Merry Christmas!

Wow! I did it! I still got in all of my workouts this week! I didn't measure my vertical, but I did get in all of my weightlifting! I'm going to mix it up a little bit and switch through some different exercices to add some variety to my program:

• Box squats: 305 pounds for 3 reps (bench set at parallel)
• Incline bench press: 215 pounds for 3 reps
• Romanian Deadlifts: 155 pounds for 3 sets of 6 reps (this feels light; I can definitely do a lot more)
• Barbell rows: 215 pounds for 3 sets of 5 reps each
• Military press: 135 pounds for 3 sets of 5 reps
• Dynamic effort box squats: 195 pounds for 10 sets of 2 reps each.
• Dynamic effort bench press: 150 pounds for 8 sets of 3 reps each
• Power cleans: 175 pounds for 3 reps. I really need to work on this exercise. My form is poor and I'm not truly exploding through the lift. My goal is to get to 225 pounds in the next 2 months and then to get to 250 pounds.

I also mixed in some close-grip bench presses, dumbbell presses, dumbbell rows, dumbbell swings, and tricep presses. When I played ball on Wednesday, I was moving well, jumping well, running well, and my legs didn't hurt!
I hope you all have a happy and safe New Year.

Week 14

This week didn't start off well. The time for my Monday rec league basketball game was changed and I didn't know about it. The game was moved up and hour and I ended up showing up with a few minutes left to play. One of our other players also didn't know about the change and showed up at halftime. We ended up having only 4 players in the first half, one of whom was one of our teenage sons, and lost the game by 15 points. It was so frustrating because I really look forward to these games and both of my sons came with me to watch me play. We could've beaten this team with a full roster. Hopefully, we'll meet them in the tournament so that we have another chance at them.

Also, the team we ended up playing against beat us last year. They have one player in particular who pushed us around. He's a nice guy, but he is a physical player on the court. This may sound psychotic, but on those days when I faced more weight than I thought I could handle on the bench press or squat, I thought of that guy and how I didn't want to get pushed around again. This thought helped motivate me push through some of my strength plateaus. After all of that work and progress in the weight room, I didn't even get to play against the guy.

Well, this week was busy with work and other activities, so I wasn't able to get in all of my workouts. I'll let you know how next week goes.

Happy Holidays!!!!

Week 13

I had a rec league game on Monday and we won 82-46. The other team was composed of a bunch of 18 year-old kids. It was funny to see some of our children in the stands who are almost as old as the kids we were playing against.
One of the rims was bent so that the front was 1-1.5 inches low. According to my wife, I was able to get my hand over the rim up to the wrist with a running two-foot jump. I bounced the ball off the floor a few times to myself but was not able to put it down; my attempts all bounced off the back of the rim. Similar to my video of my bench press max, my wife was laughing at me during these dunk attempts. She thinks its adorable how I'm trying so hard to get back to dunking :-)

Here are my best measurements/lifts this week:
Standing vertical: When I measured on Wednesday, it was an inch less than last week. Tired legs, sore knees.
One-step vertical:Again, when I measured on Wednesday, it was an inch less than last week.
Running two-foot vertical: 32 inches, or there about, on Monday after my game. 
Box squats (I thought I'd switch it up a little): 280 pounds x 5 reps (the bench was set so that I went down to parallel. I think I could've put up more).
Hexbar deadlift: 285 pounds x 3 reps
Bench press: 240 pounds x 3 reps.
Barbell rows: 240 pounds x 3 reps
Jerk: I've stalled on my overhead press, so I'm going to try this olympic lift to help me gain more overall explosive power and to help overcome this plateau. I did 145 pounds x 5 reps for my best set.

I need to stretch more and definitely need to do more foam rolling. I really want to stay away from injuries this year. 

Week 12 - with PRs

I switched it up a bit and decided to test my PR on a few lifts. Here are my results this week:

• Standing vertical: 1 inch improvement.
• One-step improvement: 1 inch improvement

• Squat: 340 pounds x 1 rep. I only have a total of 340 pounds of weight at my house so I don't know if I could do more. As is, my form broke down on the way up with my hips starting to rise faster than my shoulders.

• Deadlift: 340 pounds x 1 rep. Again, I only have a total of 340 pounds of weight at my house so I don't know if I could do more.

• Bench Press: 265 pounds x 1 rep!!! I am now as strong as my 62 year-old uncle. At the end of the video, you hear my wife laughing at me because of all the grunting I did during the lift.

• Overhead Press: I put up 165 pounds, no problem, but missed 185 pounds. I'm pretty sure I could put up 175 pounds, but I jumped ahead instead of trying that weight this week.

Week 11

I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving! For those of you reading this in other countries, I hope your week has gone well.

I stuck to my plan last week and didn't perform any more jump or upper body training. I did play basketball one other time (just pick-up games) and participated in a "turkey bowl" Thanksgiving morning. I spent time icing my knees (1-2 times a day for 20 minutes each time) and took ibuprofen per the manufacturer's recommendations. My knees now feel great, I feel invigorated, and I am so anxious to get back to training this week. The time off appears to be exactly what my body and mind needed.

There will be some weeks when I won't have a rec league basketball game because of holidays or holes in the schedule. On those weeks, I will perform the Jump Manual program as written. On those weeks that I have a game or possibly more than one game (I will start a second rec league in January), I will perform an abbreviated Jump Manual program. I will combine the training days into one day and will drop some of the exercises. On these weeks, I will also perform only one upper-body day.

This week, here are my vertical jump measurements:

• Standing vertical: No change
• One-step: 1 inch improvement when reaching with two hands

Weightlifting (best sets):

• Squats: 280 pounds for 4 reps. My legs were tight and tired that day.
• Hexbar Deadlifts: 280 pounds for 5 reps
• Bench Press: 230 pounds for 5 reps
• Overhead Press: 170 pounds for 2 reps. This is the second week in a row that I wasn't able to hit my goal for this exercise. Next week, I'll drop back to 155 or 160 pounds and keep adding 5 pounds per week.

Week 10

I started a rec basketball league on Monday evening. We won by 17 points over a team of 20 year-olds (always nice) and my legs were feeling great. After the game, I got my hand about 6 inches over the rim, which is a 30 inch jump on a one-step approach. The next day I started the plyo day for the Jump Manual and my legs still felt great as I ran the sprints; I felt like I ran them faster than I had up until that point. After that, however, my legs were done; I didn't have the energy to even get up and touch the rim. I dropped the remainder of the workout and tried lifting for my upper-body instead, but I struggled with that, too.
So, for the week of Thanksgiving, I'm giving my body a rest. I'll pick it up again next week and see if I can't get in a full week's worth of training.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Video Summary

I finally entered the 21st century and learned how to upload my videos to YouTube.

Here are my lifts this past week:

• Bench Press: 225 pounds for 5 reps

• Overhead Press: 165 pounds for 5 reps

• Squats: 270 pounds for 5 reps. Going below parallel each time.

• Hexbar Deadlifts: 265 pounds for 5 reps. I'm hoping to make this my heaviest lift in the next couple of weeks.

Here are my vertical jump attempts over the past weeks. These aren't necessarily my best jumps each week; they're just the attempts that got on video. It seems lower, but I promise that I've measured this rim a bunch of times: it's 9'10" in height.

Week 3

Week 5

 

 

Week 8

 

 

 

 

 

Week 9

Here are my best lifts for the week:

• Squats: 270 pounds for 5 reps - still going slightly below parallel. I felt like I exploded out of the hole better than the past 2 weeks.
• Hexbar Deadlifts: 265 pounds x 5 reps. I handled this weight better than lower weights the past few weeks. I think I've found my groove for this exercise.
• Bench Press: 225 pounds for 5 reps
• Barbell Rows: 225 pounds for 5 reps
• Overhead Press: 165 pounds for 5 reps - I was especially proud of this one. Next to squats, this is the exercise that I want to improve on the most.

I am starting a rec basketball league this next week and may have some weeks where I don't get in all of my exercise days. We'll see what happens.

Summary: Beginning of week 9

This is week 9 of the program, but only week 5 since I've gone to using only the Jump Manual  and not altering the weightlifting portion of the program. Here's a summary of where I'm at:

Beginning: 9/11/2012
Height: 6' 1/2"
Standing reach (with shoes): 8'
Weight: 205 lbs
Body fat%: I'd rather not know
Standing vertical: 23"
One-step vetical: 25"
Running two-foot vertical: 28"
Squats: 225 pounds x 5 reps
Bench Press: 180 pounds x 5 reps
Overhead Press: 135 pounds x 5 reps
Deadlift: 255 pounds x 5 reps

Current: 11/10/2012
Height: 6' 1/2" (sadly, this has not increased :-) )
Standing reach (with shoes): 8'
Weight: 215 pounds
Body fat%: I'd still rather not know
Standing vertical: 26"
One-step vertical: 29"
Running two-foot vertical: 30"
Squats: 265 pounds x 5 reps
Bench Press: 220 pounds x 5 reps
Overhead Press: 160 pounds x 5 reps
Hexbar Deadlift: 255 pounds x 5 reps

Goals for end of week 12:
Standing vertical: 28"
One-step vetical:  30"
Running two-foot vertical: 33"
Squats: 285 pounds x 5 reps
Bench Press: 240 pounds x 5 reps
Overhead Press: 175 pounds x 5 reps
Deadlift: 295 pounds x 5 reps

Goals for end of week 16:
Standing vertical: 30"
One-step vetical:  32"
Running two-foot vertical: 36"
Squats: 315 pounds x 5 reps
Bench Press: 255 pounds x 5 reps
Overhead Press: 190 pounds x 5 reps
Deadlift: 325 pounds x 5 reps

These goals may seem unrealistic, but keep in mind that I started light on all weightlifting exercises. Even if I don't meet my weightlifting goals, the "push" will get me to all-time PR's on every lift.

Week 8

Here are the improvements in my vertical jump measurements:

• Standing vertical: 1/2 to 1". That's two weeks in a row that I've seen an improvement in my standing vertical after not having any improvement for several weeks in a row.
• One-step vertical: Maybe 1/2" and my jump felt smoother and more powerful.
• Running vertical: Will measure on Wednesday when I'm playing basketball.

I've discovered that I can't perform all of the exercises listed in the Jump Manual. I can't perform lunge jumps: My knees can't take it. After performing lunge jumps, my performance in the remaining exercises for the day suffers as I have slow movements. After the workout, my knees ache and it takes a couple of days for the pain to go away. I tried changing my technique after reviewing some books and videos, but my knees still hurt with this exercise. So, I'm going to cut it out altogether. I may not replace it with another exercise, but I am thinking of doing box squats instead.

My best lifts for the week:

• Squats: 265 pounds for 5 reps
• Hexbar Deadlift: 255 pounds for 5 reps
• Bench Press: 220 pounds for 5 reps. The last rep was tough.
• Barbell rows: 220 pounds for 5 reps.
• Overhead press: 160 pounds for 5 reps

What I discovered about my squats the past 3 weeks:

• I tried a little wider stance and have been lifting barefoot; these changes were based on some of my readings. Today, I went back to the athletic stance that I described in week 3 and to wearing shoes. The shoes that I wear have a heel that is slightly elevated and this helps my feel better balanced and stronger coming out of the hole. My knees felt great after performing squats this week.

Week 7

At the beginning of this week, I was amazed at the improvement in my one-step vertical. My improvements on my vertical measurements on Monday:

• Standing vertical: Maybe 1/2"
• One-step vertical: Close to 1.5", I really felt like I was exploding towards the rim with a whole lot more force.
• Running vertical: 1". I still feel clumsy and stiff with my approach. When I tried a one-foot takeoff, my knee buckled so I really need to work on my one-foot technique.

No basketball this week because of work and Halloween.

I just weighed myself yesterday. My weight, while wearing a polo shirt, slacks, and Doc Martin dress shoes, is:  220 pounds! I'm not trying to put on weight but it just keeps piling on. However, I am still increasing my vertical and feeling quicker and faster.

Weightlifting:

• Squats: best set was 260 pounds for 5 reps
• Hexbar deadlifts: best set was 245 pounds for 5 reps (I'm still working up slowly on these)
• Bench press: best set was 215 pounds for 5 reps
• Barbell rows: best set was 215 pounds for 5 reps
• Overhead press: best set was 160 pounds for 5 reps

I was on vacation all of last week and was able to get in two modified routines where I did some pushups, inverted pushups, lunge jumps, and depth jumps.

At the beginning of this week, my measurements were:

• Standing vertical jump: Increase of about 1" (I haven't had an increase in this measurement in a while)
• One-step vertical: Maybe 1"
• Running approach: Maybe 1"

When I played basketball on Wednesday, I noticed a definite improvement in my standing and one-step verticals. However, I was dealing with bronchitis and could hardly breathe running up and down the floor.

For weights this week, I did fairly well:

• Squats: 255 punds for 2 sets of 5, 265 pounds for one set of 3. For the last 2 sets where the weight is moved in slow and controlled manner, I had 225 pounds on the bar for the 4th set and then 225, 205, 185 for the fifth set.
• Deadlift: I switched to the hexbar for deadfilts and liked the feeling of that movement better than when I used the standard olympic bar.  I used only 225 pounds, which felt light, and I feel like I will be able to make a large jump in the wieght used this next week.
• Bench Press: I got up 215 punds for 3 reps and it wasn't difficult. What I am doing on Tuesdays is 4 sets of five using a ladder set-up where I increase the weight up to the last set. On Friday, I use the same weight for the first three sets that I used on Tuesday and than will increase the last set by 5 pounds and will perform 3 reps. for example.
• Tuesday: 130, 155, 180, 210 pounds for 5 reps each set
• Friday: 130, 155, 180 pounds for 5 reps each set; 215 pounds for 3 reps
• The following Tuesday, I will add 5 pounds to each set and will follow the same progression from Tuesday to Friday.
• Barbell rows: The exact same set-rep scheme and poundage used for bench press.
• Overhead press: I used the same set-rep scheme as I did for the bench press and barbell rows:
• Tuesday: 90, 115, 130, 150 pounds for sets of 5 reps
• Friday: 90, 115, 130 pounds for sets of 5 reps; 155 pounds for 3 reps.

 

Week 5

Midweek last week, a played basketball and felt like I could move around the court more easily than I could a couple of weeks ago when I last played. I was also running faster without any pain in my legs.

At the beginning of this week, here are my measurements:

• Standing vertical: No change
• One-step approach: 1" increase from last week
• Running vertical: 1" increase from last week

I have been combining the Madcow program from www.stronglifts.com with the Jump Manual. Starting this week, however, I will start following the Jump Manual to a "t".

Because of my schedule this week, I had to make a few adjustments to my training schedule; both the plyo day and weightlifting days were cut short and I didn't get in one of my upper body days.

Beginning of Week 4

Last week was busy with my work schedule and kids' activities. I was able to get in all of the workouts and even set a PR on the overhead press by putting up 145 lbs for 3 sets of 5 reps. About midweek, I was almost able to get my entire hand above the rim with a one-step, two-foot takeoff. However, I am still struggling with my approach off of a run; I am still losing a lot of momentum as I transition from horizontal to vertical movement.

Here are some thoughts on squats:

• I hurt my hip a few years back trying to go heavy on squats while using a powerlifters stance: Feet placed a lot wider than shoulder width. In my experience, and even if I have to use less weight,  a squat from an athletic stance or power position (see last weeks post) provides more stability for the knees and hips. Of course, I am squatting without a coach who could help me make corrections. However, a lot of squat programs that are focused on athletic performance recommend the athletic stance as it has a greater transfer of strength to athletic competition like basketball.

My measurements at the beginning of the week:

Standing vertical: No change
One-step approach: No change
Running approach: No change
Squats: On one of my sets, I put up 265 lbs. for 5 reps, but my right knee buckled on the last rep. My knee feels fine, but I'm going to be more careful with the amount of weight I use this week.
Bench Press: I put up 200 pounds on one of my sets of 5 reps.

My jumping form still needs a lot of work.

Beginning of Week 3

I measured my vertical on Monday and got about 1-1.5 inches higher on my standing vertical and the same on my one-step approach. My running vertical was about the same; my technique on this approach is terrible. On the video, I look hesitant and I lose a lot of momentum on my take-off. I'll post these vidoes later as a compilation.

Some more thoughts on squats:
        Some of the best advice I've received regarding squats came from www.biggerfasterstronger.com . Under the archives section, type in "squats" in the search field and read all of the articles titled "Squat Correctly". The best advice from these articles had to do with the power position and establishing this before every set of squats. What you do is, without any weight on your shoulders, squat down to parallel, shift your feet until you have a strong and solid base, and then stand up. At this point, look at your feet and that is how your feet should be positioned while you squat.

I was up to 255 lbs for a set of 5 when I squatted earlier this week. I had 195 lbs on the bench press and got up 2 sets of 5, but only put up 4 reps on the third set.

Overall, I am feeling good about my progress.

My legs were incredibly tired last night when I played basketball. My knees weren't hurting, but jumping took a lot of effort. I'm trying not to get discouraged, but I am considering cutting back my training volume on the Jump Manual. Other programs, like the Science of Jumping and Jumpsoles, have you start out with lower training volumes with a gradual increase as your body adapts to the stress. I'll probably cut the number of sets in half and add back a set every 2-3 weeks. Part of me doesn't want to do this since, in a way, it seems like I don't want to work as hard. Of course, this is the same attitude that got me injured the past two basketball seasons (all of my injuries were related to overuse).

Here's my progress with my squats: I'm up to 245 pounds on my sets and feel like I could do much more. However, I am sticking with the plan to slowly increase the weight because of my knees. According to the plan I have in place, and if I don't stall, I should be able to put 315 pounds on the bar for a set of 5 at the end of these 12 weeks. That will be my goal, but I will deload by 10% when I can't complete a full set. This is a basic training philosophy taught by many trainers, including Pavel Tsatsouline who authored Power to the People. A deload helps the body recover, continue to gain strength, and, hopefully, break through the plateau that had just been reached.

I blog again in a week or so and let you know how the decrease in training load effects my progress.

This past week of training brought some positives along with some frustrations:

• I was able to perform depth jumps without knee pain. The last time I attempted this exercise was over 6 months ago. Out of all of the jumping exercises, this is by far my favorite. Those times in my life when my vertical was at its highest, I was performing either squats or deadlifts along with depth jumps; depth jumps were always part of the equation.  
• My squats are coming along nicely. I am anxious to get 300 pounds on my sets.
• My vertical measurements at the beginning of this week were, well, weak. I was tired from work and just couldn't seem to get warmed up no matter what I did. I am playing basketball tonight, so I'll re-measure my vertical after playing a couple of games.
• I was pretty sore after weightlifting on Monday, but I feel great today. Hopefully, I can complete the remainder of my workouts this week.

I've had bad knees in the past, and here are some thoughts I've had regarding squats and how to protect your knees:

• Always squat. Even if you have to use an empty bar because of lack of experience, injury, weakness, or sore joints, keep squatting. My knees have always benefitted from it.
• Go slightly below parallel.
• Squeeze the glutes to activate the hips and to not put too much stress on the knees.
• you need to feel tension, or a stretch, in the hamstrings at the bottom of the movement.
• Keep your weight on your heels throughout the entire movement.

I'll let you know how the rest of the week goes.

Yesterday, I measured my vertical leap. I performed day 1 of the Jump Manual the day before, but my legs felt good yesterday so I performed the measurements on my driveway basketball hoop. Let's just say, I have some work to do:

Height: 6' 1/2"
Standing reach (with shoes): 8'
Weight: 205 lbs
Boday fat%: I'd rather not know
Standing vertical: 23"
One-step vetical: 25"
Running two-foot vertical: 28"

A few specifics to work on:

1. I probably didn't warm-up as well as I should have. I used a homemade foamroller (an old, slightly deflated basketball) but didn't stretch.
2. After reviewing the video, I noticed that I was too stiff and hesitant. I think I'm afraid of my knees aching when I'm done. A good warm-up and cool-down should help with this.
3. I need better arm swing. 

We'll see by how much my jump improves next week. I'll review the Jump Higher in 45 download that Jacob Hiller published and, hopefully, better form alone will result in a few extra inches on my vertical.

This is my first attempt at blogging. I've been reading the blogs placed on myjumpmanual.blogspot.com and have enjoyed watching his progress as he's pursued the two-handed tomahawk dunk. My hope is that, by blogging, I can keep myself motivated as I, too, pursue the two-handed dunk.

Just a little on my background: I'm 6 feet tall and almost 38 years-old. I played basketball in high school and in junior college right out of high school. At the time, my game revolved around the passing and the outside jumpshot. I was able to dunk occasionally at the time but wasn't able to consistently dunk the ball until I was 21 years-old. At that time, I used Air Alert and had good results suring the first 3 weeks, but after that I quit the program because of sore legs and the amount of time it was taking to complete the exercises (this was the original Air Alert that had you jumping hundreds of times five days-a-week). I also lived in Italy at the time and just couldn't spend that much time on exercising with the other responsibilities I had. I got really into weighlifting when I was 21 and would squat three days-a-week. I also performed depth jumps twice-weekly and was able to dunk very easily off of one or two feet. I then got back into college and fell back out of shape but was still able to dunk on a good day. Towards the end of my undergraduate studies, I purchased the Science of Jumping and had good results as I was able to bounce the ball off the floor and dunk it with two hands anytime I wanted to. I continued to use this program but my vertical stalled after a few months. Even though I was jumping higher than I ever had before, I was frustrated by the lack of continued progress.

I graduated with my Master's degree at age 30 and wanted to get back into shape because I had put on a few pounds after two years of full-time employment and full-time studies. I tried the new Air Alert at that time and ran into the same results: Initial improvement in my vertical followed by burnout. I started to focus on weighttraining and my highest vertical after that happened at two points in time: When I used the Ralph Sampson workout and when I used the stronglifts method I found on stronglifts.com (I was also performing depth jumps with these programs). Each time, the programs were cut short because of injuries.

The past two basketball seasons were fun but I had injuries each year that set my vertical jump back by a lot: I had severe tendinitis in my right Achilles tendon and two stress fractures in my right tibia two seasons ago and a severely strained left calf with, again, severe tendinitis in my right Achilles tendon this past season.

So, I am ready to give the Jump Manual a legitimate try. I will post my starting vertical later in the week along with my current PR's in several lifts. My goals are several:

1. Dunk with two hands on a regular basis. I can get the rim with two hands right now but I need a few extra inches in order to dunk.
2. Avoid serious injuries this basketball season.
3. Get my squat back over 300 pounds. Because of my knees, I started squatting with an empty bar 12 weeks ago and am now up to sets of 5 with 225 pounds,
4. Have my sons increase their verticals in these 12 weeks. I'm going to have them perform a modified Jump Manual program where they concentrate more on form with their weighttraining using goblet squats, light deadlifts, bodyweight calf raises, and swissball leg curls.