Boost Your Vertical Jump by 5 Inches in 3

Every basketball fan dreams of throwing a dunk at an opponent. It’s a rite of passage in sports – a moment that makes you feel like you’ve really made it. Little kids always ask older players if they can “dunk”. The answer is usually, “I can touch the basket.” Or “I can dunk a tennis ball.” Once an athlete breaks through the “dunk barrier,” creativity explodes – one-handed, two-handed, tomahawk, reverse – the list goes on and on. Everyone dreams of competing in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest, and the iconic 5-foot-7 Spud Webb sparks everyone’s imagination.

In the world of athletic training, all of these dreams became training programs. If you’re going to market something, you have to offer a vertical jump training program. There are many such programs on the market. Kelly Baggett’s program was one of the first to catch my attention – it combines a variety of exercises in a gradual progression. Since then, many more programs have come out, some of which are good, but many of which are terrible. I remember the one put out by Coach Michael Jordan. It may have been effective for Jordan, but for the rest of us? The results are not so obvious. One of the more recent standouts is Joel Smith’s Vertical Basics.

But as time went on, I started seeing some wacky ideas. As I dug deeper, I realized that some of these programs or tools might even hinder progress. Take Power Shoes, for example. I used them in high school. They do work – you definitely gain height and speed – but eventually you hit a bottleneck. Calfs can only get so strong. When you focus too much on the calves, you neglect the glutes and hamstrings. I’ll never forget the first few days I used them. I was young so I decided to run a few miles with them. I was sore for days. In retrospect, it wasn’t a good idea for me. But I digress. Anyway, I did a quick Google search on vertical jump training and was amazed at the results – 44 million results! Of those, “ankle rocker” had 44,000 results, but most of them were about rocking chairs and other unrelated things. Nevertheless, the Ankle Sway has changed the way many athletes compete.

Let me introduce you to two outstanding athletes. The first athlete has had a long journey. He started working with me at a young age, but due to his busy basketball training schedule, he was only able to train intermittently. His biggest challenge was tibial torsion – his lower leg twisted, making it difficult to maintain lateral stability. Without a stable foothold, it was difficult for him to jump effectively. But after a lot of hip training, we finally got him to be able to align his body for a proper vertical jump. At 6’1″, he needs this explosive jump to be noticeable. He had a vertical jump of 24 inches, but by the time he got to college, it had skyrocketed to 36.5 inches.

The second athlete’s situation was easier to fix. He was a natural athlete and excelled at hurdling. We quickly discovered that he had problems with ankle rocker and that he relied too much on his back in the jump. Although his legs were minimally engaged, he could still jump up to 25 inches. After three weeks of ankle training, he was jumping 31 inches and soon after 32.4 inches.

Both of these athletes, as well as many others, have struggled with jumping with their legs. As I described in my Ankle Swing article, if an athlete is unable to bend the ankle, the body compensates by rotating around the hips, which creates the vertical speed needed to jump. Ultimately, the power comes from the arms and spine; the legs simply complete the movement. The real drive must come from the legs. In order to accomplish this, the ankles must bend forward to create space for the hips to drop, allowing the hips, thighs and calves to drive the jump. To train correctly, I designed a training circuit and warmed up before each session. The results have been excellent and many athletes have improved their vertical jumping ability. If you want more tips to improve your performance, explore Maximize Your Potential.

The results have been remarkable. I have had two athletes increase their vertical jump height by 5 inches in just two to three weeks.

Once the athlete has mastered the basic ankle swing and single leg squat, we move on to the next phase of the workout.

1. Ankle Swings

The first exercise has the athlete stand on a springboard in an ankle-swing position. The goal is to keep the torso vertical while allowing the ankles to bend forward. Hold this position for a few moments and then jump off the springboard. It is vital to keep your hands on your hips to ensure an accurate reading from the springboard. We repeat this 4-6 times, adjusting the reps if the jump height continues to improve. In the second set, the athlete will reach a height that cannot be lowered any further. At this point, they will allow their hips to push back until their calves are parallel to their torso. Once in this position, they will jump and then we measure the height again. The result is usually higher. For the third set, we finish with a reverse jump, emphasizing quick, explosive movements. You can also practice this by pulling down hard, holding for a while, and then quickly extending upward without leaving the ground.

2. Stair Climbing

The next exercise is performed on stairs. Athletes start at the bottom and step onto the first step, pushing their calves forward to touch the edge of the next step while maintaining their body position. They then step downward, stretching the calf vertically from the ankle and pushing upward to the big toe. They have to maintain this movement all the way up the stairs. At the top of the movement, be sure to squeeze the glutes hard to maximize power output.

3. MVP Shuttle

The third exercise uses the MVP Shuttle. the athlete lies on their side with their feet directly under their hips. Then squats down, allowing the calves to move forward with a slight bend in the hips. From that position, the athlete performs a single-legged jump, returning to the original position immediately after landing. We start with a lighter weight than the athlete’s bodyweight so they can focus on slowing down the movement and mastering the technique. Once the ankle mechanics are in place, we can gradually increase the weight.

Jump Performance

This is an impressive jump with a height of 38.7 inches. Note the shading in the background for reference.

This is a 40-inch jump with feet turned out and glutes fully worked. Here’s another 40-inch jump using short assists and proper ankle action.

These workouts also significantly improved sprinting performance. Athletes took stronger strides with greater stride length. Often subtle adjustments lead to significant results.


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