I can take a hint, Bruno

[joflasher]

I just go email from Bruno, the coach from Boston Volleyball Association and the manager for my Monday league. It was an invitation to join the BVA Flight School. Flight School is BVA's jump training program and it has a reputation for being very hard core. Those who have gone through it have had some pretty impressive results.

Now I know my vertical sucks all sorts of things right now. I know I'm the weak point on my team in the advanced league. Not jumping means not hitting well and having an ineffectual block. However, the brace on my knee and the fact that I'm not jumping at all (instead of just having a short jump) probably should have told Bruno something was up.

Now is probably not the time to add two nights a week of jump training ... even though I would love to try getting through Flight School just to see if I could.

Comments

[dgr.livejournal.com]

Jump training is nice because it provides short-term, tangible rewards. However, I am of the opinion that having proper form when jumping and landing is more important and yields better short and long term results. (Obviously, doing both is best.)

The most common mistakes I see are too little arm swing, and low effort on the jump. If you properly jump every time during play, rather than taking the easy way out and hitting the roll shots from the ground, you'll put on the muscle you need, and you'll be sure you're using that muscle efficiently.

I'm sure you can find good resources on the mechanics of jumping. I'd suggest just asking your coach to lean on you more about jumping properly, or a teammate who understands what is being asked of them, or to just video tape yourself and go over it later.

[flasher.livejournal.com]

I think I just tend to jump incorrectly. My legs are very strong but I have next to no jump even on a good day. Obviously, I'm doing something wrong and some sort of jump school would probably help address this.

[dgr.livejournal.com]

If you already have strong legs, what you needs is plyometric training, and jump school will be good for you.

Here is what wikipedia has to say about your situation:

"Muscular power is determined by how long it takes for strength to be converted into speed. The ability to convert strength to speed in a very short time allows for athletic movements beyond what raw strength will allow. Thus an athlete who has strong legs and can perform the freeweight squat with extremely heavy weights over a long duration may get less distance on a standing long jump or height on a vertical leap than a weaker athlete who is able to generate a smaller amount of force in a shorter amount of time. Though the plyometrically trained athlete has a lower maximal force output and may not squat as much, training allows them to compress the time required to reach their maximum force output, allowing them to develop more power with each contraction."


An example we use frequently is called a box jump. Stand on the first row of bleachers, and step out into the air and drop to the floor with both feet. Absorb the jump with your legs and pull your arms back, then explode straight upward. After you land, step back up on the bleachers and repeat.

Eventually, you work up to stepping off of higher platforms, working your way up to around three feet. However, if you started that high, without having the muscle you built from doing the lower height ones, you would likely pull a muscle, and might even cause tendon or ligament damage.

You need to start plyometric exercises at low-intensity and work your way up, and make sure you stop raising the intensity (and just do more reps, instead) once you hit your body's limit. Be careful, since you have a history of leg joint problems.