You Can Do So Much More Than Box Jumps With A Plyo Box
Other than burpees, box jumps are probably ~the~ most well-known (and most intimidating!) plyometric exercise you can do. If they give you nightmares of scraped shins, I hear you—but I also guarantee you won't regret adding box jumps to your workouts as the benefits of box jumps are many.
Like other plyo moves, they help you build power (a.k.a. explosiveness) by requiring your working muscles to stretch and contract at hyper-speed. Not only do you feel like a pro athlete when doing them, but box jumps help you become quicker, more powerful, and more agile than most typical exercises—including strength training. Because box jumps are so high-intensity, they also torch major calories, so you reap cardio benefits, too.
Still worried about whether you'll stick the landing? Start low. It's far more important to learn how to do box jumps correctly than to jump as high as humanly possible. In fact, if you can't land your box jump quietly, your box is too high. Same goes if you land with your hips below your knees.
My best advice: Focus on form first. I always recommend starting about a foot away from your box with your feet hip-width apart, using an arm swing to help you explode up off the floor, and to land without a sound in a half-squat position. Once you feel strong and comfortable, start shooting for new heights.
Ultimately, though, whether you're hopping up onto a short step or rocketing up onto a three-foot-tall box, you can incorporate box jumps—and a whole slew of other box-based moves—into your sweat sessions. String together the seven exercises I break down here for a full-body box jump workout that builds power, strengthens every muscle, and gets your heart pumping.
Equipment needed: plyo box (or a sturdy elevated surface that's wide enough for you to land on with both feet flat)
Time: 20 minutes
Instructions: Perform eight reps of each of the following exercises, then continue immediately on to the next. After you've finished all seven movements, rest for one minute, then repeat twice more for three total rounds.
(Kathryn Wirsing)Full-body workout, comin’ right up.
