Jump Squats - Technique and Advice

The following is taken from an article written by Jud Logan, an Olympian and former American record holder in the hammer throw and a VERY strong and explosive athlete (440 power clean, 770 Back Squat, and 550 x 3 Front Squat).

"On the jump squats, the key is to have the elbows under the bar pointing straight down (good power line). Next the athlete squats into what I call a high 1/2 squat position, and attempts to drive the feet through the floor in a violent change of direction--- try to reach maximum height each jump (I tell my athletes to feel sensation of reaching for the ceiling w/ their head, and to point the toes down on lift off). Keep the bar tight to the traps and upon landing repeat w/out pause. When done correctly it looks like weighted hopping in place. Remember this is more plyometrics and a stimuli for the nervous system to prepare the fast twitch muscle fibers to fire! Again, I used 110 lbs, I had my all-american (207) use 40 k or 88 lbs, on his way to a 150k (330) clean @ a BW of 210. Hope this gives you some guidelines."

Keep in mind that Jud was doing 3x20 with that weight.  I have read variously that one should use anywhere from 20-30% of one's max Olympic squat, 30% of one's bodyweight, or 40% of one's max power snatch when doing jump squats.  Of course, it depends if you are doing 3x20 or 3x5.  The Soviets advocated 3-4 sets of 3-6 reps for their weightlifters, using 20% of their max C&J (see below).  So 20% of one's max front squat might be ideal for most individuals.

Very significantly, it is commonly advised that you do not do jump squats at all until you can Back Squat 1.5x your bodyweight, or if you have any knee or back problems.  If you do choose to include these in your program, start very light and progress slowly.

An interesting point:  Soviet researchers determined that the test that had the highest correlation to the performance of highly-trained Olympic lifters in the Clean & Jerk was the height achieved by the lifter in a single jumpsquat with 50% of the lifter's bodyweight.

The following is taken from "The Training of the Weightlifter", 2nd edition, by R.A. Roman-Fizkultura i spvt Publishers, Moscow, 1986:

"It has already been pointed out that it is necessary to display force quickly when executing the clean (and especially in the snatch and the jerk). If one compares results in the clean and jerk with results in jumping (without weight), then one finds that there is no correlation whatsoever, between them. However, a comparison of results in the clean and jerk with the results in jumping with 50% of bodyweight reveals: that athletes who jump the highest, generally jerk more. In other words, there is a correlation (moderate) between jumping height and results in the clean and jerk. Furthermore, not all athletes who have stronger legs (higher results in the back squat), have higher results in jumping with 50% of bodyweight, i.e., the correlation between the jumping and the squat is weak.

So, with two athletes of the same leg strength, the one with the higher results in jumping with 50% of bodyweight almost always cleans and jerks more weight; because he has a greater ability to quickly display strength.

In order to successfully jerk the barbell, the minimal jumping height (with 50% of bodyweight) should be: in the 75-100 kg classes for Class III lifters--44 cm, Class II--45 cm, Class I--46 cm, CMS--47 cm, MS--48 cm, MSIC--50 cm, world record holders--51 cm; for athletes in the lighter and heavier classes--approximately 2 cm lower.

For example, David Rigert (90-100 kg class) jumped 59 cm with 50% of bodyweight; Pavel Kuznyetsov (100 kg) --62 cm; Yuri Vardanyan (82.5 kg)-- 65 cm."

"Vertical jumps with a barbell on the shoulders is another method of developing explosive-strength. The amount of weight should be 20% of the limit clean and jerk. The athlete does approximately 12-18 jumps for a workout; 3-6 jumps per set. Jumps with a barbell can be done 2-3 times per week. If depth jumps are employed, barbell jumps are not included."

 

I believe he was in the 275-285 range.

Greg...I could find out from Jud but I belive his bodyweight was closer too
255-lbs. (20-25 -lbs HUGE difference) We had Harry McDonald (multiple
time Canadien Champ and a BEAST) down going to school and training in
Calif for a year and he went 28-inch VJ at 312 or 315 (?) bodyweight.   I was
on the downhill slide at the time with a best VJ /BW of 36" at 255-lbs. 1979-
PRE bullet holes) and I was in the 32" x 278.lb shape at the time   You do
the math in terms of POWER equation...LOL We needed a calculator and I
think Harry went 5-6 more attempts trying to get the hors-power higher.

I'll write up what is REALLY going on (science = facts ) this weekend when I
have more time- THROW FAR and move FAST !!!

I had forgotten about the post below, which is from Jud Logan himself.  I think it is a worthwhile addition, although it would probably more useful in a different thread. 

It is also worth noting that while Logan's competitive PR in the back squat with belt, suit, and knee wraps to just below parallel was 770, he has noted that his best true high-bar Olympic squat was 'only' 660 and that after 1990, he never squatted over 500.  In the same interview, he noted that it would have been "impossible" to maintain a huge back squat and throw far.  This is an interesting comment given his experience and is probably worthy of consideration.  The same would probably be true of his belief that the most important lifts for (hammer?) throwers are the clean-grip snatch and the front squat.

This brings up something else that might be worth noting - strength PRs and throwing PRs aren't necessarily made in the same year, much less the same month.  In his introductory commments in articles and interviews, Jud often highlights his 770 back squat, which I believe was done some time in the mid-1980s, but he often doesn't go on to provide the complete story as noted above, which is arguably much more relevant. 

The same thing is true for numerous other throwers, with John Powell being a well-known example.  Powell's best training bench was about 450 back in the 1970's when he threw 226', but was apparantly only 290 in 1984 when he threw 233'.  Although Powell's earlier lift would certainly be much more typical for a world-class discus thrower, this example is, as Coach Mac likes to say, food for thought.

---

Jud Logan

16:17 PST, 11/10/2005

HS Numbers

Tony C. wanted some more realistic numbers from HS lifting
1977 6"4 192
Discus 171"11 Shot 49"11
Bench 300
Clean No idea they existed
Squats Bar hurt my neck (leg press)
College (Kent State)
6"4 252 (5 years later)
Discus 169
Shot 57
Hammer 196"10
Bench 478 (comp..no equipment)
Clean 220 (reverse curl)
Snatch 170 (rarely did)
Squat 225 (hurt neck, not injured, just hurt- stopped when coaches left and went back to bench)
Post Collegiate
6"4 272
Enter former 1972 Olympian Al Schoterman.....no more bench, all Olympic lifts, introduced me to plyos, (1981) made me squat (3 times per week for 3 years, mostly 8-10 reps), and taught me how, high bar olympic style + front squats.
3 years later:
Hammer 244"7 AR and Olympic Team
Clean 323
Snatch 264
B. Squat 770 (comp/suit/wraps)
F. Squat 602 550 x 3
9 years later, enter Charles Poliquin (fixed functional weakness of my pulls)
Hammer 80 meters
OH 16 (73"4)
Clean 440
Snatch 319
Squats: Backed way off heavy squatting (plus, once every 5 days) and vertical 33 inches at 276
Olympic lifts changed my life and being forced to squat 3 time per week for 3 years enabled me to achieve a base that lead to some productive throwing.

---

Coach Mac,

I don't mean to be either obtuse or disagreeable, but I am not exactly sure what your point is.  Is that that Jud's lifts were more impressive than they might otherwise have been?  Agreed .  That his throwing results were better than they might otherwise have been given his technique?  Agreed (although I believe the generally agreed upon range is about 10-12% - the actual benefit to any athlete probably depends on several factors.  Even 10% is still very significant - 8m off of 80m). 

Sadly, these caveats probably apply to most top throwers, at least from the past (so they say, right???).  The reason I noted Jud's numbers was more for the ratios of the various lifts and because some of his examples require this information for context.

Regardless of this fact, Jud still has a lot of knowledge and experience that is worth taking into consideration.

 

 

How can we be sure he didnt have asma?

Gentlemen,

For the sake of argument, is there a formula/ratio for what someone with no knee/back/ankle problems should load their bar with?  Should the focus be on quick explosion, with 135 lbs, perhaps, with higher reps...or would it be more beneficial to engage a heavier weight which would almost inevitably curtail some of that explosion in favor of poundage? 

I am looking to pull these out of the toolbox, and am looking for a little guidance.  Or a lot!

Respectfully,

Duncan McCallum

Peter,

Currently I am 2x bodyweight...are you an advocate for higher reps?

Thanks for pointing that out...must have been looking right at it.

Respectfully,

Duncan McCallum