Kobe Bryant Dunk or how to increase the vertical jump

A couple of summers ago, Kobe Bryant changed his exercise program to get stronger, just like Michael Jordan back in the day. Kobe gained 6-7 pounds of muscle (he’s now 220 pounds), slowed down a bit, but still managed to maintain, if not increase, his vertical jump! So how was that?

Let’s take a look at his weight training program: It’s a 6 days a week, 1 hour a day workout. The full program consists of weight training plus 2 hours of running, 2 hours of basketball, and 1 hour of cardio a day!

Day 1 and Day 4:

bench press

incline press
military press
ABS

Day 2 and Day 5:

Dumbbell Lateral Raises
bar sauces
tricep press
bicep curls
sit-ups

Back Squats/Front Squats
leg curls
leg extensions
calf raises

As you can see, days 1, 2, 4 and 5 are all about strengthening your upper body. Days 3 and 6 are all about your lower body giving you the power you need to jump really high.

Focusing on lowering his body fat percentage (less than 10%) allowed Kobe to save some weight that he actually gained through building muscle. In addition to exercise (running, cardio), following a good diet plan (eg, avoiding fat in the foods you eat, eating plenty of protein, eating red meat only once a week, drinking plenty of water too) is crucial.

Now last summer (2007), before playing for Team USA, he lost almost 20 pounds. (now 205 pounds) to get his quickness back and worked on his vertical as well.