I’ve followed this thread (under one user name or another) for a long time now and I thought I’d post something that might interest the others doing the same.
Right up front, I will say that this is my book. I wrote it and am selling it with my sports science mentor and everyone’s favorite vert guru, Kelly Baggett. If anyone has any questions, and questions at all, I’d be more than happy to answer them.
RJ Nelsen
[quote]adarqui wrote:
sup, thought I’d share this in the vert thread.
this is rip, 5’6" (7’4 reach), 16 years old, 150 lb, hitting a ~45" running vert:
he’s one of the most insanely dedicated athletes i’ve ever seen on these forums. He wants 55" RVJ legit one day, that’s one of his performance goals.
Here’s an EASY squat single at 2.2xBW, his estimated 1RM is around 360-375, so very close to 2.5xBW:
peace[/quote]
Don’t give me his estimated 1RM BS man :P, he hasn’t squated it, it means NOTHING 
lol @ the CHAT of his vert.
Just get him to jump properly man!
Got to video my bro jumping! I’ll do some more jumping work after the British Champs.
So adarqui, what do you recommend for me? You’ve seen my jumping video on my youtube account, so what do you prescribe? I’ll be squating heavily and OLifting also…but I’ll do the jumping a lunchtimes. I could do 3 jumping sessions or scale back to 2x a week of whatever you want man.
Koing
Summer is coming and I have nothing else do to but train! fuck yes. I’ve been thinking of doing ws4sb and Erick Minors sprint program from this site. Strength Training, Bodybuilding & Online Supplement Store - T NATION this one. How does my plan sound? Plan for the summer is to lose fat and get faster and jump higher.
damn after reading through the last couple pages and seeing these vids I wanna work on my jumping! I wish I could dunk! I’d definitely have to work on it cause I can only snap the rim (not hang) from a stand still… I never play ball though.
.greg.
[quote]hatesmiles wrote:
Summer is coming and I have nothing else do to but train! fuck yes. I’ve been thinking of doing ws4sb and Erick Minors sprint program from this site. Strength Training, Bodybuilding & Online Supplement Store - T NATION this one. How does my plan sound? Plan for the summer is to lose fat and get faster and jump higher. [/quote]
Faster sprinting usually doesn’t translate to dramatic vert increases but a higher vert usually translates to faster sprinting.
I would say a higher vert translates to a faster start and doesn’t affect top speed much, but yeah, pretty much agreed.
I just wanted to say that a few people here have asked for my advice on increasing their speed and/or hops, and while I’m flatterred that they have I don’t consider myself an expert. I actually think I have just a very basic knowledge. I was dunking at 5’7" having never touched a weight or trained for jumping. Just played ball. My speed and jumping ability are mostly genetic. There are a lot of people here that have a wealth of knowledge on the subject, but the person who stands out to me is Jtrinsey. It was actually his advice several years ago that allowed me to put several inches on my vert in about 2 months time. I know he didn’t invent the idea, but he said something like “naturally springy people just need to get stronger” and I took that to heart. I’ve read a lot of what he’s said on here and the guy knows his shit. Hopefully I’m not burdening him with this, but if anyone has any questions about vert listen to what he says. He’s a sharp guy and well educated on the subject.
If you want to jump high you need to analyze yourself, look at strengths and weaknesses to determine where to direct your training. Here are a few keys:
What is your body fat like? This is a MAJOR key to the strength/speed equation. Relative strength is important to athletic performance and BF does nothing to help you perform better. I conducted an informal test with some of my clients in which I had them perform a SJ with their hands on their hips, then I had them jump holding a 10lb DB, everyone’s vertical decreased by about 2". Basically, if you do not have a clear, easy to see 6 pack, then try to drop some BF. For every 10ls you lose I would expect your VJ to increase somewhere from 1.5-2". Easy way to increase performance.
What are your below parallel squat numbers like? You should strive for at least a twice body weight squat to below 90 with good form. You need a good base level of strength to be able to really get up, especially in the CMJ. I would also focus on lifting the weight as fast as possible with good from to develop RFD. Keep your body tight and explode out of the hole.
As white flash said, if you are naturally springy it means you are neurologically efficient so adding more strength helps tremendously. Think of it this way if you have 2 athletes both weigh 150 and both squat a legit 300, but athlete A has great efficiency and utilizes 80% of his strength in a CMJ while athlete B isn’t as efficient and can only utilize 70%, who jumps higher? Of course athlete A, athlete B has 2 choices, get stronger or work on his neuromuscular efficiency by training to improve his rate of force development. This is where explosive lifting, plyos and jump training, and sprinting come in to play.
For improving jumping ability, I favor a block style training approach where the athlete switches back and forth between a strength block and power block. In the strength block you focus on getting stronger and possibly adding some size to the drive muscles of the VJ, the glutes, quads, hams, and calves. Then after 3-4 weeks, switch to a power block where neuromuscular training is the goal, ie learn to efficiently use your new strength to drive up your VJ, once your VJ gains slow a bit, switch back to a strength block ect…
A few other considerations, look at your hip mobility. Make sure that you have good flexibility in the front of your hips. Tight hip flexors can inhibit glute function and decrease performance. Keep yourself flexible in your hips. Also, make sure your feet function properly. It’s really common in our era of fancy tennis shoes to see athletes with weak muscles in the bottom of their feet. This can cause major problems including collapsing arches, which internally rotates the knees and puts stress on the the adductors and hip flexors, it also inhibits the abductors and contribute to excessive anterior pelvic tilt. Spend some time training bare foot. Try to also walk around on your fore foot… It also helps to strengthen the muscles in the front of the shins as well.
It’s actually pretty simple: get lean, get flexible/mobile, get strong, and get explosive via neuromuscular training. Everyone should be able to dramatically improve your VJ, if you go about it the right way.
[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
I just wanted to say that a few people here have asked for my advice on increasing their speed and/or hops, and while I’m flatterred that they have I don’t consider myself an expert. I actually think I have just a very basic knowledge. I was dunking at 5’7" having never touched a weight or trained for jumping. Just played ball. My speed and jumping ability are mostly genetic. There are a lot of people here that have a wealth of knowledge on the subject, but the person who stands out to me is Jtrinsey. It was actually his advice several years ago that allowed me to put several inches on my vert in about 2 months time. I know he didn’t invent the idea, but he said something like “naturally springy people just need to get stronger” and I took that to heart. I’ve read a lot of what he’s said on here and the guy knows his shit. Hopefully I’m not burdening him with this, but if anyone has any questions about vert listen to what he says. He’s a sharp guy and well educated on the subject.[/quote]
Thanks brotha, although really, let’s be honest here… I’m pretty much just a Kelly Baggett parrot. I trust that man with all my heart and soul, as any of the DB Forum members can testify.
As otis said, vert is pretty simple. Don’t be fat, get strong as fuck and do a lot of jumping.
[quote]otisbean wrote:
If you want to jump high you need to analyze yourself, look at strengths and weaknesses to determine where to direct your training. Here are a few keys:
What is your body fat like? This is a MAJOR key to the strength/speed equation. Relative strength is important to athletic performance and BF does nothing to help you perform better. I conducted an informal test with some of my clients in which I had them perform a SJ with their hands on their hips, then I had them jump holding a 10lb DB, everyone’s vertical decreased by about 2". Basically, if you do not have a clear, easy to see 6 pack, then try to drop some BF. For every 10ls you lose I would expect your VJ to increase somewhere from 1.5-2". Easy way to increase performance.
What are your below parallel squat numbers like? You should strive for at least a twice body weight squat to below 90 with good form. You need a good base level of strength to be able to really get up, especially in the CMJ. I would also focus on lifting the weight as fast as possible with good from to develop RFD. Keep your body tight and explode out of the hole.
As white flash said, if you are naturally springy it means you are neurologically efficient so adding more strength helps tremendously. Think of it this way if you have 2 athletes both weigh 150 and both squat a legit 300, but athlete A has great efficiency and utilizes 80% of his strength in a CMJ while athlete B isn’t as efficient and can only utilize 70%, who jumps higher? Of course athlete A, athlete B has 2 choices, get stronger or work on his neuromuscular efficiency by training to improve his rate of force development. This is where explosive lifting, plyos and jump training, and sprinting come in to play.
For improving jumping ability, I favor a block style training approach where the athlete switches back and forth between a strength block and power block. In the strength block you focus on getting stronger and possibly adding some size to the drive muscles of the VJ, the glutes, quads, hams, and calves. Then after 3-4 weeks, switch to a power block where neuromuscular training is the goal, ie learn to efficiently use your new strength to drive up your VJ, once your VJ gains slow a bit, switch back to a strength block ect…
A few other considerations, look at your hip mobility. Make sure that you have good flexibility in the front of your hips. Tight hip flexors can inhibit glute function and decrease performance. Keep yourself flexible in your hips. Also, make sure your feet function properly. It’s really common in our era of fancy tennis shoes to see athletes with weak muscles in the bottom of their feet. This can cause major problems including collapsing arches, which internally rotates the knees and puts stress on the the adductors and hip flexors, it also inhibits the abductors and contribute to excessive anterior pelvic tilt. Spend some time training bare foot. Try to also walk around on your fore foot… It also helps to strengthen the muscles in the front of the shins as well.
It’s actually pretty simple: get lean, get flexible/mobile, get strong, and get explosive via neuromuscular training. Everyone should be able to dramatically improve your VJ, if you go about it the right way.
[/quote]
That’s a pretty solid first post man.
[quote]jtrinsey wrote:
…vert is pretty simple. Don’t be fat, get strong as fuck and do a lot of jumping.
[/quote]
Told y’all he knows his shit!
Edit: What’s the db forum?
Used to be focused around the old “DB Hammer” stuff but now is just a collection of people who mostly train for vert or T&F. Kelly posts pretty frequently, as do a couple of other really knowledgeable guys.
Thanks, I’ll check it out.
thanks for all the tips, i have fat to lose for sure, 10k of fat off and i’ll fly!
Ok well today i was messing around on the court before my workout and was able to actually hang from the rim for the first time ever. Thats pretty awesome (for me anyway)
I never do any jumping but started doing powercleans, weighted burpees and some jumping in the gym for fun. I think giving these explosive movements some more work should help me out. I just kinda suck at jumping.
with both feet planted, standing under the rim, I can jump up and snap it. From a run I can get like 2 inches higher lol… I think I just need to practice
.greg.
Thats sweet gregron. I managed to grab the rim last November or so and it felt bad ass
Grabbed it some more time last night after C&J and heavy back squats. I’m sure I’d go higher fresh 
I’ll put in some dedicated jump practice and work towards dunking.
Koing
Thanks a lot Koing. I was pretty pumped about it. I’ve got squat day again today so i think I’ll do more burpees and power cleans to work on my explosiveness… I think if I hit those up on my Squat and Deadlift days I should be able to up my vert a bit. I’ll try a few jumps before and after my workout to see if there’s any difference.
any advice or tips from the vert vets in here?
.greg.
[quote]gregron wrote:
Thanks a lot Koing. I was pretty pumped about it. I’ve got squat day again today so i think I’ll do more burpees and power cleans to work on my explosiveness… I think if I hit those up on my Squat and Deadlift days I should be able to up my vert a bit. I’ll try a few jumps before and after my workout to see if there’s any difference.
any advice or tips from the vert vets in here?
.greg.[/quote]
Greg, not sure how your split is set up but I’d recommend one day focusing on leg strength [squat variations, dead variations, etc…] with a single leg move, a hamstring move and a calf move, and another focusing on a power move [clean variations, snatch variations, etc…] with a different single leg, hammie and calf move. That’s basically how I set my leg days up [when my knees cooperate] and even with bum knees I’m consistently busting 38"+ verts.
Cool thanks flash. I’m currently doing 531. On my squat and DL day i’m doing the powercleans for some explosiveness and on squat day I’ve started doing bulgarian split squats… Today is squats and bulgarian S/Q day so I’ll try setting up my assistance stuff like you suggested.
.greg.
No worries Greg. You could also add in some “lighter” explosive stuff or jumps before your squats as well. Like if you squat Monday and do powercleans from the floor on Thursday you could do some hang snatches or box jumps or something before your squats since your focus is getting more explosive. If you do go that route I’d make the move lighter and more technique focused to really focus on explosion and not tax the lower back so much before your squatting.