Re: interesting tidbit about vertical

[Kestutis.Kveraga@dartmouth.edu (Kestutis Kveraga)]

--- You wrote:
Okay, I think that's enough about my momma. :-)  
--- end of quote ---

Hey, yo mama is 17? :)

--- You wrote:
Actually, weight lifters,
like ski jumpers, probably are self-selected and stay in their respective
sports for their explosive hops to begin with
--- end of quote ---

Sure, but as I mentioned in my last post, nobody starts out anywhere near what they're currently lifting. They make huge progress, at least part of which must be neuromuscular (technique and performance-enhancing drugs account for most of the rest).  There's a good article about the benefits of Olympic-style lifting to athletes by Fred "Dr.Squat" Hatfield, Ph.D. at : http://www.drsquat.com/articles/1olympic.htm

--- You wrote:
, so while the full-time power
lifting surely helps it could also just be that a guy like Vitaly has pretty
much maxed out his vertical leap potential. 
--- end of quote ---

Let's hope not...

--- You wrote:
I wouldn't site "Vitaloca"
Potapenko as an example, but bottom line there clearly will always be more
to basketball than hops. 
--- end of quote ---

Sure, just look at #33...

--- You wrote:
FWIW, I do think that adding upper body strength
alone won't do a damn thing to improve your game in most sports, even
something like throwing a baseball harder or farther. 
--- end of quote ---

Well, I think folks like Karl Malone, or even Mark Blount, would disagree. The late Drazen Petrovic, his great shooting and passing skills notwithstanding, floundered in the NBA until he built up his upper body. Then he made the All-Star team. In fact, what do you think is meant by the term "NBA body"? 

--- You wrote:
I'm surprised but not
shocked to hear that MJ avoided lower body work, because intuititvely you'd
think that unbalanced weight lifting could actually reduce your hops as well
as put more weight stress on your knee joints. No question that squats
probably do the most by far to improve athleticism, even though they are the
last thing anyone would want to do in a gym (hence I'm not surprised about
MJ). --- end of quote ---

Well, MJ was too busy playing 2 rounds of golf during the day, and gambling at night. Needless to say, leaping ability was already his strong suit, so he could, and did, concentrate on other aspects of his game/conditioning. But other players with good leaping ability have done squats - like Olajuwon, for example. 

--- You wrote:
If you aske me, it really can become an obsession of retards (weight
lifting and hanging out two hours a day with lifters).
--- end of quote ---

Depends on the group and lifter type. They range from Ph.D.'s to total dumbbells. 

--- You wrote:
p.s. I don't know if you guys ever got hooked into buying those vertical
jump shoes (the sneakers with a big round rubber puck like think glued under
your toes). I did but then I got too embarrassed to wear them to the Y or to
jog in them (they make this stupid clomping sound). Do they really work?
--- end of quote ---

The studies that I've read show results ranging from no improvement with increased incidence of injuries (I think mostly to the gastrocs and Achilles), to small improvements with normal injury rate. So it's unclear. If they work, they would presumably induce muscle imbalances over the long haul, unless you somehow trained the antagonistic muscles as well. The shoes are basically a way to engage in a thoughtless plyometric drill, with the concomitant risks and benefits of plyometric training. 
Kestas