Juming Higher for Volleyball by Dibbs

First you need to understand a few things about muscles before you start plyometrics. Muscles can store energy for a split second and you are able to use that energy to jump higher.

Muscles can be seen as springs and you know that when a spring is compressed it has energy stored and ready to be used. This is what happens in the muscles of our legs as we bend our knees before a jump.

So when your knees bend you are essentially loading a spring. The muscles in our body can feel any stretch and they want to counter that by contracting the opposing muscles which will cause us to jump.

This is where plyometrics come in. Plyos and proper training will make that counter reaction fire with much more power. It's not the size of the muscle that determines power, or your would see bodybuilders hitting their heads on the rim from jumping so high.

Jumping has more to do with muscles firing at the exact same time instead of just brute strength. Don't get me wrong, you need strong legs before you start a plyometric type exercise program.

1. If you can't squat your weight comfortably then you need to get stronger legs before starting plyos. Aim to do 125% your weight 8 reps in 8 seconds.

2. Okay, so once you are ready to do plyos you need to make sure to do them when your legs aren't tired or sore. Don't do a leg workout and then plyos. You need to jump your highest each time if you want to be able to jump higher.

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