[af678480]

af678480 on March 25, 2011 at 8:35 am #17461

I could have sworn I saw another thread on this somewhere but I just can’t seem to find it for the life of me.

My question is “Is upper body lifting really necessary to create an effective high jump program? Would just the use of pull up and push up variations be enough to strengthen the upper body and keep it lean? In my opinion hypertrophy of the upper body for a high jumper is not warranted and should be avoided as much as possible. Do others agree with this thought? How does lifting for your high jumpers look?”

[Eric Broadbent]

Eric Broadbent on March 25, 2011 at 10:32 am #106796

I think it’s a very good question. In my opinion there should be some upper body lifts such as pullups and bench. Different variations of pullups could be good for overall core strength as is bench. But obviously you will get a lot of core work in with squats and core circuits etc. so it may not be needed. As far as what Mike does for our high jumpers…he monitors weight relatively closely to make sure they aren’t gaining weight during hypertrophy phase and beyond and he also just has them use moderate weight for most of the upper body lifts while guys like me go after it with upper body stuff. I’ve heard other coaches say its good to keep intensity high during peak times with an upper body lift still in their so maybe thats another reason? I’d like to hear what others have to say about it though.

[af678480]

af678480 on March 25, 2011 at 11:04 am #106797

If keeping intensity up for upper body lifts is the goal wouldn’t you be able to do that by simply making the push ups or pull ups plyometric, ie. clap push ups or switch grip pull ups? What parts of the body does mike concentrate on during hypertrophy for his high jumpers? Is there really a need at all for a high jumper to enter a hypertrophy phase?

[Nick Newman]

Nick Newman on March 25, 2011 at 12:22 pm #106799

My opinion…

Explosive upper body work is included most of the year but after GPP all upper body weights are quite minimal really…Heavy bench maybe once every 2-3 weeks at that’s it.

Hypertrophy phase isn’t something I do at all with any jumpers…

[af678480]

af678480 on March 25, 2011 at 10:07 pm #106804

Nick-
Do you think that the explosive lifting is really necessary though? Have you seen it have benefit with your jumpers? What sets and rep schemes do you use?

Every training program I have seen includes upper body even if it is just bench press but I am wondering why include it at all? Is this just due to our infatuation with the bench press because everybody does it or does it have a direct or indirect benefit to jumping in some way?

[Eric Broadbent]

Eric Broadbent on March 25, 2011 at 11:13 pm #106806

The jumpers do most of the same lifts that I would do. Bench 1-2x’s per week in some form and pullups of some form 1x per week. We also do weight lifting circuits which include a decent amount of upperbody lifts 1-2x’s per week but the weight for them is quite light. One reason I can think of for the need for possible upperbody work would be going back to core strength with the arms overhead which is common for all jumpers so having some work with that might help? I think it would be hard to measure what is best and I think the key would be to make sure the jumper is at optimal weight and doesn’t have any extra mass up top that will negatively influence there strength to weight ratio. Most jumpers also do other events so maybe that is why you see it in most programs.

[Nick Newman]

Nick Newman on March 26, 2011 at 1:44 am #106811

Nick-
Do you think that the explosive lifting is really necessary though? Have you seen it have benefit with your jumpers? What sets and rep schemes do you use?

Every training program I have seen includes upper body even if it is just bench press but I am wondering why include it at all? Is this just due to our infatuation with the bench press because everybody does it or does it have a direct or indirect benefit to jumping in some way?

Arms, chest, lats, shoulders play SOME KIND of role in sprinting and jumping ability. However small the percentage is they do play a role. Therefore they are in the program in some way. In my program very little…However explosive med ball routines use the upper body a lot also…

[af678480]

af678480 on March 26, 2011 at 7:25 am #106820

Let me try to rephrase my question again. I am aware that the upper body has a small role in jumping ability but would one be able to drop exercises such as bench press, incline bench, curls(i don’t do these just an example) bent over rows etc. from a high jumpers program as long as they continued to use pull up and push up variations? Both of these exercises can be explosive. Both of these exercises also target the core so I can see no issue there. I also feel like these exercises would have the least risk of weight gain as opposed to the other lifts. My only really concern would be that push ups and pull ups don’t work max strength. Is that a legitimate worry?

[Eric Broadbent]

Eric Broadbent on March 26, 2011 at 7:53 am #106822

I think you’d probably be fine with what you are suggesting. Plus you can do variations of both exercises to make them more strength oriented if you wanted to.

[Mike Young]

Mike Young on March 27, 2011 at 1:35 am #106839

To add / verify to what Eric’s mentioned, with my HJers, I do the following:
*monitor weight gain both quantitatively (put’em on a medical scale) and qualitatively (where is weight going…upper / lower body?)
*keep weight training in place but keep the loads very moderate in-season (both HJers lost 3-10 lbs in-season, primarily in upper body weight)

While we don’t do a ‘hypertrophy’ phase I don’t see any problem with doing weight work that will put weight on an athlete’s upper body when they’re out-of-season as long as they lose any excess weight in-season. This will provide a couple benefits:
*increased muscle mass = better body composition both by shifting muscle ratio and by enhancing the metabolism of the athlete (muscle burns fat!)
*a little extra weight can essentially act as a ‘weighted vest’ during the non-competitive season, during the competitive season, the vest comes off….think of it as an au naturale version of periodizing jumping load

ELITETRACK Founder

[af678480]

af678480 on March 27, 2011 at 2:11 am #106846

My problem is I have been having trouble losing weight for a couple years now. As a high school senior I weighed in at 185lbs(ask anybody I looked like a twig) but over the summer going into college and during my first year I put on 20lbs. This was in spite of continuing to train as a high jumper on my college team. Since then I have tried everything to lose the weight and the lowest I got was last year when I weighed in at 195lbs now I am back to 200lbs with a body fat % of 8. I feel like no matter what I do I just can’t shed the lbs to get back to the point I was as a senior years ago, and I feel like maybe my lifting plan may have something to do with it since I didn’t start lifting until the end of my senior year. I don’t have a big upper body by any means but I just can’t think of anything else to do. I am currently trying to keep my eating under control but I am not total sure how many calories per day I eat. Is 8% just to high for a high jumper?

[Mike Young]

Mike Young on March 27, 2011 at 2:19 am #106847

8% body fat isn’t too high for a jumper….especially if that’s an accurate measurement (and not bioelectrical impedance or caliper testing by some schmoe). Caloric restriction and macronutrient shift might be your best bet. It’s tough to add or maintain weight if the calories don’t support it. Likewise, limit bad carb intake and excess sodium as it could lead to excess water weight.

ELITETRACK Founder

[comando-joe]

comando-joe on March 27, 2011 at 3:48 am #106850

Mike, how did your jumpers lose upper body only weight? I have bulked up a little on my upper body to strengthen an injury but now i need to lose the size without losing any leg strength/size.

Do you need to have a calory deficit or can you get away with eating normally and just stopping upper body lifts?

[Mike Young]

Mike Young on March 27, 2011 at 5:05 am #106852

We reduced the volume and intensity of upper body weight work and eliminated any bodybuilding / weight circuits from the training protocol for the last 6-8 weeks of the competitive season.

ELITETRACK Founder

[Adistarhj]

Adistarhj on March 28, 2011 at 6:41 am #106895

I have some contact with the former swedish high jumper, Stefan Holm. And my program is based on his. He says that the upper body gets enough by doing snatches, cleans, jerks and med ball throws. I have his complete training routine, and it does not involve any arm/upperbody exercices, other than olympic lifts and ab/back work.