Alright, let’s talk about jumping. Seeing guys like Ja Morant practically float got me thinking. Could I get more air? I’m not exactly young anymore, but the idea stuck.
Getting Started
First thing, I had to be real. My vertical was, well, grounded. Couldn’t really blame age entirely, just hadn’t worked on it. Ever. So, I decided, why not? Let’s give it a shot. Didn’t expect miracles, just wanted to see if I could improve, you know, actually put in the work and track it.
I started simple. Just measuring where I could reach standing flat-footed, then jumping. Made a mark on the wall. Yeah, it wasn’t pretty. That was my starting point, my baseline. Had to know where I was starting from, right?
The Actual Work
So, the process began. I figured it wasn’t just about jumping randomly. Needed some structure, but nothing crazy complex.
- Leg Strength: Started hitting basic stuff. Squats, lunges. Nothing too heavy, just focusing on powering up. Felt the burn pretty quick. Did this a couple of times a week.
- Jumping Drills: Then I added the actual jumping. Box jumps, starting small. Tuck jumps. Broad jumps. Just trying to be explosive. Felt awkward as hell initially, like a clumsy bird.
- Stretching: This was big. Realized I was stiff. If you can’t even get into a good squat position comfortably, how you gonna jump high? So, lots of stretching, especially hips and hamstrings. Made a point to do this daily, even just for 10-15 minutes.
- Keeping Track: Every week or so, I’d re-test that wall mark. Sometimes it moved up a tiny bit, sometimes it didn’t. Kept a small log, just notes like “felt strong today” or “legs felt heavy”. Nothing fancy, just kept me accountable.
Consistency was the main thing I aimed for. Didn’t kill myself every day, but made sure I was doing something regularly. Some days were just stretching because I felt beat up.
What I Noticed
It wasn’t a straight line up. Some weeks, felt like I was going backwards. Knees would ache a bit. Had to learn to listen to my body, maybe take an extra rest day. Also realized how much your weight matters. If I ate like crap for a few days, I felt heavier, jumps felt harder. Power-to-weight, makes sense when you feel it yourself.
And the flexibility part? It wasn’t just about touching toes. It felt like I could get lower, coil up better before the jump. That seemed to make a bigger difference than I expected.
Where I’m At Now
So, did I turn into Ja Morant? Obviously not. But, that mark on the wall? It’s definitely higher. Noticeably higher. Enough that I feel pretty good about it. It took time, months of sticking with it.
The main thing is, I proved to myself I could improve. Just by showing up, doing the work, paying attention to what my body was telling me, and keeping a simple record. It’s not rocket science. You gotta put in the effort, build some power without getting too heavy, and make sure you can actually bend and move right to use that power.
Still doing the drills, still stretching. It’s kind of part of the routine now. Maybe I can inch that mark up just a little bit more.
