How to Jump Higher - Two Secret Tips To Improve Your Vertical

Hey, it seems everyone is trying to jump higher these days. Maybe we should blame Nate Robinson. They way he dunked on Dwight Howard during the 2009 NBA Dunk Contest made everyone want to learn how to dunk. He knows how to jump higher than anyone his size. And he showed you don’t have to be 7 feet tall to dunk a basketball.

But how can you increase your vertical? Well, most people know about basic strength training. Bigger, stronger legs help you jump higher. To get stronger legs, you need to work particular areas of your legs to build the jumping muscles: quads, calves, and hamstring. Simple squats, lunges, and toe raises can build up your leg muscles. Leg strenght is key if you want to jump higher.

You might have also seen some jumping exercises to increase your vertical. If you've done your research, you might have come across plyometrics.

Plyometrics are jumping exercises designed to target your jumping muscles by simulating the real jumping motion that you'd find in a basketball game or other sport. Box jumps, side box jumps, stair jumps, jumping rope...all these exercises help you increase your vertical leap. By training to jump like you would in a basketball game, you can jump higher when you need to in a game.

Is there anything else? Well most people ignore stretching. Stretching can add real inches (3-5 inches, depending on where you start). But most of us know how to stretch. If you don’t, try these simple exercises: touch your toes, sprinters stretch, and the butterfly stretch. All will help you gain flexibility which directly improves your vertical leap and help you jump higher.

But I came across a few other secret tips to jumping higher that take only a few minutes to do and can produce immediate results.

Secret 1 -- Use your arms
Swinging your arms in a forceful, upward motion when you jump will add inches to your vertical. You need to practice throwing your arms skyward when you jump. Make sure to time the throwing up of your arms with when you jump. The goal is to reach as high as you can and use the force of your arms to “lift” you to jump higher. Sound weird? Well, sprinters build up their upper bodies to run faster. Look at Michael Johnson, the gold medal sprinter from 2000. You can use your arms to increase your vertical in basketball.

Secret 2 -- "See" the results
Visualization is a powerful tool for improving your vertical leap. Close your eyes and see yourself (visualize) touching a spot on the backboard or wall. Really concentrate on your technique and how you are going to reach that spot. Think about our muscles getting stronger, your body getting lighter, and your body jumping higher. Tell yourself that you are lighter. Tell yourself that you are stronger. Tell yourself that you are going to jump higher. Say it out loud to reinforce it, "I am going to jump higher." Now open your eyes and try it. You'll find that just visualizing jumping higher will increase your vertical leap.

Use these secrets, in combination with a good jumping program, to help you increase your vertical and jump higher.

See you at the rim!