If you are a basketball player then no doubt you dream about having a "Michael Jordan hang time of 2+ second" that gives one an illusion of flying through the air! All serious basket ball players want to know the secret of "dunking" better. The fact remains that one has to first understand one's body – like body weight has almost 50% muscle tissue, and out of the three groups of muscle (cardiac, skeletal and smooth) it is the skeletal muscles that help us to move, and other facts.
Like ballet dancers, basketball players also need to be flexible to dunk well. Stretching exercises that have been drilled into you by your coach are not "sissy" or "useless". In fact, they are found to help effectively in bringing about a dramatic increase in "vertical leap / jump" by a few inches.
Stretching after a warm up is essential. Stretch your calves by placing both hands on a pole. Put one foot 24 inches behind the other and lean in a direction direction till you can feel your calves stretching. Hold that position for a few minutes. The Achilles tendon in your foot can also be stretched by bending your knee of your leg that you keep at the back during a stretch. Toe touches should be done till it begins to hurt. Another effective stretch is to hold the pole and at the same time grab a leg behind and hold it till you feel the effects on the top portion of your leg. After this, you should lie down on your back pulling your leg towards your chest and hold it in that position to stretch your lower back. Repeat this exercise with both legs.
Do regular jumping exercises by trying to touch the basketball hoop with a jump / running jump. Aim to touch the backboard. Keep pushing yourself to jump higher and higher – going from the backboard to the rim of the hoop etc. Consistent jumping will make you jump higher in no time.
Never forgetting that quality is more important than quantity, make sure that you train accordingly. To get maximum height you will have to give your very best in doing the proper exercises to increase vertical jumps . Your vertical is bound to improve if you earnestly try for more distance every time you jump.
Rest for about two minutes between each set of exercises and do not workout for more than an hour every day. It is important that you progress with weights as much as it is possible because if your body muscles are satisfied and do not think they have to get stronger, then your vertical will not get any higher either! Always keep in mind that overtraining could cause damage to your joints and even bring on early arthritis, and you do not want that. Keep a record of your reps, exercises, sets and weights that you use for each exercise so that you know how much to increase in a regular manner.