Did you see Amare Stoudemire’s dunk on Michael Olowokandi’s 7’1 “? How about 2005 Slam Dunk Champion Josh Smith? STAT also had some ills in Emeka Okafor and Yao Ming.
In fact, prior to his knee surgery on October 18, 2005, Stoudemire had a vertical of 40 inches! The rehab went well, as he said during rehab that he was quite explosive and gradually regained his strength. While attending USA Basketball Camp 2006 in Las Vegas, his athletic coaches declared that his strength and flexibility have been “better than ever – almost like Superman.”
After surgery, the 2003 Rookie of the Year had his sights set on a special challenge: raising his vertical jump, from 38 inches to 42 inches.
“I was down 2 inches due to the injury and I want to get my 2 inches back,” says Stoudemire. “And then I want to win 2 more on top of that.”
So what did he do? Here are Stoudemire’s secrets to snatching that extra inch or 2, and more:
Run drills
After rehabilitation, Stoudemire first wanted to regain his speed. So instead of running with other big men, he lined up with the guards.
“You can run 4 miles a day, but you won’t get into basketball shape,” he says. “You have to do drills.”
To get your lungs back, try “six.” Run from baseline to baseline and vice versa three times, for a total of six lengths of the basketball court. Rest for 30 seconds, then repeat the exercise twice. Stoudemire aimed to complete every six in less than 30 seconds.
Box jumps
Picture this: “The most impressive thing I’ve seen Amare do were 36-inch box jumps last year after he started to regain his elevation,” says Erik Phillips, ATC, Phoenix’s head strength and conditioning coach. Suns.
But before jumping into the plyometric boxes yourself, Phillips says it’s critical to reinforce lower body stability with movements like multiplanar jumps.
For more exercises and crucial things to know about vertical jump (why often what you “don’t” do is more important than what you “do”), take a look at this page that I highly recommend: