out off the court a couple of days per week…which allows them to better recover from all the jumping they’re already doing.
Thanks a bunch, I had started doing the 100 rep princible on my calves and went ahead and upped my calorie intake. I had been on JB’s massive eating at 3450 k/cal per day. now I have added an extra 500 calories (primarily high glycemic indexed carb drinks before and during playing) I will def. look into thewhite men can’t jump article and see if I can use this to getting me where I want to be. again thanks so much for the help, and sorry its been like 8 months since my last post on the forum, I will have to get back on here more often and stop only reading the articles.
Robusto, it’s going to be hard to increase your vertical if you’re playing ball 4 days a week. I agree with Kelly on improving rate of force development (rfd) given you’re already strong, but I think the best way to increase vertical is weighted plyos. Problem is, since you play so often, your body won’t recover sufficiently to improve vertical. Therefore, if I were you, I’d be a 10lb. buckshot belt (MF Athletic I think still sells them), and start out playing half the time with the belt, half without. After playing with an additional 10 lbs., when you take it off you will jump higher. As a side note, weighted plyos alone (3 times a week with sufficient recovery), and no weightlifting whatsoever, increased my standing vertical from 26 to 36 inches.
6 foot and can’t dunk. I pray that I could be 6 foot. I am 5’9" and I have thrown it down a few times throughout my illustrious career. I was a better leaper when I was in highschool. I was a highjumper and triplejumper among other things. I never lifted weights. The best way is doing sprints and plyometrics, if you don’t want to get real crazy. I posted a workout on here a while back that is good for vertical. You will have to take it easy on the basketball though. If you want it let me know. Also you can search the web and get a copy of the workout of some guy named Michael Jordan. It incorporates weights and basketball to increase vetical.