My Favorite Jumping Exercises

#1 — Hang cleans

In high school we had a coach from Nebraska that introduced us to the hang clean when I was a sophomore. Some people have their own opinions on how hang cleans affect jumping, but I’m going to tell you my personal experience with them.

I had never done a hang clean before he showed up. As we were taught the technique, I started to get pretty good working up to 260-265 lbs. (not into a full squat)… moreso the “football clean” style. When I got to this point I started jumping out of the gym. As a sophomore, I was doing windmills with a volleyball and getting up to the rim fairly easily. Granted I was around 160 lbs. at this time but I still felt super explosive.

When I started cleaning in our program I noticed a drastic difference. By utilizing the different variations such as from the floor, the hang etc. I was able to tap into another reserve of explosiveness.

#2 — Weighted box jumps

My second favorite exercise when it comes to jumping is a weighted box jump holding dumbbells. For this movement I will use a 20″ box and jump off of two feet for sets of 5 repetitions.

My best is 5 sets of 5 reps with 50 lb. dumbbells in each hand. When I’m able to hold 100 lbs. between my two hands my jumping goes through the roof. Imagine what it feels like to jump when you go back to a basic body weight box jump!

#3 — Training vs. bands

Training your body against bands takes your game to a whole new level. It’s no surprise that the strongest powerlifters at Louie’s Westside Barbell are using bands regularly in their program. Think about the tension these bands create when you are squatting, deadlifting, benching, etc.

When you unrack the barbell on a squat, you have the full band’s tension pulling you towards the ground. In the bottom you will experience a deload followed by an increase in band tension on the way back up. Training versus bands forces you to be more explosive during the lift, which will in turn help you become a more explosive athlete overall.

#4 — Drop steps with ankle weights

Drop stepping with ankle weights is another specific movement that helped propel me to the rim. Weighted drop steps are great because they allow you to overload the movement while still practicing the fundamentals of drop stepping. I tend to use 8-10 lbs. per side when doing so, and when it’s time to retest my Unweighted drop steps I feel almost weightless.