Best Strength Training Exercises for Vertical Jump

You cannot jump high without strong legs. Plyometric drills and jump-specific training get most of the attention, but raw strength is the foundation everything else is built on. If your legs are not strong enough, no amount of plyometric work will get you to your full potential.

This guide covers the best strength training exercises for vertical jump performance, how to program them, and how they fit alongside plyometric training.

Why Strength Matters for Jumping

Jumping is about producing as much force as possible against the ground in a very short window of time. That force production depends on two qualities: how much total force your muscles can generate (strength) and how quickly they can generate it (rate of force development).

Plyometrics train the speed side. Strength training trains the force side. You need both. Research consistently shows that programs combining heavy strength training with plyometrics produce greater vertical jump gains than either method alone.

There is also a practical ceiling. Athletes who can squat less than 1.5 times their body weight tend to see bigger improvements from getting stronger. Athletes who already squat 2 times their body weight or more tend to benefit more from speed and plyometric work. Most basketball players and recreational athletes fall into the first category, which means strength training should be a priority.

The Best Exercises

The exercises below are ranked by how directly they contribute to vertical jump performance. All of them train the primary muscles involved in jumping: the quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings, and calves.

1. Back Squat

The back squat is the single most important exercise for vertical jump training. It loads the same muscle groups and joint angles used during a jump, and it allows you to move heavy weight through a full range of motion.

How to perform:

• Set up under a barbell in a squat rack with the bar across your upper traps
• Feet slightly wider than shoulder width, toes angled out about 15 to 30 degrees
• Brace your core, unrack the bar, and step back
• Lower until your hip crease is at or just below your knee (parallel or slightly below)
• Drive through your whole foot to stand back up

Programming for vertical jump:

• Strength phase: 4 to 5 sets of 3 to 5 reps at 80 to 90 percent of your one-rep max. Rest 3 to 4 minutes between sets.
• Power phase: 3 to 4 sets of 3 reps at 50 to 60 percent of your one-rep max, moving the bar as fast as possible.

Key points: Depth matters. Half squats do not train the glutes and hamstrings through the ranges of motion they work through during a jump. Go to at least parallel.

2. Trap Bar Deadlift

The trap bar deadlift closely mimics the body position of a vertical jump takeoff. Your torso stays more upright than a conventional deadlift, and the load is centered around your body rather than in front of it. Research has shown a strong correlation between trap bar deadlift strength and vertical jump height.

How to perform:

• Stand in the center of a trap bar (hex bar) with feet hip-width apart
• Hinge at the hips and grip the high handles
• Brace your core, flatten your back, and drive through the floor
• Stand up fully, locking out your hips and knees at the top
• Lower the bar under control

Programming for vertical jump:

• 4 sets of 4 to 6 reps at 75 to 85 percent of your one-rep max. Rest 3 minutes between sets.

Key points: If your gym does not have a trap bar, conventional deadlifts are a solid alternative. The trap bar version is preferred because of the more vertical torso angle and reduced lower back stress.

3. Bulgarian Split Squat

Single-leg strength matters for jumping, especially for athletes who take off from one foot. The Bulgarian split squat builds single-leg strength, addresses muscle imbalances between your left and right sides, and trains hip stability.

How to perform:

• Stand about 2 feet in front of a bench
• Place the top of your rear foot on the bench behind you
• Hold dumbbells at your sides or a barbell on your back
• Lower your back knee toward the floor while keeping your front shin relatively vertical
• Drive through your front foot to return to standing

Programming for vertical jump:

• 3 to 4 sets of 6 to 8 reps per leg. Rest 2 minutes between sets.

Key points: Keep most of your weight on the front foot. The rear foot is for balance, not for pushing. If you feel this exercise mostly in your rear leg, move your front foot further from the bench.

4. Romanian Deadlift

The Romanian deadlift (RDL) targets the posterior chain: hamstrings, glutes, and lower back. These muscles are critical for the hip extension that drives vertical jumping. Many athletes are quad-dominant and neglect the posterior chain, which limits their jump potential and increases injury risk.

How to perform:

• Hold a barbell at hip height with an overhand grip, feet hip-width apart
• Push your hips back while keeping a slight bend in your knees
• Lower the bar along your thighs and shins until you feel a strong stretch in your hamstrings
• Drive your hips forward to return to standing

Programming for vertical jump:

• 3 to 4 sets of 6 to 8 reps. Rest 2 minutes between sets.

Key points: This is a hip hinge, not a squat. Your knees should stay at the same angle throughout the movement. The bar should stay close to your body the entire time.

5. Front Squat

Front squats shift the load to the front of your body, forcing a more upright torso and placing greater demand on the quadriceps. They also require significant core strength to maintain position, which carries over to jumping.

How to perform:

• Set up in a squat rack with the bar resting on the front of your shoulders (clean grip or cross-arm grip)
• Keep your elbows high and your upper back tight
• Squat to parallel or slightly below
• Drive back up, keeping your elbows up and chest tall throughout

Programming for vertical jump:

• 3 to 4 sets of 4 to 6 reps. Rest 3 minutes between sets.

Key points: Front squats are harder to load heavy than back squats, and that is fine. Use them as a supplementary squat variation, not a replacement for back squats.

6. Calf Raises (Standing and Seated)

The calves contribute to the final push at the ankle during takeoff. While the calves get trained indirectly during squats and plyometrics, direct calf work helps maximize ankle joint power.

How to perform (standing calf raise):

• Stand on a calf raise machine or the edge of a step with a dumbbell in one hand
• Lower your heels below the platform for a full stretch
• Push up onto your toes as high as possible
• Pause at the top for one second, then lower under control

Programming for vertical jump:

• Standing calf raise: 4 sets of 8 to 12 reps (targets the gastrocnemius, the larger calf muscle used in jumping)
• Seated calf raise: 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps (targets the soleus, which contributes to ankle stiffness during landing and reactive jumps)

Key points: Use a full range of motion. Bouncing through half reps is one of the most common mistakes with calf training. Lower all the way, pause, then push all the way up.

7. Hip Thrust

Hip thrusts isolate the glutes through a horizontal force vector, building glute strength and activation. Strong glutes contribute to powerful hip extension during the takeoff phase of a jump.

How to perform:

• Sit on the ground with your upper back against a bench
• Roll a loaded barbell over your hips (use a pad for comfort)
• Plant your feet flat on the floor about hip-width apart
• Drive through your heels and squeeze your glutes to lift your hips until your thighs are parallel to the floor
• Lower under control and repeat

Programming for vertical jump:

• 3 to 4 sets of 8 to 10 reps. Rest 2 minutes between sets.

Key points: Squeeze hard at the top. Do not hyperextend your lower back. Your ribs should stay down and your core should stay braced throughout the movement.

How to Program Strength Training for Vertical Jump

Training for vertical jump improvement is not the same as training for general fitness or bodybuilding. The goal is to get strong enough to produce more force, then convert that strength into explosive power. Here are the key programming principles.

Prioritize compound movements. Squats, deadlifts, and split squats should take up the majority of your training time. Isolation exercises like calf raises and hip thrusts are useful additions, but they are not the main drivers of improvement.

Train heavy but not to failure. Strength training for jumping uses moderate to heavy loads (75 to 90 percent of your max) for low to moderate reps (3 to 6). You should leave 1 to 2 reps in the tank on most sets. Training to absolute failure increases fatigue without improving force production.

Keep volume reasonable. Two to three strength sessions per week is enough for most athletes. Each session should include one primary squat or deadlift variation and one or two accessory movements. Total working sets for legs should be around 12 to 16 per session.

Periodize your training. A simple approach is to alternate between a strength-focused block (4 to 6 weeks of heavier lifting) and a power-focused block (4 to 6 weeks of lighter, faster lifting combined with plyometrics). This is how most vertical jump programs structure their training.

Sample Strength Workout for Vertical Jump

Here is a sample lower body workout designed for vertical jump improvement. Perform this twice per week with at least 48 hours between sessions.

Warm-up: 10 minutes of light cardio, foam rolling, and dynamic stretching (leg swings, walking lunges, hip circles).

1. Back Squat: 4 x 5 at 80-85% of max (rest 3-4 min)
2. Romanian Deadlift: 3 x 6 (rest 2-3 min)
3. Bulgarian Split Squat: 3 x 8 per leg (rest 2 min)
4. Standing Calf Raise: 4 x 10 (rest 90 sec)
5. Hip Thrust: 3 x 8 (rest 2 min)

Total workout time: About 50 to 60 minutes including warm-up and rest periods.

How Strength Training Fits with Plyometrics

The best results come from combining strength training and plyometrics in the same program. There are two main ways to structure this:

Same-day training. Perform plyometrics first (when you are freshest), then follow with strength training. This is the most time-efficient approach and works well if you can only train 3 days per week.

Separate-day training. Plyometrics on one day, strength training on another, with a rest day between. This allows you to give full effort to each type of training. This works better if you can train 4 to 5 days per week.

For a complete plyometric program to pair with this strength work, check out our guide to the best plyometric exercises for vertical jump.

Start Building Your Foundation

Strength is the base that makes everything else possible. If your squat numbers are low, getting stronger will produce some of the fastest vertical jump gains you will ever see. Commit to consistent, progressive strength training for 8 to 12 weeks and retest your vertical. The results speak for themselves.

If you want a structured program that handles all the programming for you, our breakdown of the best vertical jump programs of 2026 compares the top options. The Jump Manual in particular puts heavy emphasis on strength training as a core component of its approach.