Bounce Kit Review: Is Jordan Kilganon’s Jump Program Worth the $77?

Jordan Kilganon is one of the biggest names in the dunk community.

And for a good reason…

His unbelievable performances, including the one during the NBA All-Star Game, made even the league’s stars jump out of their seats.

Some of them even go as far as calling him

the best dunker that’s ever lived.

And there’s no question that Kilganon is an incredibly gifted athlete.

But does Bounce Kit – his vertical leap training program – live up to his reputation?

Can the 12-week program turn you into a dunking machine like Jordan Kilganon himself?

Or is it just a marketing trick to make money off of his brand?

In this comprehensive review I’m gonna be answering these questions.

I’m gonna cut through all the hype and give you the REAL, unbiased truth on whether or not Bounce Kit is worth your time (and money).

Ready?

Let’s begin.

Who Is Jordan Kilganon?

Jordan Kilganon is widely considered by many to be the greatest dunker of this era.

He’s a world-class dunker and an athletic freak who has performed some of the sickest dunks ever.

His 50-inch vertical allows him to create dunks that have never been done before, making him a celebrity in the dunk community and among NBA players.

Learning the secrets of vertical jump training from the best dunker in the world would seem only logical.

But does being a spectacular dunker automatically make Jordan Kilganon a good trainer?

It’s one thing to train yourself and achieve your own success…

…but it’s quite another thing to give out advice to other people from all ages and groups and sell them a workout program.

And while he can definitely “walk the walk” as far as being a great dunker goes, that’s pretty much where his credentials end.

Why?

Well, for starters…

Jordan Kilganon doesn’t have any trainer certification.

So it’s questionable if he truly understands body mechanics, injury prevention, and other important details that could apply to people with pre-existing conditions or prior injuries.

And I say this respectively, because most programs I’ve tested ’till today that turned out to be good, were usually created by certified and experienced trainers who were qualified to do so.

Take for example the three of the best rated vertical jump programs since 2014:

Vert Shock, Jump Manual and BoingVert…

All of which were created by qualified and certified individuals who majored in the field and have the credentials to show for it.

The bottom line is this:

Even before looking at the program, the fact that Kilganon has no certification whatsoever, casts doubt on its effectiveness.

But let’s not jump the gun too quickly.

The only way to find out if Bounce Kit truly works is to go through it in detail.

So let’s get down to business.

The Meteoric Rise to Fame and the Birth of a Bounce Program

For anyone that’s closely following the vertical jump community, it was impossible to miss Bounce Kit when it came out in 2015.

Even before his viral All-Star game performance, Jordan Kilganon had made plenty of noise in dunk competition circles.

As a consequence, his program was met with a lot of anticipation.

But unfortunately for me and for anyone who’s trying to find out more about the program, there’s little to no info available online at the moment.

Even the sales page of Bounce Kit is nothing more than a video of him dunking and an email signup form.

Still, I decided not to give up so easily.

After all, if Jordan Kilganon’s Bounce Kit is even half as good as his reputation, it could easily become the new hit program for anyone who seeks to achieve their dream of dunking.

So I bought the program three months ago and was able to free up time to try it for myself.

A Look Inside the Program

Once inside Bounce Kit’s dashboard, you are greeted with a short video by Kilganon himself.

While it says “Program Overview” next to the video, he simply congratulates you on joining the program, reminds you to measure your vertical throughout the training, and encourages you to join the Facebook Community.

In other words, it’s less of an overview, and more of a “quick hello” video, and that’s okay.

Unfortunately, as you go through the dashboard, you start noticing that this is a pattern.

Where programs such as Vert Shock, or especially Jacob Hiller’s Jump Manual go into extreme depths in covering the fundamentals of vertical jumping and why certain things work and certain things don’t – Bounce Kit really falls short.

There’s a few paragraphs at the “Before Starting” section that cover some basic tips about how you should do the exercises, yet most of this stuff is common knowledge…

Things like how to breathe when lifting, increasing the weights slowly, etc..

So unless you’ve never done any training at all, I doubt you’ll find any useful information here.

The “Notes” section introduces some basic terminology that’s used in the program, as well as instructions on what to do on rest days.

Other than that, what you’re basically left with are the downloadable PDFs of the workout sheets and the exercise video section.

My point?

The program is a bare-bones vertical jump training product, and that’s immediately noticeable once you start exploring it.

The only question that remains is…

Can the workouts themselves be effective?

Let’s take a closer look and see.

Bounce Kit Workouts

Bounce Kit takes three months to complete and is split up into three four-week long phases.

It combines a heavy dose of strength exercises, plyometrics, core training, and power training.

The wide variety of exercises isn’t a bad thing in and of itself, but the way the workouts are structured doesn’t make much sense.

For instance, plyometrics, an essential component of any serious vertical jump program, doesn’t get the necessary attention in this program.

The variety of plyometric exercises is very poor and leaves out some essential reactive force exercises that are CRUCIAL for vertical leap improvement.

There’s also very little attention being given to post-workout stretches, which is an important part of any training routine.

That’s because vertical jump gains are only made possible when allowing the muscles to recover properly.

Bounce Kit also fails to suggest any specific exercises to do on rest days, which makes it fall short of programs such as Vert Shock that have a great selection of active-recovery exercises for all the essential muscle groups.

Three-Phase Approach

The program is split into three phases.

The first phase is meant to build a strong foundation using resistance training, while the latter phases slowly shift the focus towards explosive movements and quickness training.

Phase One

In the first phase of Bounce Kit, prepare to spend a lot of time in the gym.

It is dominated by strength training exercises that are to be done mostly in the 5-6 rep range.

While this phase may be difficult, especially for someone without a prior weightlifting experience, it is well worth the effort.

In fact…

The strength training routine is one of the strongest aspects of the entire program.

It’s got a great variety of lower-body exercises that hit the key muscle groups that are involved in the mechanics of vertical jumping.

The program also makes good use of the scientifically-proven low-repetition approach which emphasizes strength gains with exercises that combine power and explosiveness.

Other than the heavy legs workouts, you will also do upper body, core, and jumping workouts – which unlike the resistance training routine, are quite boring and lack variety in terms of exercises.

Phase Two

During phase two of the program, you will slowly start shifting towards explosiveness training.

There will still be plenty of strength training workouts, but instead of working with near max capacity, you’ll reduce the load to about 60-70% of your 1 rep max.

This means that while the exercises will be similar, you’ll be working with slightly lighter weights and focusing more on explosive movements.

Here you’ll be doing more reps, and some power exercises will be introduced to the routine to work on your explosiveness.

The heavy legs workout will be replaced by moderate-to-heavy legs workout.

Phase Three

During the final phase of the program, you are supposed to utilize all the strength you gained in the previous two phases and turn it into explosiveness.

However, this is where the program really starts to show its cracks.

Bounce Kit’s heavy reliance on strength training is not backed by a solid plyometrics routine, and the lack of effective stretching exercises just adds to the problem.

The plyometrics and upper-body workouts are neglected throughout the course of the training, with strength training taking up most of the time.

Why is this bad?

This makes you work much harder than necessary due to the fact that speed development and plyometrics usually bring much faster results than strength-based training.

A good example of a program that makes terrific use of plyometrics and “shock” training is Vert Shock available here.

It was developed by former professional basketball player and renowned trainer Adam Folker.

You can check out my review of the program to learn more about it.

As for Bounce Kit, while the weights in Phase Three drop to 50% of your 1 rep max, there’s still little attention given to plyometrics.

That’s something that will prevent most athletes from seeing good results.

Bounce Kit Pros & Cons

Here are some of the things I liked and didn’t like about Bounce Kit.

Pros

Great Strength Training Routine

If there’s one thing that the program does well, it’s strength training.

The exercises target all the necessary muscle groups and help simulate jump movements to maximize your vertical leap potential.

If the strength training exercises were backed up with a good plyometrics routine, this program would have been much more effective.

Sound Principles

The program uses the correct basic principles that are proven to improve vertical jump.

Instead of relying on a huge number of repetitions, Bounce Kit emphasizes low rep numbers, max-effort training, and a combination of strength and explosiveness training.

While these principles aren’t applied most efficiently, the program can still be useful to some extent.

Great Warm-Up Routine

The program has a solid warm up routine that covers all the important muscle groups and prepares the body for the exercises to follow.

While this may not seem like a big deal, properly warmed up muscles are essential for maximum performance during the workout, as well as a key factor for preventing injuries.

High-Quality Videos

Jordan Kilganon has done an excellent job of producing high quality and clear exercise video demonstrations.

We all know how frustrating it can be figuring out how to maintain proper form without an instructor, and these videos come as close as possible to actual in-person training.

Cons

Too Much Strength Training

While a good strength foundation can help maximize your vertical leap, a strength-centered program limits your potential to achieve results quickly.

Even though the weight is reduced as you progress through the program, there’s still too little attention given to plyometrics and speed development.

No Variation in Plyometrics

Bounce Kit’s plyometrics and core workouts are too basic and lack diversity, which means the program won’t help you turn the strength gains into an explosive jumping ability as efficiently.

Poor Upper Body Routine

There are way too many isolated movements and too few compound exercises for the upper body.

Compound exercises form connections between different muscle groups, which contributes significantly to the overall explosive force that your body can generate.

No Info on Form/Technique

Another big shortcoming of Bounce Kit is its lack of info on movement efficiency.

You’re left for yourself to figure out the technique and form of the exercises, as well as jumping in general.

This is a crucial aspect of any vertical jump training program because, without proper form, your results will be minimal.

No Post-Workout Stretches

Yet another essential aspect of vertical jump that’s not included in this program!

Post-workout stretches can be just as important as the workout itself.

They ensure the muscles remain flexible and able to recover from the workout properly.

While Bounce Kit mentions that you should stretch after workouts and during rest days, it doesn’t give any info on which stretches to perform and what muscles to focus on.

Complexity

The program requires you to spend a lot of time measuring your performance and making on the spot decisions regarding how much weights to use.

The lack of guidance can leave a lot of less experienced athletes struggling to maintain an effective training regime.

Incomplete

The program lacks a lot of important information that’s required for it to be considered a finished product, including even basic elements like post-workout stretching.

Many parts of the program are half-finished, and the lack of guidance means that for most aspiring dunkers, this program will end up being too complicated and not effective.

Does Not Fit In-Season Training

The program’s heavy workload and its excessive reliance on weight training will leave you too exhausted for any other basketball activities.

For that reason, it’s not a good fit during the season.

If you want a program that’s perfect for in-season training, check out Vert Shock, a leading vertical jump program that doesn’t require any equipment and relies on workouts that can be done in under an hour.

Is Bounce Kit Worth The Investment?

To be completely honest with you, in my opinion…

No.

There are simply too many gaps in it, and therefore it can’t be considered a finished product.

It’s a mashup of a few different training styles, with little basis for the specific workout routine, and many of the essential aspects of vertical jump training are missing.

Programs like Bounce Kit get some parts of the equation right, which can definitely bring some results, but at the same time, they are missing key ingredients.

Which is why I think it cannot compete with other science-based programs.

And when you consider the steep price of $77 dollars, which is more than what other established programs charge, it becomes evident that Bounce Kit doesn’t even target educated buyers.

Instead, it tries to sell an overpriced product that’s built around the brand of Jordan Kilganon.

The fact that the program doesn’t share good reviews of its users online is also a clear sign that it might not be working too well for the people who bought it.

Summary

All in all, Jordan Kilganon’s Bounce Kit is a program that has bits and pieces of solid info, but ultimately fails to put it all together into an effective vertical jump training program.

Chances are you’ll see some improvement by following the program, but it won’t turn you into a dunking machine, simply because it’s incomplete – there are too many things missing in it for it to be effective.

If the program would get the necessary improvements in the way the info is presented and will expand on the basic plyometrics, upper-body training, and technique sections, it might be worth considering in the future.

But for now, when there are proven programs available for a lower price, there’s simply no way to rationalize choosing Bounce Kit.

Last Updated on January 5th, 2021 by Matthew Godley