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One of the first things to consider when beginning any new program is safety, right? I certainly hope that is your first goal. If your program is unsafe than you need to re-evaluate what you are doing and make some needed changes.
When introducing a Jump Training program you want to make sure that you start with the foundation first. What is the foundation? It is the landing portion of jumping. If the athletes learn to land well, you have cut down on your risk of injury. Here are some simple guidelines for landing technique:
Feet straight ahead Avoid the pronation and external rotation of feet.
Ankles flexed This is important. We are getting too cautious of knees moving forward. As long as heels dont rise up, the knees can move forward. If the shin stays vertically aligned the force absorption kinetic chain is weakened.
Knees over middle toes You dont want the knees going into valgus (knees in).
Push hips back and shoulders forward They counter balance each other.
Back flat (neutral spine
) Be careful of over lordotic positioning due to potential injury.
Head up and straight ahead On occasion the head and eyes might be slightly down to check the landing surface or clearance of a box.
Where to start:
As I just mentioned, start with the landing technique. In terms of the exercise to use, you should begin with a basic in-place jump landing, then move onto leap landing, and finally hop landing. The multitude of directions can be added as warranted. Below are some simple examples:
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In-place jump and landing
Drop from tall standing to landing
Drop from a short (4-12 inch box) and stick the landing
Jump up, land and stick the landing
Jump up, just upon landing quickly rebound back up and then stick landing.
Continuous jumps for 5 reps.
Explosive box jumps - You only jump onto the box and step off.
The next progressions would be to do these jumps moving forwards, then lateral and angular.
Leap and landing progression
Drop from one foot to the other and stick landing
Drop off a short (4-12 inch box) and stick the landing
Leap up onto a low box and stick landing
Leap forward and land on ground sticking the landing
Leap forward and upon landing rebound back up and stick landing
Continuous leaps forward
Explosive leaps up onto a higher box and step off
The next progression would be to add lateral and angular leaps.
Hop and landing progression:
Start tall on and drop to one foot and stick landing
Hop on one foot and stick landing
Hop and upon landing rebound back up and stick landing
Continuous hops in place
Hop up onto a low box (4-12 inch box) step off
The next progressions would be to hop forward, laterally, and angular.
All of the progressions mentioned above are good guidelines for your athletes to start. You as the coach can make adjustments as needed. One of the biggest mistakes in jump training is too much volume and to much intensity too soon.
I honestly feel that if you properly perform the jumps, leaps, and hops you can keep the volume low and the effort high (so that the nervous system adapts to the exercise and improves) to gain optimal results.
As the athlete is ready (physically, mentally, experience wise
) you can begin to explore higher levels of jump training (plyometric) to challenge them, but always remember they are not training to be the best at jump training. It is a tool to get them to be safer and to perform better at their sport or activity. Dont fall too much in love with your program and forget what your role is. The more I can do to protect the athletes from injury, recover better, perform better, and keep them coming back the better I have done my job.
One final note: Always make sure they have had a thorough assessment by a qualified professional before beginning any program. The above information is not intended to be a program-only a guideline to implement into your program.
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