So, I'm going to start this round of training over and it will run from today (May 14) through the middle of August. I'm going to be consistent and am going to get that two hand dunk I've been talking about forever!
The best news I have to share with you today is I now have a way to accurately test and measure my vertical. I'm now the proud owner of a Just Jump System! This blows away the homemade vertec I made a few months ago.
I first saw the Just Jump system a couple of years ago in this video below where a guy named Frank Yang shows off his 40 inch no-step vertical. Incredible!
More recently, I've become a big fan of this guy who has made huge gains on his vertical during the last couple of years and uses the Just Jump System. His running vertical is now a very impressive 41"! Check out his latest video below.
I am definitely going to start doing progress videos each week showing where I'm at. I want my no-step vertical to be at least 33" before this phase of training ends.
Stay tuned!
I'm just starting the Jump Manual, and have been checking out your blog for a couple of weeks. What's funny is that I was actually in Vegas for a work convention the same time you were and had to take the week off as well. I'm one week through the program...
ReplyDeleteWow! What industry do you work in? Maybe we were at the same conference!?
DeleteLet me know how your training goes! Post some videos or create a blog. It will help keep you motivated and is fun to share experiences with others with dunking dreams! Good luck!
Hope you don't mind my asking, but did you pay the $500 list price? This tool would be really useful and fun to have in training, and tracking progress; especially understanding how different types of training acutely effect power capacity in the short term and over time(as measured by vertical height). You could test the theory of post-activation potentiation following squat, hang snatch, etc. The possibilities! Anyway, we all look forward to seeing a vid soon!
ReplyDeleteI was able to get it used for way less than the list price. It must have been meant to be. I did a search for "vertical jump" on my local news/classified website and found someone selling it. I couldn't believe it as there is no way I could afford (or justify) spending $500 for this system or a vertec. He was a physical therapist who had been doing athletic training but had decided to just focus on PT. He also sold me an additional set-up that goes with it that allows you to test the 40. So I'm going to be testing my speed as well. I've never had my 40 tested and am very curious what it will be. Pretty cool!
DeleteSounds like you know your stuff -- are you a trainer?
I'm not a trainer, but I read a lot about athletic performance. I played a lot of bball in my 20s, and took a few years off to do endurance sports. Got back into bball back in January (I'm 31 now) since nagging injuries went away from when I used to hoop for hours most days after work.
ReplyDeleteI saw your youtube stuff, and a couple others, and realized that I was wrong and I'm not too old to still reach a high level of explosive athleticism. Basically, I started doing heavy squats 2-3 times per week, along olympic lifts and a few other assistance exercises, and I'm making pretty solid gains.
I used to be able to dunk 10' in my mid 20s. When I started playing again I could barely nip the rim from a running start, but now after 3.5 months I can do a really weak 1 handed running dunk again. My goal is pretty much the same as yours: 2 handed with some power! Basically for me its just a fun hobby that keeps me in shape and goal oriented, and allows me to experiment and figure out how my body responds to different types of training.
Anyway, sorry for the life story, but I just wanted to share, and let you know that your vid's helped me convince myself to go after it again! (This time with so much more available information!!!)
I hope you get a chance to make some progress videos again this time- it was fun to watch your 12 week progression the first time through. Hopefully you can put on another solid 2 or 3 inches in this 4 month block.
Wow! Awesome man! So cool! Congrats on getting your hops back. Age is just a number! So many guys use it as an excuse.
DeleteHow often are you playing hoops now?
Right now I'm hooping between 2 and 3 days per week. I also play tennis once a week usually, so that leaves me a bit sore most of the time. I'd like to play more, of course, but I need to keep focus on my weight room work.
DeleteThat said, I've adapted to squatting heavy 3x per week while doing sports, too. I'm consistently gaining about 10-15lbs per month on my ATG squat, which is my current objective.
have you seen this:
http://www.higher-faster-sports.com/verticaljumpcalculator.html
Its surprisingly accurate, and has helped convince me to streamline my program into squats, olys and light plyos for movement efficiency. (I do some other assistance work, but squats are my primary focus currently)
Anyway, happy training, and keep it up!
yes - i've read tons of kelly baggett's articles. he has lots of great info. that calculator is really cool. it indicates that i have pretty good efficiency as my no-step vert is about 3 inches more than what the calculator estimates based on my weight and max squat (approx 275 lbs).
Deleteto get to a 33" vert, the calculator says i need to get to a squat of 335 which i think is doable in the next few months if i keep training hard and eating right.
post some dunk vids! want to see your hops!
I'm at work and just spent the last 45 mins or so creating a spreadsheet. I know you mentioned you'd send one to anyone interested, but I'm such a geek and so excited to get started on vertical jump training I enjoyed making the spreadsheet. I'd be happy to exchange spreadsheets if you're interested. Although, I should say I'm actually using The Vertical Jump Bible.
ReplyDeleteThose 45 minutes are nothing compared to the time I've spent watching your videos and reading your whole blog. I was surprised to see that not only did I finish reading it, it's also up to date! I thought for sure you would have stopped a long time ago!
Anyway, you've inspired me just as you've inspired others. I'm going to track my progress on paper and whenever possible by video. I don't have regular access to a basketball hoop and my gym is not good for sprints or anything involving moving yards in a set and I'm still going to find a way to dunk something, anything, on a 10-ft rim...even if it's just an orange at first.
You've also re-energized my will to blog about my fitness and progress. At 30 going on 31 I couldn't have dreamed of this goal even 2 years ago. It's time to make dreams into goals and goals into reality.
Thanks and keep us updated!
Wow! Very cool man! Thanks for your comments. I love hearing that others are chasing their goals and that my blog and experiences have provided some inspiration.
DeleteI will definitely check out your blog and be following your progress closely! Best of luck to you! Work hard, be consistent, and you will be amazed at your results.