Vertical leap
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The vertical leap is the measurement of how high one can jump. However, it is more than just a measurement. It has for long been seen as a direct assessment of ones athletic capabilities, so much so that the NFL initial athletic assessments have been cut down to a single measurement, the vertical leap.
Vertical leap is a power movement, with an extremely fast execution time. Having strong muscles will help to an extent, but more importantly how fast can you get those muscle contracting is the key. This is where you'll see the term plyometrics* being thrown around. Plyometrics simply mean when you have an exercise involving an eccentric muscle contraction (muscle lengthening) followed quickly by a concentric muscle contraction (muscle shortens). This process of contraction lengthening and contract shortening is known as the Stretch Shortening Cycle. The quicker you can get this cycle firing, while exerting the maximum amount of force on the ground, the higher you will jump.
[edit] Records
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The fact that Olympic lifters have the incredibly high vertical leaps is no surprise. It's all about power output, and even though their power to weight may not be great for their verts, here are a few examples:
Mark Henry, 1996 Olympic Team Member (now known as "Sexual Chocolate" on the WWE scene) had quite a vertical jump. At 6 ft 3 inches tall he could dunk a basketball, not to mention that he could squat over 1000 lb and deadlift over 900 lb. Now dunking a basketball at 6 ft 3 in doesn't sound that hard, but take in to account that he weighed at that time 175 kg (385 lb). Now that's impressive for a big guy.
| Snatch | 180 kg |
| Clean and Jerk | 220 kg |
- Note: Plyometrics can be damaging if done incorrectly. As with all physical training make sure you consult your doctor & physician before beginning any type of program.
