To improve your form, after you stretch, clear any mental blocks you may have. There’s a connection between what your mind does and what your body does, and you want to eliminate that by imagining your goals as clearly in your mind as possible, so you don’t in any way inhibit what your mechanics are going to do.
I recommend you watch NBA player Spud Webb, paying attention to how he gets into his jump. You will notice how Spud Webb’s last step before exploding is exaggerated and about two or three times longer than his normal step. Why do you do that? Because that extra length lowers his entire body, and when his entire body lowers, he’s ready for all the muscles to contract and send him up.
If you’re training for any track event, be it long jump or high jump, you’ll be taught to exaggerate your finishing step so that you drop your entire body weight and get ready to explode. If you’re standing up in the air, the least you can do is flex your quads a little bit, flex your calves, and just do a little bit with your lower back. But you won’t be able to get as close to the explosion as when it’s already primed and in place.
Now look at the point just before the full explosion, where his arm is, where the ball is. It’s almost between his legs, because if his hands were already close to his chest, it can’t explode using his upper body. Then your entire body, including your legs, arms, and upper body, is ready to explode upwards.
You want to exaggerate this as much as you can, including pointing your toes toward your knees so your legs are ready to fully explode and your joints and muscles take advantage of all the elasticity they have. Look at Spud Webb to see where everything is exploding up: his hands are up; his legs are extended; and he is sending everything he has into heaven. A lot can be said about watching the pros and how they jump.
