subject: Top Exercises to Increase Your Vertical [print this page] With the overload of information out there, how can you be sure which are the best exercises to increase your vertical? I was in your situation not too long ago where my vertical leap was horrible and I could barely touch the rim. I found a program that worked really well and within about 2 months I was able to dunk. It took a lot of hard work but it finally paid off the day I dunked on one of my buddies. So I'm gonna share with you some of the exercises that I used to finally increase my vertical and start dunking on people.
First off, there are two different types of exercises to increase your vertical that you will be doing with this program. Plyometrics, and your normal leg workouts such as squats, deadlifts, etc. Before starting on any of these exercises, make sure you warm up and stretch out really good so you don't injure yourself.
Here are the plyometric exercises:
1. Squat jumps (3 x 10): Stand with your feet a little wider than shoulder width apart and squat down like you normally would when performing barbell squats. Once you get to about 90 degrees or to where your thighs are parallel to the ground, explode up as high as you can and land on the balls of your feet. As soon as you land, perform another rep quickly and explosively.
2. One-leg squat jumps (3 x 10): Same as regular squat jumps but you will be doing these with 1 leg only. It may take some time to build up your balance so start slow and build yourself up.
3. Box Jumps (2 x 10): Setup 3 boxes, benches, or anything stable that you can jump onto. Preferably have them start shorter and increase in height. Perform a squat jump and land onto the first box. Drop off the box (don't jump, let yourself fall) and immediately explode onto the second box. Do the same for the 3rd box. That would be 1 total rep so you want to go through that 10 times and then rest and then do 1 more set of 10.
4. Lateral Jumps (3 x 10): These can be done with two legs or just one. I usually switch it up. Setup a bench or any longer object that you can jump over. Stand next to the bench and you want to jump sideways and explode up and over to the other side. Right when you land, explode up and back over again.
Those are my favorite plyometric exercises to increase your vertical. Feel free to add your own variations to them to switch things up. I like to perform them 2-3 times a week.
Next I will cover the more conventional exercises that you should be performing.
1. Squats (4 x 5-6): This is said to be the king of all exercises and it's obvious why. Doing squats builds up muscles in your entire lower body and it also strengthens your back, shoulders, and abs. No other exercise gives you as much bang for your buck as this one. When training to increase your vertical, perform heavier squats and explode up like you're trying to push through the floor.
2. Straight-leg deadlifts (4 x 5-6): Deadlifts are also great for the entire body but doing them with your legs straight really puts the focus on your hamstrings which is where you want it. The key is to start with a lighter weight and keep your back straight while lowering the bar towards the ground. Keep the bar close to your body at all times. A good way to think of it is that you're doing a hamstring stretch where you touch your toes but you're holding a bar with weight at the same time. Only go down until you feel a nice stretch and then explode up.
3. Calf raises (4 x 15-20): Building up strong calf muscles will directly result in you being able to jump higher and run faster. There are many ways to do calf raises such as on a leg press machine or on a standing calf raise machine. You could also stand at the edge of a bench or platform and have your heels hanging off the edge and just press down with your toes. I like to do higher reps with these to really feel the burn.
4. Hamstring curls (3 x 10-12): Hamstrings are another muscle that builds explosiveness in your legs so it's important to work them out efficiently. Stick with a moderate weight and try to get 10-12 reps. You can also do some variations where you do one leg at a time.
Those are my top 8 exercises to increase your vertical. If you follow that routine or something similar, you will start to see results before you know it. Also make sure you're eating the proper diet and giving yourself plenty of time to rest and recover. I like to workout 4 days a week and take 3 days off to completely rejuvenate myself.
If you want to learn more exercises to increase your vertical and get the full workout routine that I used, visit my site by clicking here. This routine was developed by a trainer who has helped many college, NBA, and Olympic athletes increase their vertical. Check it out here: http://increase-vertical-leap.info
