Posts Tagged ‘hips’

How to do Box Jumps

Wednesday, October 2nd, 2024
female athlete performing box jumps

Box jumps are a great exercise for your legs, and can be performed on just about any variable flat surface. They hit your posterior chain – calves, quads, glutes, and hamstrings – pretty hard.

Box jumps can be used for cardio workouts, neural activation training (NAT), high-intensity resistance training (HIRT), and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) circuits. They are often used in CrossFit WODs (Workout of the Day) and are a staple exercise in plyometric training. Plyometrics have a wide range of athletic and real sporting applications; they are used, for example, to increase jumping ability, leg strength, hip drive, and explosiveness.

Box jumps are a simple movement. They require you only to jump from one flat surface up onto another flat surface, then either step or jump back down, depending on the purpose of the exercise. These are our tips for performing them safely and effectively.

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How to Increase Your Vertical Jump

Friday, March 12th, 2010

Increasing Your Vertical Jumping Ability

A single vertical jump for maximum height is one of the most intense exercises you can do.

Why? Because it requires you to utilize your entire lower body chain in a maximal effort contraction, to produce a maximal amount of force in a split second.

The important aspects of training to work on, to increase your vertical leap include:

Vertical Jump
Vertical Jump
  • Squatting strength – Maximal leg strength transfers directly to a vertical jump. A strong 1 rep max = a big jump.
  • Squatting speed – The faster you can squat, the more power you can generate, the higher you can jump.
  • Squatting power – Tied in directly with speed and strength, squat heavier and squat faster and you will jump higher.
  • Acceleration – You want to continue accelerating out of the hole all the way through the top of your jump.
  • Single leg strength – To eliminate strength imbalances and to improve neuromuscular coordination, train your legs individually.
  • Calf strength – Your calves are used at the end of the jump, so max calf strength can mean an extra inch on your vert.
  • Sprint speed – Sprinting trains the Type-II Fast Twitch muscle fibers, which are what you need to attain your highest jump. Acceleration applies here as well.
  • Hip drive – Your hips are responsible for a significant portion of jumping power from a parallel squat position to standing.
  • Glute activation – Your glutes are responsible for driving you out of the hole at the bottom of a squat or jump.

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