SUPPLIES
- Ankle weights
- Gravity belt
- Step blocks
- BOSU
Overview
There are some people who are natural fast runners. Then there are some people who are natural jumpers. Then you have the middle ground people. The ones that hide behind the excuse that "I can't jump high because..." You can fill that blank in with everything from "That's how I was born, my legs are too short, my feet are too long," or "I'm flat footed." Well the actual reason why you can't jump high is because you haven't found a good series of steps to follow that can make you jump higher. Well, look no further.
Step 1
Add resistance to your body. This added resistance will get your body acclimated to a higher stress load. Walk around with ankle weights and a gravity belt daily. When you take them off at game time, your body will be a lot lighter, allowing you to jump higher.
Step 2
Strengthen your core. A lot of jumping power is generated from the core. Perform core exercises that target the whole core which includes the upper and lower abs, the inner and outer obliques and the section of the back that goes from the bottom of the shoulders to the top of the glutes. Some good exercises are crunches, plank lifts, leg raises, back extensions, and side chops.
Step 3
Do some plyometric exercises. Plyometric training is characterized by a fast contraction of muscles followed by an explosive movement. Some good exercises to do are box jumps, leaping lunges, jumping rope and starbursts. Starbursts are basically a jumping jack where you jump really high in the air as you extend your arms and legs.
Step 4
Perform full body explosive movements. This type of exercise is sport specific. An example of this would be an exercise called a burpee. Start form a standing position. From here, bend down into a squat, place your hands on the floor and kick your feet behind you. Lower yourself into a push up, then snap your feet back forward into a squat position. Jump in the air with your arms overhead.
Step 5
Increase your flexibility. This will allow you to stretch out further and reach higher. It can also help reduce the chances of getting an injured muscle, tendon or ligament. Stretches should include the back muscles, shoulders, chest, hamstrings and glutes. Attending a Yoga class is also a great way to target all of these areas.
Step 6
Two foot balanceIncrease your balance. Balance is one of the most important skills to have in any sport. Having good balance is quintessential for soccer because there is a lot of off-balance landing and jumping movements involved. A good tool to train on is a BOSU which stands for BOth Sides Up. Start out standing on two feet, then progress yourself to one. When you feel comfortable, you can then start adding this tool into your plyometric routines by doing hops and skips on and off of it.
TIPS AND WARNINGS
- TIP : You can also wear the gravity belt during regular exercise and soccer training. You might just want to lessen the weight a bit. Wearing the ankle weights would be too labor intensive during your workouts and soccer training because your feet need to move quickly for dribbling and shuffling.
- WARNING : When performing plyometric routines where you are jumping and landing repetitively, make sure to stay soft in the knees. This means keep them slightly flexed so you can absorb the shock of impact. Landing with your knees straight can cause hyperextension and also put too much stress on the tendons and ligaments around the knee.
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