subject: Explosive Strength And Vertical Leap [print this page] Rate of force development and strength are the two parts of the equation that determine explosiveness. Your vertical jump as of right now is a byproduct of these two factors. In order to increase your vertical, one or both will need to be enhanced.
We all know that strength is important for athletic performance. Let's face it, it doesn't require a high IQ to know that possessing the right kind of strength, especially in the legs, will help you jump higher. Those who haven't undergone any weight training yet in their life have tremendous growth potential in this area.
Increasing your strength alone will result in adding some inches to you vertical. If you did nothing but do weight training, you will ultimately be able to jump higher. The issue however is that building strength alone has its limits. Put another way, your vertical can only be improved so much through strength gains. Rate of force development is the other element that must be enhanced in order to keep progressing.
Explosion doesn't just involve how strong you are. Otherwise, the strongest men in the world would have 50 inch vertical leaps. Rate of force development refers to how quickly you are able to use your strength.
Those with the highest vertical leaps are often the quickest off the floor as well. If this is one area that you feel needs improvement, then that's where your primary focus should go.
Any good vertical jump program is going to include plyometrics, and there's a reason for it. They help develop the rate of force development because it trains fast twitch muscles, which is what we use when jumping.
Long distance runners have very poor vertical leaps because they train for endurance. Endurance is the enemy of vertical jump training, as it represents the opposite end of the spectrum compared to explosion.
If you want to be explosive, then your training must reflect it. Doing squats in a slow, methodical manner is encouraged for beginners who are lacking strength. Over time however, you must perform the exercises at a much more rapid pace. This is how one becomes more explosive.
When this happens, you will be an explosive jumper. So instead of doing a squat and a moderate tempo, go faster. Drop down quicker into the squat, and extend up quicker.
Plyometrics are very effective for this reason. They consist of quick, explosive movements that work fast twitch muscles.
No more than 8 repetitions should be done for any weight training exercise, otherwise you risk developing endurance.
