Soviet Jump Training

Jump training or what is commonly called plyometrics in North America is an essential component of training for sports that require jumping, quick change of directions and/or sprinting.

E.g. Basketball, Volleyball, Football/Soccer, Baseball, Track & Field.

In the below video Dr. Michael Yessis from the USA  gives a short review of jump training. Even though it is only 5 minutes long there is some very high quality information and some great footage of some Soviet athletes training.

Be forewarned, the athletes have a very "European" fashion sense with regards to their training attire. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=la1TliIOEu0

One of the important points Dr. Yessis talks about is the benefit of strength training (e.g. weightlifting) for improving max strength and ultimately jump performance.

Increased strength will translate into increased speed and power but only to a point.

He also stresses that before you start doing jump training that you need to build a base of conditioning which should be centered around strength training.

So, do your weightlifting and get strong first before going into more advanced jumping drills like depth jumps.

But this does not mean you cannot do any jumping drills in the beginning. Low level hops, skips and sprinting is very suitable for most athletes in the early periods of training but the focus should be on building strength.

Last year, I published a stair jumping program which you can download for free at this link:

Free Stair Jumping Program

Stair jumping is a great form of jump training for the athlete who is relatively new to jump training.

Try it out and let me know how it goes.

Be Well,

Mike Reid

www.michaelreid.ca

www.WaterPoloTraining.net