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Here we go!!! This one looks good, I listened to the author on his YouTube channel and he knows his stuff. I can’t imagine the content is worth paying for year round so I paid monthly with the intention of stopping when the progress levels out. It’s $27.95/month which works out at about £21, Vert Shock was $67 and got me 3.2 inches so I’d want a better dollars to inches rate from this.
6 Feb
Pre-Testing
I watched all the week 1 day 1 videos (there’s a lot) and also in the video library there were flexibility assessments for big toe, ankle/calf, hamstring and hip flexor, which I passed. That’s largely down to Kelly Starrett’s Supple Leopard book as I’ve been doing 30 mins of mobility twice a week.
CMJ – 57cm/22.4″
I did heavy squats two days ago so this is exactly where I thought I’d be, and if fresh I could maybe trouble 60cm. I purposefully avoided the technique videos for CMJ and 2 foot on Vert Code Elite’s site because I wanted this to be a true reflection of where I am without it.
Running Vert – 65cm/25.6″
I hit this jump really well and it’s possible I was 1cm higher. I had blu-tacked a ruler onto the backboard and the goal was to knock it off to confirm I can reach that height. I had a good enough connection at 64cm that I assumed it was 65cm and it was probably more.
Here’s my best running vert, you can see the ruler go flying. I had put the stick part of a post-it note on the lower end so the camera could pick up the bottom of the ruler better. The base of the ruler is 290cm, which is 14.8cm (5.8″) below the rim.
WEEK 1
Throughout this I will be purposefully vague so as not to give people the whole program for free. The layout is Day 1-5 and it looks like you can choose how to space them, as long as Days 1, 3 and 5 have sufficient recovery.
6 Feb
Dynamic Warmup
Activation exercises
Ankle drill, CMJ, Glute drill
Oscillating Squats w 40kg
RLESS ISO w 30kg
Lower Back Exercise
Calf ExerciseI enjoyed this. When I did the pushup & pullup program it made such a difference to my mind-muscle connection to start with activation exercises, and it’s the same here.
7 Feb
10 stretches
4 supersets (core, balance, feet)I’m familiar with a lot of these stretches and the principles of the ab stuff. It’s nice to work on foot conditioning as I can’t remember another program that’s addressed it.
8 Feb
Jump Session
This is like Jump Science 2.0 in that there’s a dedicated technique day. I had a narrow window to get this done on a Saturday morning before work and to save time I didn’t bring my tripod or intend to film anything. During one of my approaches I touched the backboard for the first time ever (I should note it’s 293cm and I did touch 294cm with a mini hoop in my garden) meaning my gains are already 2cm. Some of this could be attributed to my increased freshness having done heavy squats the previous week, but my technique felt sharp so I want to give the program the benefit of the doubt.
9 Feb
10 stretches
4 supersets (core, balance, feet)This is the same session as above and there’s the option of doing it a third time as a “Day 6”, which I won’t be doing.
11 Feb
Dynamic Warmup
Activation exercises
Ankle drill, CMJ, Glute drill
Oscillating Squats w 45kg
RLESS ISO w 35kg
Lower Back Exercise
Calf ExerciseWeights got heavier but everything else stayed the same. As you can see Days 1 & 5 are the same, as are Days 2 & 4. I should also note that on Day 3 there’s a pool workout but my nearest one is 10 miles away so I did the alternative exercises. That’s also the case on multiple occasions where he uses gym equipment I don’t have in my home gym, and in fact I bought resistance bands to be able to do some of the others.
My first impression is that it’s a good program but it’s very involved, I had to spend 30 mins for each session going through the videos and making a note of the coaching points, and there’s a lot to get through even if the sessions take 60-90 mins. The draw of some of the other programs is their simplicity, and I can see why nobody has made Vert Code Elite free online, because you’d need to link to all the videos to understand the program. I’m already confident I have my money’s worth for the first 4 weeks and so I’ll roll over and allow the money to be deducted for month 2.
Here are my oscillating squats from today, I’ve seen a top dunker do them in his leg day so they are maybe more common than I thought.
WEEK 2
13 Feb
Dynamic Warmup
Activation exercises
Ankle drill, CMJ, Glute drill
Oscillating Squats w 50kg
RLESS ISO w 40kg
Lower Back Exercise
Calf ExerciseMy right ankle seemed to flare up during the Ankle drills.
14 Feb
10 stretches
4 supersets (core, balance, feet)15 Feb
Jump Session
I started strongly, almost touching the backboard with a 2 foot approach, but last week I misunderstood the sets and reps and didn’t realise it was per leg, so some exercises I did double the volume. This meant by the time it came to longer approach I wasn’t explosive enough to touch the backboard again.
16 Feb
10 stretches
4 supersets (core, balance, feet)18 Feb
Dynamic Warmup
Activation exercises
Ankle drill, CMJ, Glute drill
Oscillating Squats w 50kg
RLESS ISO w 40kg
Lower Back Exercise
Calf ExerciseAnkle flared up AGAIN on the Ankle drill, the first time I thought it was coincidence but now it’s almost certainly being aggravated, so I’ll skip it next time. In general there’s so much more focus on foot strength and conditioning than any other program so my feet and ankles aren’t used to such a training load.
Here are my RLESS ISO’s, if you find my “Get Vertical” training log it has the same sets, reps and hold time in that program, so I’ve been here before https://9to5strength.com/forums/topic/get-vertical-program-by-christian-thibs/
WEEK 3
20 Feb
Dynamic Warmup
Activation exercises
Ankle drill, CMJ, Glute drill
Oscillating Squats w 50kg
RLESS ISO w 45kg
Lower Back Exercise
Calf ExerciseI did the ankle drills in shoes and this was fine.
21 Feb
10 stretches
4 supersets (core, balance, feet)22 Feb
Jump Session
Best session so far I think, I felt fitter doing the drills although the finished product of my running jump still leaves a lot to be desired. I equalled my PB off my less natural side, which is Left-Right takeoff, but I’m not that surprised because while it feels alien to me I can tell I’m getting height. I will take a ladder, plastic ruler and blu-tack every week because being able to reach for a target is so helpful.
23 Feb
10 stretches
4 supersets (core, balance, feet)This is all very standard, an extra rep here or there.
25 Feb
Dynamic Warmup
Activation exercises
Ankle drill, CMJ, Glute drill
Oscillating Squats w 50kg
RLESS ISO w 45kg
Lower Back Exercise
Calf ExercisePossibly a little bit tedious now having done it a 6th time, there isn’t that much room for progression so the focus is on quality reps.
Here is what still might be considered an unrefined takeoff but it did the job in equalling my PB. Note that brushing the bottom of the ruler would be a PB so I probably surpassed it
WEEK 4
27 Feb
Dynamic Warmup
Activation exercises
Ankle drill, CMJ, Glute drill
Oscillating Squats w 55kg
RLESS ISO w 50kg
Lower Back Exercise
Calf ExerciseAnkle drills in socks again, with my body leaning a little further forward and focus on dorsiflexion, no problems. I bumped the squats by 5kg and RLESS too, tough!
28 Feb
10 stretches
4 supersets (core, balance, feet)29 Feb
Jump Session
This was when the UK was hit with Storm Jorge, so it was miserable conditions. The court had puddles so I couldn’t jump at the rim, instead I had to find a suitable patch in the middle of the court. My coordination was still there but it was tough doing all the reps as my legs are picking up fatigue.
1 Mar
10 stretches
4 supersets (core, balance, feet)2 Mar
Dynamic Warmup
Activation exercises
Ankle drill, CMJ, Glute drill
Oscillating Squats w 55kg
RLESS ISO w 50kg
Lower Back Exercise
Calf ExerciseI usually wait until the Tuesday but I wanted to get this out the way and bring on the recovery. He says to go as heavy as possible with good form in the RLESS and I really pushed it with 25kg per hand this week. My appetite has exploded but I want to eat well over the next few days and set myself up well for phase 2.
Here are my CMJ when the weather was nicer. I bought this gym tile because landing on my patio was too hard, and the grass was too soft, but this is juuuust right.
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