How important is the diet? I have very high metabolism, so i hardly watch what i eat… i don’t eat junk food often though. I understand that strength and power is different, but i feel like i lack strength not acceleration. For box jumps i use 2x10. Not sure how i should change up routine, as it consits of core stuff like deadlift and squats which i dont want to eliminate, maybe i should go lower reps higher intensity? instead of 3x5 do 3x3 and go up with weight?
In terms of diet, make sure you are getting enough protein…generally at least 0.7 grams per pound of body weight is rule of thumb, ymmv. You should continue to do deadlift and squats, definitely core, foundational exercises. But, like I said you need to do them in a slow and controlled manner which means they do not really mimic what is required for increased vertical jump. A vertical jump requires explosiveness. If you have access to a coach for a few sessions, I bet your vertical jump would benefit from some training in the full clean (as opposed to power clean) and the snatch as these are more high power, explosive exercises. I wouldn’t just go to the gym and start doing these exercises because that is inviting injury. Think of it like this: you can deadlift 255 for three reps. A full clean starts with a deadlift, but when the bar crosses the mid thigh you explode from the hips through the extremities, lifting the bar into weightless territory and then dropping underneath the bar to catch it on the fronts of your shoulders. There is no reason to guess about what the problem is: “acceleration” (power) or strength. You can currently DL 255 and assume you can squat about 185. When you can clean 255 (or even 185) I would wager that your vertical will be higher. The second movement in the clean is basically a front squat where you stand up after catching the bar. So, if you start training the clean you will have the benefit of an explosive exercise that incorporates both the DL and the squat. If I were you, I would continue to train the DL and squat independently for increased strength and incorporate a full clean to add an explosive element. Power cleans are fine, but IMO the full movement is much more useful for what you are seeking. Also, what weight are you currently using for your power cleans?
So if i knew how to do clean and jerk, what would be my 5 days look like? 1) Squat + Bench 2) Clean + Jerk 3) Lunges + Box Jumps + HGR (maybe?) 4) Verios stuff + Pullups 5) DL + Dips
You’re not taking in enough calories that’s why your lifts aren’t going up.
Blake is right. You have to eat like a champ in order to get stronger. I’m a big fan of protein shakes with added oatmeal (1/2 cup) as a mid-morning and mid-afternoon snack.
Ok, I’m going to get a little specific, sorry for the length but you can’t really just scribble something down and expect results. After looking at your routine I also think that you are not squatting enough. As mentioned above, Starting Strength is a great resources that you should definitely check out. Much of what I write below can be derived from that book. Here is how I would do it, which is significantly more exercises but probably the same or fewer reps: Workout A 3x5 Squat, 3x5 Bench Press, 1x5 Deadlift. Do two warm up sets before beginning your work sets on the squat. You can do warm ups for the others but it is not as crucial. If you want to do an additional exercise do 2x8 weighted dips. Workout B 3x5 Squat, 3x5 Standing military press (with Olympic bar, same as the one used for squatting), 5x3 Power Cleans. Do two warm up sets before beginning your work sets on the squat. You can do warm ups for the others but it is not as crucial. If you want to do an additional exercise do 2x8 weighted pull ups or chin ups. Workout C Saturday or Sunday depending on how you are feeling, how sore/tired you are. Max height standing box jumps (start at your current level and try to increase the height. Once you find a max height, practice there for a while. Next week try to increase it.) and clean focusing on form and feeling out at what weight you feel comfortable at one rep. When you are first starting, it is likely that you will be limited mostly by your squat numbers. Do seven sets of one, working up to a one rep max. Again, focus largely on form and not weight, make sure you feel comfortable when increasing the weight. You could clean and jerk, but I wouldn’t want you to be limited by the amount that you can jerk since this is largely a shoulder movement. The jerk does have use for working out the hips too though, which are important for jumping, so if it not a limiting factor then include it. Week 1 M) Workout A Tu) Rest W) Workout B Th) Rest F) Workout A Sa/Su) Workout C Week 2 M) Workout B Tu) Rest W) Workout A Th) Rest F) Workout B Sa/Su) Workout C And so on and so forth… *Be sure to use the exact same weight through all sets. If you use 155 for the first set of squats then use 155 for the next two sets. This is called “sets across” as opposed to “working up to a 5 rep max” *Shoot to add about 5 pounds per week to the squat, 10 pounds to the deadlift and 2.5 pounds to the press and bench press. Especially in the beginning weeks you may be able to do more or the weight may just feel really heavy and you will need to go up less. Focus on choosing a weight that allows you to complete all reps and avoid failure, but don’t afraid of failure (assuming you use a spotter on the bench press, all other exercise you can bail without any real risk of injury). Use these increases as starting benchmarks. As stated above you will want to eat a good amount, probably about 3000 calories a day. For vertical jump obviously strength to weight ratio is very important, so I wouldn’t just try to eat sticks of butter all the time. Just make sure you are getting at least 0.7 grams of protein per pound of body weight, in your case 0.7*155=108.5 grams. Eat meat at lunch and dinner and have some protein at breakfast (Greek yogurt works well) and you will get there pretty quickly. Have a protein shake after each workout.
Thanks, that is very detailed, but i am not sure i can increase weight that fast. If i will add 5 pounds per week to squat, in 14 weeks i will get to 225 and that is 3 months…
That is true, but why are you second guessing yourself already? Working out every day you have not been resting nearly enough and I suspect that you have not been eating enough protein or calories. Build up to the volume and start below 165. Start low to allow yourself to build up systematically over time. This is called “linear progression” and tends to work very well in the early stages of proper strength training. Why not start at 145 and then add five pounds a week, eat a lot of calories, eat enough protein, get plenty of sleep and see how it goes? It worked for me way back when and has worked for many others.
Everyone who keeps posting workouts, please stop. He isn’t eating enough. He is 5’11" and weighs 155, that says enough. If you train hard and don’t eat enough one of two things is going to happen: 1) Lose weight 2) Maintain You aren’t going to get stronger and put on muscle. Pure science on this. He is an easy 700 cals or so: 1) 1 cup rolled oats. Put in blender and turn into a powder 2) 1 cup whole milk or 2% 3) 1 scoop protein powder 4) 1 tbs nat PB You are probably going to have to add water. Eat this for breakfast. I bet you are skipping breakfast or getting something light. Then make sure you are eating for lunch and dinner.