AGE: 19

HEIGHT: 6' 1" without shoes

WEIGHT: ~160lb, could be slightly more

SLEEP SCHEDULE: Sleep usually between 11pm to midnight on weekdays. I mostly feel drowsy when I first wake up, start to get into things after about and hour. I usually smoke (mary jane) at night before going to sleep so I guess that's somewhat of a sleep aid.

BODY TYPE: Skinny, lanky build. Long arms and legs but I have broad shoulders. Not very strong, I would say my lower body is stronger though.

GOALS: Jump out of the gym. My ultimate goal would be elbow to the rim, but anything over a 40" RVJ would be awesome.

CURRENT ABILITY: Getting from about 2" above my wrist over the rim from a running DLVJ, maybe an inch more from SLVJ. With a reach of 7' 10" standing, that makes my DLVJ about 30" and my SLVJ about 31".

INJURY HISTORY: Achilles tendonitis over summer, went to rehab for 8 weeks and am now careful to not overwork it/keep it properly stretched out. Barely notice it now, occasionally after a tough session it'll feel a bit tight, but after stretching it out feels fine.

TRAINING HISTORY & ACHIEVEMENTS: Been working solo on my jumping for about 6-7 months now and have seen roughly 4-5" in gain on my DLRVJ. I started doing straight strength work on my legs and kept reading online about optimal training methods. I started with a leverage squat machine (never felt comfortable doing free weight squats, couldn't position the bar properly, but I've been wanting to start that up) and leg press a couple times a week. More recently, my leg workout has been:
1x10@250lb
1x8@260lb
1x5@270lb
on the leverage squat, all explosive as possible with ~5mins rest in between (do upper body in that time).
1x10@230lb
1x10@240lb
1x10@250lb
on incline leg press, also explosive and also ~5mins rest
1x10@150lb
1x10@160lb
1x10@170lb
on incline leg press, very quick up and down, explosive

I do that once a week and I need about 3 days to fully recover (isn't that long?).
The past 3 weeks I've been doing intermediate plyos from the VJB as well, so weights once a week and plyos once a week with a couple of straight ballin days in between when the legs are up to it.
I feel like I've been training hard for a while but not seen the best possible results. I want to train right, and I think if I get the right program I could be dunking by the end of the year.

CURRENT ACTIVITY LEVEL AND/OR TRAINING PROGRAM: Pretty much broke this down above. Just seeing the leg work typed out now it really doesn't look like much, but that's what I've been doing the past couple months.

BRIEF OVERVIEW OF CURRENT DIET: I eat a lot of crap, mostly because of gettin the munchies. Breakfast on weekdays is a bacon egg n cheese with a coffee and usually a muffin. Lunch is usually some kind of sandwich with meat and cheese and a soda. Dinner is usually a pasta and meat dish of some kind, with variations including pizza, sub sandwiches, stuff like that. After dinner I usually eat a shitton of unhealthy food - candy, ice cream, chips and the like.

IMPORTANT ACTIVITIES: I don't really need to be fresh for any specific time. Things to work around right now are work which go from early in the morning til about 5:30 when I get home. After that all time is my own.



Just to kinda sum up, I feel like I've been working my ass off trying to get my hops up and don't have that much to show for it. If I had put all that effort into the right training methods I think I could be dunking by now. Sure, I've seen some gains but I don't think I've been as efficient as I could have.
I've been following your journal for a little while and I have to say your dedication is inspiring. Anyway hope I've given you everything you need, looking forward to hearing your take.

Aight so I'm going to try and do this right, I know I started this journal about a month ago but I will try to be consistent from now on.

So the past 4 weeks I've more or less kept up with the routine in my first post. 1x weights and 1x plyos per week with a bunch of basketball in between. I'm finding that I'm starting to spend 4+ hours in the gym almost every time I'm there counting weights, pickup games and ball handling drills.

The day before yesterday I tried to make the switch over the free weights as opposed to the leverage squat machine. I've been toying with the squat bar a bit just to get the feel for it, but never did reps. Balance was a bit of an issue. I decided to transition over to a full on free squat by getting used to the bar and motion on a smith machine, that went pretty well...

Went for 3x7@170,170,180lbs

Also tried deadlifting which felt really good. Killed my lower back and hamstrings (in a good way).

Went for 3x10@90,130,150lbs

I'm trying to find a good weight for both of those lifts, the deadlifts were relatively easy all the way through so I think I can do more on those. The squats weren't as easy, but I think I can push to sets of 170, 180 and 190. After a month or two on the smith I'll probably make the switch over to free weight squats.

My plan for future workouts will be squats on the smith, deadlifts and leg press 2x a week and plyos once week and I'll make an effort to journal those in some more detail.

The 2 days I do leg work I'll work in quick sets of upper body work. I've been wanting to move over to cable machines/free weights for upper body as opposed to guided machines so I'll be making an effort with that. Optional 3rd upper body workout after plyos if I'm up for it.

Progress wise, I've added about an inch through the past month of leg work. That really boosted my motivation seeing results like so quickly, I'm nearly hitting my whole hand above the rim (about an inch away). My short term goal right now is wrist to the rim before I go home for christmas (december 17th). I think if I can maintain these new lifts and the a second weight workout/week that's a very realistic goal. If I maintain, a weak one handed dunk by then should be manageable...Looking forward to it.

So that's where I'm at right now, lets see how I do.

Thanks for the feedback man.

Yeah I am going to look into protein, will probably get some powder and drink a shake after each workout.

Really the smith is that bad? Is it actually wasted work? That's something I can't afford, thing is after every sqaut session (only 2 so far) with the smith, my legs feel pretty worked...Would you say the smith is worse than the leverage squat machine? If the smith is as bad as you say I'll try and make the switch to free squats sooner, I just want to be comfortable with the bar before I do.

Okay that's good to know, I am feeling glutes and hams quite a bit too. But I think I'm mostly feeling my lower back because it's the weakest of 3, in a few weeks/month or so I shouldn't be feeling it as much. A quick question on form, do I want to start the deadlift with thighs parallell? So far I've been starting maybe 5-10 degrees above parallell, should I be going lower?

Knees didn't bother me much on the smith, it felt pretty good. Found a good roll/pad, made some of the aching from the bar a non-issue (I know where to position the bar, I'm just a bony guy so the weight can be uncomfortable).

So yesterday I went for another session. Was hoping to not be too sore today...but I'm feeling pretty achy, mostly lower back again, then hams/glutes and quads a little bit.
Left achilles felt really achy this morning, worst it's been in a while. I'll pay special attention to it, rest today, make sure to ice/and massage it, plus do some rehab exercises for strengthening. Shouldn't be a big issue but I'll keep an eye on it.

Breakdown of yesterdays session:

10mins on the bike for warmup
1 3v3 pickup game, mid-effort, won
1 5v5 pickup game, low-effort, got trashed (don't you hate it when your team doesn't move the ball?)

Then up to the weight room, started on the smith:
1x7@180lbs
1x5@190lbs
1x3@200lbs

I'm liking those weights, I think I'll stick with that while I'm on the smith. I'll push up weight 5lbs/set either every workout or every other workout depending what I can handle.

Dealift:
1x10@150lbs
1x8@160lbs
1x6@170lbs

Same as above, liking the weight, will try to push 5lbs every or every other workout.

Went to leg press, but the machine was broken. Had to use another shittier one. It's extremely hard to push out the first like 3 inches of the weight, then gets really easy. I tried to focus on the really hard 3 inch window. Just typing this, I remembered seeing another leg press in a different room, if the one I usually use is still broken by my next lifting sesh I'll use that.

Anyway, somewhat bullshit sets, wasn't too happy

1x10@300lbs
1x10@320lbs
1x10@330lbs

Mixed in 4 upper body lifts, didn't manage to switch to cable/free weight machines. I HAVE to do that! Next time..

Cooldown:
7.5mins on the bike
5mins jogging

Was pretty beat, just wanted to do a little something so the soreness wouldn't kill me today.

Wanted to get some ballin in today, but I don't think I'm going to manage. Might go later tonight and just work on handles for a couple hours. I'll be doing plyos tomorrow though, so I don't want to tire myself out. We'll see...Until next time

The one in this video is similar to the one I'm using: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJ_lql6slxU

I didn't even think about the smith causing the lower back ache, I'll definitely switch over to free squatting ASAP though.

I've been icing and massaging my left achilles, as well as stretching calves throughout the day. I've got a few rehab exercises I can use too so I think it should be manageable. It never hurts or aches during exercise, only after...so at least that.

Did plyos today plus about 3.5-4 hours of basketball and shooting around. Total of 5 hours in the gym.
Did intermediate plyos from the VJB:

3x10 4-star jumps
4x10 lateral jumps (used ~20 inch pad to jump over)
4x8 1 legged step-up jumps
4x40yrds power skipping
4x6 depth box jump from ~18in. platform
4x30yrd sprints
3x25yrds double-legged bounding


Went pretty well, did plyos last though so I was a bit fatigued, but they still weren't too intense.

Promised myself I wouldn't try more jumps until I was done with another 4 week "cycle"...did a few today though, didn't notice much of a difference from my dunk attempts last week. My lower back was pretty damn sore still, so I wasn't really fresh. Still looking optimistic for my goal of dunking by the 17th of December.

So what's a good way to get protein+carbs during a workout?
I usually get a gatorade/powerade when I'm there for a while, which could take care of carbs (maybe not, I really have no clue)? If so then I guess a protein shake on top of that would do the trick...I don't really know, have any suggestions?


Played ball last night, went HARD for about 2.5 hours straight. Every time I lost I got picked up again so never got a rest in...felt good though. Somehow after smoking a lil bud I just get into it so much more and fatigue/running out of breath doesn't play as much of a role...it feels like I can just keep going.

Got to bed pretty late though, only got about 5 hours of sleep which I'm really noticing today. So yeah, feeling pretty tired but I'm gonna push myself to the gym in a few hours and crank out some lifting.

If my buddy can make it I'll be trying free squatting for the first time (want the spot), if not I'll be on the leverage squat machine...Will journal either way.

Okay I'll definitely look into getting that protein and making it happen. Appreciate the constant feedback man.

So I didn't get to the gym yesterday, but made it today. Had a decent workout, I'm just not feeling the smith machine. Like it's tough to push up, but my legs feel nowhere near as worked as on the leverage squat. I tried free squatting but had some real issues with balance using light weight (kept taking a step back and reset). Any tips on improving that? Is it a flexibility issue? Hopefully I'll be free squatting soon.

Here's the break down for today:

Smith machine:
1x9@180
1x7@190
1x5@200

Deadlift:
1x10@160
1x10@170
1x6@180

Leg press:
1X10@270
1x10@290
1x7@320

Ham curls:
1x10@100
1x10@110
1x10@120


I'm gonna start logging upper body too, just so I can keep track. Right now I'm just doing upper inbetween sets of lower to get some rest in for each. For upper I'm not pushing too hard, I figure if I keep up with this long term I'll still be able to put on some size. It's still a good work out, just not crazy, I don't have the energy to do full upper and lower.

Bicep curls:
1x10@30+bar
1x10@35+bar
1x7@35+bar

Situps, bw past parallel:
4x10

Chest fly:
1x10@125
1x10@130
1x10@135

Row:
1x10@90
1x10@95
1x8@100

Lat pulldown:
1x10@95
1x10@100
1x8@105

Tricep pushdows:
1x10@125
1x10@130
1x10@140


Gym is closed tomorrow, I'm gonna rest/stretch, probably play some pickup on friday and plyos again on the weekend. I'm not going to be able to get 2 workouts in this week, gotta go on tuesday next week so I can fit 2 in.

Damn another long post...but now it's time to watch the celtics dominate the nets.

Good advice, thanks. By light in my last post I meant a max of 90lbs (25/side + bar), so yeah pretty light.

I did what you recommended at the gym today and it turned out pretty well. I was getting good, clean reps - good bar position, good form, good depth and consistent balance - at 160lbs total. I worked my way up, starting with the bar, about 6-8 reps each. I did: bar, 90, 110, 130, 150, 160. So I "maxed" at more or less 1x bw. I was surprised how heavy the weight felt though, I thought I would be able to handle more. I guess that's good though, a lot of room for improvement in the squat and deadlift department. I'm going to keep doing practice sets until I'm 100% comfortable and find a good weight to do reps at.

Today's gym session: WEAK

Got to the gym, barely had any motivation. I worked on left hand dribbling and layups for 1-1.5 hours, some form shooting (right hand) and then went to practice squatting. A total of 2 pretty weak hours, not impressed with myself at all. I wanted to do plyos but was feeling some knee and ankle soreness. Decided it would be best to skip plyos today, either do them tomorrow or just lift tomorrow instead (more likely).
Did a few jumps as well, no noticeable improvement since a couple weeks ago. Most important thing right now is to stay motivated and keep working.


EDIT: A few important notes to self:

- You left hand absolutely blows. The best way to improve my game right now is to as threat off the dribble from both the right and left hand sides. To achieve: practice playing 100% left handed with no right hand assistance. Dribble drills, layup drills from both sides, crossover, spins and in-and-out dribbling.
- Form: maintain proper form, keep weight on heels during lifts. The cause of the knee and ankle aches you're getting are from putting too much weight on the front of your feet.
- Free squatting, even if it means lighter weight all the way. It's the best way to get the most out of all the work you're putting in. Fuck the smith machine, try not to use the leverage squat.

Pretty good work out, lifted with a bit of ball after.

Squat:
1x10@150lbs
1x7@160lbs
1x5@170lbs

Deadlift:
1x10@165lbs
1x10@175lbs
1x8@185lbs

Leg Press:
1x10@240lbs
1x10@250lbs
1x10@260lbs


Squats felt good, but I put the safety too high and hit it going low on the 8th rep of the second set...Oh well. Otherwise I think I've found my routine, gonna keep doing this and maybe add walking lunges to my leg workout.


Bicep curl:
1x10@35lbs + Bar
1x10@40lbs + Bar
1x8@40lbs+ Bar

Situps:
3x10, bw past parallel

Rows:
1x10@90
1x10@95
1x8@100

Chest fly:
1x10@130
1x10@135
1x9@140

Lat pulldown:
1x10@95
1x10@100
1x10@105

Tricep pushdown:
1x10@125
1x10@135
1x10@145