Exercise Library
Box Jump
The box jump is one of the simplest jumping exercises and is a good way to benefit from jumping while also being able to minimize impact.
Perform a standard countermovement jump up onto a box. Stand with feet around hip width, brace the trunk, bend at the knees and hips to load the legs and swing the arms back, then swing the arms up as you push as aggressively as possible against the ground with the legs.
Once off the floor, bend at the hips to lift the feet high enough to land on the box.
Generally it’s a good idea to use a box well under what you can actually jump onto so you can focus on jumping as high as possible and coming down onto the box rather than focusing on reaching the feet up as much as possible.
Demand on actual leg and hip power can be increased by removing the swinging of the arms—hold the hands loosely at the chest instead.
Purpose
The box jump is a basic exercise to develop explosive leg and hip extension.
Programming
Box jumps should generally be done for 3-5 reps per set, with 3-10 sets. In weightlifting, they are usually done at the end of a training session. This prevents their fatiguing the lifter for the performance of more sport-specific speed-dependent lifts, and also helps improve explosiveness by forcing the body to recruit more and higher-threshold motor units when partially fatigued. However, a few sets of jumps can be performed at the start of a training session as a neurological primer, or supersetted with squats to encourage great motor unit recruitment and aggression.
Variations
Box jumps can be done without a countermovement, with a full squat countermovement or from the bottom of a squat, with one leg, to the side, from a seated position, and many more options.
Perform a standard countermovement jump up onto a box. Stand with feet around hip width, brace the trunk, bend at the knees and hips to load the legs and swing the arms back, then swing the arms up as you push as aggressively as possible against the ground with the legs.
Once off the floor, bend at the hips to lift the feet high enough to land on the box.
Generally it’s a good idea to use a box well under what you can actually jump onto so you can focus on jumping as high as possible and coming down onto the box rather than focusing on reaching the feet up as much as possible.
Demand on actual leg and hip power can be increased by removing the swinging of the arms—hold the hands loosely at the chest instead.
Purpose
The box jump is a basic exercise to develop explosive leg and hip extension.
Programming
Box jumps should generally be done for 3-5 reps per set, with 3-10 sets. In weightlifting, they are usually done at the end of a training session. This prevents their fatiguing the lifter for the performance of more sport-specific speed-dependent lifts, and also helps improve explosiveness by forcing the body to recruit more and higher-threshold motor units when partially fatigued. However, a few sets of jumps can be performed at the start of a training session as a neurological primer, or supersetted with squats to encourage great motor unit recruitment and aggression.
Variations
Box jumps can be done without a countermovement, with a full squat countermovement or from the bottom of a squat, with one leg, to the side, from a seated position, and many more options.
