In this post I am going to share with you how to increase your vertical jumping power.
I prefer to structure my training in a way that turns you into an athletic beast! Being able to sprint fast, jump high, have a crazy amount of strength, and incredible aesthetics is really cool to me.
I don’t like to structure my training like a bodybuilder. Instead, I want to resemble the image of a Greek God, that can perform 1 arm chin ups, muscle ups, and able to push and pull a ton of weight!
That’s what I wanted to see in the fitness world and one of the main reasons as to why I created Kinobody.
Now with this workout, we are going to focus on two core movements that translate into incredible explosive power for jumping.
Building Explosive Power
The goal with this workout routine is to build sleek, powerful, and explosive legs.
To increase your vertical jump, we must use a moderate weight and focus on exploding up as fast as we can with each and every rep.
The problem that most people create when trying to build power and functional legs is completely trashing their legs each workout.
Grinding out each rep slowly with a heavy weight will build muscle and strength, but will not transfer well over to explosive power.
The point of this workout is to use a challenging weight, but one you can explode up with as quickly as possible.
The cool thing about training this way is that your legs won’t get sore!
They may at first, but after a couple weeks you will leave the gym feeling charged up and ready to split the world in half!
The Workout Routine
This routine is actually very simple, but with weekly progress, your jumping power will go through the roof!
Now remember, the idea is to explode up as fast as possible. We are not training to failure either.
This routine can be done once per week.
Exercise 1 – Front Squats
5 sets of 3 explosive reps.
Start with a light weight and increase the weight each set by about 20 lbs.
Training in this manner will continue to excite your nervous system and build explosive power. Even though the weight is increasing, you will still feel powerful!
For example, in my workout, I did:
Set 1: 135 lbs x 3 reps
Set 2: 155 lbs x 3 reps
Set 3: 175 lbs x 3 reps
Set 4: 195 lbs x 3 reps
Set 5: 215 lbs x 3 reps
Keep in mind, my fifth set of 215 lbs felt challenging, but I was still able to explode up quickly. That is what we are striving for.
Grinding out reps really slowly will not translate over to sprinting faster or jumping higher. These movements take place really fast! Hence, why we are training this way.
This is a great exercise that also works your core and puts more emphasis on the quads.
You can also do back squats, I just prefer to do front squats.
As you are doing this exercise, in between sets you may need to stretch out your hip flexors. For those who sit a lot, you may be tight in this area.
If you are tight there, you will lose explosive power.
In between sets, stretch your hip flexors with a forward lunge on each side.
How to progress on this movement:
Each week, you can add 5 lbs to all your sets. But if you begin to grind out reps, you will want to take off 10 lbs and build yourself back up.
My next workout will look like:
Set 1: 140 lbs x 3 reps
Set 2: 160 lbs x 3 reps
Set 3: 180 lbs x 3 reps
Set 4: 200 lbs x 3 reps
Set 5: 220 lbs x 3 reps
Then after about a month or so, I will begin to use micro loading on each set.
Exercise 2 – Hanging Power Snatches
Three sets of 3 explosive reps.
Stick to a moderate weight and keep it the same for all sets with this exercise.
You don’t need to make this exercise super technical either. Focus on exploding throughout the entire movement.
With traditional training, you are only using explosive power until about 70% to 80% at the top of the movement.
That’s actually the beauty with Olympics lifts. If you are unable to explode with power, you won’t be able to lift the weight.
In my workout, I did:
135 lbs x 3 reps
135 lbs x 3 reps
135 lbs x 3 reps
The traps actually respond very well to this exercise. You will also be building explosive power through the entire range of motion.
How to progress on this movement:
When you feel comfortable, next workout you can increase the weight by 5 lbs. What I also like to do is; try to catch the weight with straighter legs.
The straighter your legs are when you catch the weight, the more powerful you are.
If this workout is done how I described, it will correlate powerfully to your vertical jump.
Another great tip is to start your workout regime with a light weight to get used too.
This will create room for long term progress. It gets difficult to make gains if you push yourself too hard on the first session.
How To Make This Routine More Effective
After performing the workout routine, you can always incorporate some ab and calf training.
Say you do this routine on Wednesday. On Saturday you can go to a local park and practice your vertical jumps on a basketball hoop.
After performing 10-15 jumps, or when you notice your power beginning to decrease, you can finish off with 3 to 4 sprints and call it a day!
Now, progressing on the above two exercises will deliver incredible results on your vertical jump, but it always helps to practice the actual movement as well.
This is also a great way to test your progress!
Last Thoughts
You are going to love the results from this routine. I am actually very excited to start it back up. Before, I hit a 31 inch vertical jump.
After going through this routine again, my goal is to hit a 35 or 36 inch vertical and a running 40 inch vertical.
That will be awesome.
Training this way adds the perfect amount of muscle, incredible power, and will allow your legs to be fully functional.
Having this is freaking awesome! Combine this with incredible strength and aesthetics and your physique will be truly awe inspiring.
