Improving My Jump

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[JSnyder517]

I'm not tall or especially fast, so I want to offset that by improving my jumping ability. However, I have bad knees. When I play I wear knee braces and feel fine, but generally they seem to get in the way of working out. That in mind, what are some techniques I can use to improve my jumps without ruining my knees?

[kryptonick]

I haven't thought about this too long, but jumping is the act of applying power in a downwards direction, from your legs. Power is Speed x Strength.

So really you need to increase the strength of your legs, the "speed" of your legs, or both. If you have any extra weight then losing this will also help.

By speed, I don't mean running ability I mean fast twitch muscle fibres.

I don't know a huge amount about protecting the knees to be honest, but google something called the "vertical jump bible" and you should get alot of information on how to increase the jump, just try the parts of the guide that don't seem to stress the knees too much. I'd imagine plyometrics aren't something you'd be comfortable with due to the problem with the knees, so perhaps weight loss (if possible) is the way to go.

Remember that jumping is about power, and so having really strong legs that can squat loads of weight is not always better than weak muscles that can apply 100% of there force over a short period of time.

[rrudnic]

Jump Rope

[chargeorge]

Man, the website for the Vertical Bible is sketchy as hell.  It's like the ghost of Billy Mays in the machine. Can anyone vouch for those programs from personal experience?  I'd love to do something like that over the coming winter. 

@ the OP, If you've got rough knees, focusing on vert may be the wrong idea.  But if you do want to, I'd suggest doing a lot of leg strengthening around the knee first, you want a ton of shock absorbers there before doing anything that will stress the knee like Plyometrics, squats, or cleans. 

After doing research, build a program and take it to a sports medicine Dr. or physical therapist and let them run a line item veto over elements of it, or make regular appoitments to check the strength of the leg and slowly introduce more exercises. 

[kryptonick]

It does look dodgy I admit, and I wouldn't pay for information that is readily available for free (I'm sure the VJB info can be sourced else where, such as in a local library. It's probably easy to download the information for free too, not that I'd recommend such action of course) But I have heard a lot of good things about it, from basketball forums and from a few members on my basketball team.

[JSnyder517]

Chargeorge, what would you suggest focusing on rather than my vert?

As for losing weight, I don't have more than maybe five pounds to lose.

Whether or not the vertical jump bible is safe and effective, I have no money, so that's not really an option.

[JoshuaPark]

As far as exceptional jumping goes there is a lot in technique that can get you to the disc. Before jumping the ability to get timing down is extremely crucial. This is a skill that many ultimate players don't specifically practice so this could definitely give you an edge if mastered. After that, when jumping think about how you jump. With bad knees focus on the upward thrust of the opposite leg to propel you. And think about how to transfer your running momentum in an upward direction (versus stopping to jump). The ability to transfer your momentum in a vertical direction is an excellent way to get more height without stressing your joints. If you can make sense of this I hope it helps.

Also watch other athletes who jump well and study their body movement. The best rarely have any straining movement in their knees.

[JSnyder517]

Could you give more detail on practicing timing and transferring momentum? Those both sound like really worthwhile things to practice.

[lks]

I too have horrible knees and wear braces, and I am also a physical therapist.  You sound like your pain is getting in the way of training, and in order to jump higher, you do need to train more.  First question then, is what is wrong with your knees?  have you had surgeries, do you know what the cause of your pain is or have you chalked it up to tendonitis like everyone else??  Prevention and treatment of your pain will help manage it so that you can either a) relieve it, or b) push through it if you know you're not damaging your knees.  With jumping you're looking to gain POWER in three main muscle groups (although it is certainly a full body manuever)- Glutes, quads and gastrocsoleus (calves).  Work these three seperately but also together- squats and lunges, box jumps, plyos for the stretch reflex.  The main thing with all of these is technique- if you do them right your knee pain should not stop you from training. So keep your chest high, hinge at the hip and put your butt back, weight on the heels, shoulder width or slightly greater, toes slightly out.  Move through your full range- deeper squats activate different parts of the muscle.  Your knee should stay in line with the second toe but never go out in front of it.  From the bottom you're looking to explode up, and from there you can add heel raises, tuck jumps, star jumps, skips, weight/ball tosses, etc.  Using tabata type workouts (reps for 20 sec, rest for 10, 8 rounds.) will help you learn to actually pull your body into the squat which will get you even more power on the upside, as well as train you into fast twitch muscle fibers.  if the pain is the main thing stopping you get into a manual physical therapist- you know how to exercise- you may need neuro re education or tissue work done.  it can do wonders.

[JoshuaPark]

By timing, I simply meant being able to time your jump to the location of the disc at the optimal moment so that you're at the peak of your jump the moment the disc reaches your hand. I don't think you can train for this in any other way than just doing it over and over. Just have a friend throw you high passes that you have to jump for until you can read the disc and time your jumps right. I've seen short people get over huge basketball players just by timing their jumps better.

Transferring Momentum: Typically, I've seen a lot of low jumpers run up to whatever their jumping at, stop, then jump. Second, sometimes people try to use their running momentum in jumping by taking a significantly long stride. That's not far from what you need to do to utilize your momentum best, but instead of taking a long stride you want to lower yourself to the ground just before jumping taking and stride upwards instead of out. Use your lower back (always keeping your back straight) and your arms to help project in the right direction. This sounds rediculous, and I don't know if I could ever explain this very well. My best advice is to watch someone do it.

Hope this helps.

[JSnyder517]

Thanks for all the advice!

Iks, I do have tendonitis (diagnosed by a physical therapist/trainer) and have had no surgeries.

[evanhp]

By timing, I simply meant being able to time your jump to the location of the disc at the optimal moment so that you're at the peak of your jump the moment the disc reaches your hand. I don't think you can train for this in any other way than just doing it over and over. Just have a friend throw you high passes that you have to jump for until you can read the disc and time your jumps right. I've seen short people get over huge basketball players just by timing their jumps better.

Transferring Momentum: Typically, I've seen a lot of low jumpers run up to whatever their jumping at, stop, then jump. Second, sometimes people try to use their running momentum in jumping by taking a significantly long stride. That's not far from what you need to do to utilize your momentum best, but instead of taking a long stride you want to lower yourself to the ground just before jumping taking and stride upwards instead of out. Use your lower back (always keeping your back straight) and your arms to help project in the right direction. This sounds rediculous, and I don't know if I could ever explain this very well. My best advice is to watch someone do it.

Hope this helps.

i really appreciate this post, you def. sound like you know what you are talking about, please feel free to post more often thanks

[Morgan]

I'll second the jump rope recommendation. I can't say for sure because I do other stuff also, but I think jumping rope has added a good couple inches to my vertical in the last few months. Try alternating single and double unders. It's a bit like box jump plyos (box jumps are also god for boosting vertical).

[Ben-I]

I too have been trying to improve my vertical, mainly because I am incredibly short (we're talking 5'6"-5'7" here). I have a digital copy of the Vertical Jump Bible I could send you if you'd like. I just started the program on friday, so I will definitely report back if it helps.

[Vano]

I too have been trying to improve my vertical, mainly because I am incredibly short (we're talking 5'6"-5'7" here). I have a digital copy of the Vertical Jump Bible I could send you if you'd like. I just started the program on friday, so I will definitely report back if it helps.

Can you send this to me too? Email is ivan_vano13@yahoo.com