Bounce training - basics and practical tips

If you take a closer look and consider the topic from a sports science perspective, jumping power is not a strength ability in its own right. Jumping power therefore does not describe the performance of the skeletal muscle. This is comparable to shooting power in football or throwing power in handball. Instead, jumping power is usually equated with the jumping height that someone can achieve.

• Counter Movement Jump (CMJ): You stand upright and try to reach the maximum jump height with a lunging movement (by squatting down) and by using your arms.
• Squat Jump (SJ): Here you start in a squat position and then accelerate your body upwards WITHOUT any lunges. The jump is also performed without using your arms. The hands are often held on the hips to prevent the intuitive use of the arms
• Dropjump (DJ): Here you start from a height of approx. 30-60 centimetres. Then drop towards the floor with your legs straight and try to jump off again by quickly extending your ankle with the shortest possible contact time with the floor. The use of the arms should also be prevented here in order to test the ability of the leg muscles in isolation (i.e. to eliminate the momentum factor through the arms). Reactive strength and the stretch-shortening cycle (DVZ) play a decisive role in the drop jump. As soon as you hit the ground, the Achilles tendon and calf are stretched. The energy is then stored in the tendon, which is tensioned like a spring, and released again. Together with the contraction of the calf muscles, this causes plantar flexion in the ankle joint and you jump up again. The basic rule here is: The stiffer the tendon, the less energy is lost and the more energy goes into the jump height. To utilise this effect, you should keep the ground contact time very short.

When training your jumping power, you should keep these three jumping forms in mind.

You can measure your jumping height or jumping power using many simple methods.

• Maximum force (How much force can you generate at the peak?)
• Speed strength (How high is your maximum rate of strength increase?)
• Body weight (How much mass do you need to accelerate upwards using the force of my legs?)

When working with the force plate, you should always carry out several tests, you should generally be well rested and take a 3-5 minute break between tests.

For which sports is reactive strength important?

Reactive strength is always important when it comes to fast sports with a lot of dynamism. In athletics, reactive strength training is just as important for sprints as it is for jumping disciplines such as the long jump or high jump. Reactive strength is also an important performance factor for almost all ball sports such as football, handball, basketball or volleyball. You also need good reactive strength for martial arts.

Before you start bounce training, you should be aware of the various factors that influence your bounce. What you can do:

• You increase your maximum strength: Similar to speed strength training, greater maximum strength makes it easier to improve reactive strength.
• You increase your rate of strength increase (= rapid strength)
• You train important muscles: These include the entire lower limb and core for stabilisation. The gluteus maximus, quadriceps, hamstrings and calves are particularly important for your jumping power. Optimise your jumping technique if necessary (poor technique is often a limiting factor, especially in drop jumps). Reduce your weight.

Before you go straight to implementing a jump strength training programme, you should take a closer look at the requirements of your sport and check what type of jumps are required. Here are a few examples:

• Do I jump from a standing position, e.g. when blocking in beach volleyball?
• Do I jump out of a fast movement like in basketball?
• Do I jump high, far or both, like in handball?
• Do I often jump from a deep squat (badminton) or a more stretched position (handball)?

Depending on the type of jumps, you can consider whether the DVZ is highly relevant or whether you are more into squat jumps or counter-movement jumps, so that you then focus on training the corresponding jump variation. Possible conclusions for your bounce training:

• If I jump from a deep squat, I do deep squats to increase my speed/maximal strength.
• If I jump from an almost stretched position, I do quarter squats (e.g. high jump) to optimise my reactive strength.
• If I jump from lateral movements, I do lateral squats to improve my jumping power.

As with all training, it is important that you know exactly what your strengths and weaknesses are:

• If you are very strong but cannot develop your strength quickly, your focus should be on high-speed strength training.
• If you cannot move a lot of weight in the squat, your training focus should initially be on maximum strength.
• At the same time, you should always incorporate lots of jumps into your training, make them as varied as possible and orientate yourself closely to the target movement.

There is a wide range of plyometric exercises that you can use to improve your jumping power.

• CMV and SJ on a box as high as possible (two-legged and one-legged) 
• DJ on the highest possible box of different drop heights
• Hurdle Hops
• Pogos
• Standing long jump
• Lateral one-legged high/wide jump
• Jumps with a one-legged landing

You can organise repetitions and sets in a similar way to speed training, e.g. 3-5 x 5-8. The focus of your exercises should be on maintaining maximum movement speed. Therefore, take long breaks of 3-5 minutes between sets. To motivate yourself for your exercises, you can design your own fitness shirt here.

High jumping power is important for many sports. You should always tailor your bounce training precisely to you, your stature and the specific requirements of your sport. The good thing is that jumping exercises can be easily incorporated into any training plan. They don't require any equipment.