Don't really think it has to do with your height, has anyone some solid information about that? I'm 6 ft 5" (or 194 cm) and I can jump quite high. Is that true? I always heard training with weights on your legs was bad for your kicks..
Always make sure your legs are strong enough for ankle weights, I keep saying this but some boneheads try to make up theories on their own. If you can do say 20 explosive deep squats easily (meaning you can probably spring out atleast 6 or 7 more), then maybe you can/should incorporate ankle weights into your exercise. But try to use ankle weights only when you feel like you're not getting enough resistance from your bodyweight, or else you're asking for joint (most likely knee) problems.
Oh and height doesn't really matter it's genes and hardwork. Some people have 40inch verticals without even working on it.
Oh, hey guys, thanks for all the cool information. I had forgotten about this thread, let alone being subscribed to it. The thread was started back in 2004. Not sure how it got revived though. I guess my progression: I haven't really used any plyometric techniques for jumping, but over time ( 2 Years ) I'm able to jump higher than i used to. More confidence and shedding the "I can't do" attitude, as well as replacing it with more of a "Might as well attempt it" attitude, i now actually do some of the jumps in my forms As for jump kicks, I'm getting quite good at doing variations that don't involve leaving the ground at all
we practise over a belt held loosely so that if u hit it u dont get caught up in it. The belt is held higher each time. you might be suprised how high you can get. Some of our lads can get 5ft+. Fear of jumping is a problem for many people.