{"id":56232,"date":"2017-03-01T07:15:26","date_gmt":"2017-03-01T12:15:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=56232"},"modified":"2017-03-03T17:38:20","modified_gmt":"2017-03-03T22:38:20","slug":"box-jumps-plyometrics-exercises","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/box-jumps-plyometrics-exercises\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Beast Box Jumps and Other Plyometric Exercises"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"How
Photo: Twenty20<\/a><\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Walk into any HIIT<\/a> class or CrossFit box and chances are you\u2019ll be asked to do a variation of a plyometric jump. Box jumps, frog leaps and tuck jumps help you improve your VO2 max<\/a> (speed), flexibility and range of motion<\/a>. But that\u2019s not all. Their explosive power works your entire body, while getting your heart rate up.<\/p>\n

Kat Ellis, head trainer and instructor at Uplift Studios<\/a> in New York City, says, \u201cPlyometrics are a mix of stability and strength, and create a strong foundation for doing explosive weightlifting<\/a> moves like the clean and jerk<\/a> and snatch<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

But if you\u2019re not nailing down the form of these moves properly, you can risk injuring yourself and cause strain on your joints. That\u2019s where tempo training comes in. Modulating movement based around a tempo allows the body to activate fast twitch muscle fibers and to learn to distinguish the difference between speed and power, Ellis explains. “The body finds a moment of explosive activation. For example if you’re doing a push-up<\/a>, concentrate on lowering the chest down for three seconds and pushing back up to a plank in one. The tempo, is 3-2-1, push.”<\/p>\n

Plyometrics help develop\u00a0core strength<\/a> and joint stability, too. \u201cTempo training forces you to slow things down. You\u2019re regressing the exercise to make sure your whole body is truly engaged,\u201d Ellis explains.<\/p>\n

According to the National Academy of Sports Medicine<\/a>, plyometrics are broken down into three phases: the eccentric phase, the amortization phase and the concentric phase. Take the box jump, for instance. The eccentric phase is when you\u2019re in a half-squat position with your knees bent. When you drive from your heels to jump, that\u2019s the amortization phase. The concentric phase is when you finally land on the box and release the energy and tension in your muscles. With that said, take Ellis\u2019s lead, as she breaks down these three popular jumps.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>3 Plyometric Moves That Turn up the Burn<\/a><\/p>\n

Bust a Move: 3 Plyometrics Exercises, Broken Down<\/h2>\n

1. Frog Leaps<\/h3>\n

\"How \"How<\/p>\n

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Progression 1
\n<\/strong>How to:<\/strong> Stand with your feet a little wider than hip-distance apart with your toes slightly turned out to the sides. Raise your arms at your sides with your hands overhead and palms facing forward (a). Sit into a deep sumo squat with your butt back and down so your weight is evenly distributed from your arches to your heels (b). Press up from the squat and lift your right leg up to hip height, bending your right knee (c). At the same time, engage your right oblique muscles so you bring your right thigh towards your right elbow (d). Return to the starting position and repeat on the left side. Alternate for five reps on each side.<\/p>\n

Progression 2<\/strong>
\nHow to:<\/strong> Sit back into a deep sump squat position with your hands overhead together and palms facing forward (a). Driving from your heels, jump up, bending your knees so your thighs touch or brush up against your thighs (b). Land softly into a sumo squat before jumping again (c). Do five to eight reps.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>The Ultimate 20-Minute MetCon Workout<\/a><\/p>\n

2. Tuck Jumps<\/h3>\n

\"How\"How<\/p>\n

Progression 1
\n<\/strong>How to:<\/strong> Stand with your feet hip-distance apart with your toes facing forward (a). Sit into a squat with your arms at your sides raised to shoulder height, palms facing each other (b). As you stand up from the squat, lift your right leg to hip height with your right knee bent (c). At the same time, place one palm on top of the other to meet your right knee. Repeat on the left side (d). Alternate for five reps on each side.<\/p>\n

Progression 2<\/strong>
\nHow to:<\/strong> Start in a squat position with your arms at shoulder height and palms facing each other (a). Jump up as high as you can, driving your knees towards your chest, almost touching the palms of your hands (b). Re-extend your legs to land softly on the ground (c). Do five to eight reps.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>5 Plyo Box Exercises to Rev Your Fitness<\/a><\/p>\n

3. Box Jumps<\/h3>\n

\"How\"How<\/p>\n

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Progression 1
\n<\/strong>How to:<\/strong> Stand behind a box or step with your feet shoulder-width apart and a slight bend in your knees (a). Step one foot at a time onto the box, keeping the slight bend in your knees, and then step back down one foot at a time (b). Do five reps.<\/p>\n

Progression 2<\/strong>
\nHow to:<\/strong> Stand behind a box with your feet shoulder-width apart and a slight bend in your knees (a). Jump onto the box with both feet, landing with your knees slightly bent (b). Jump back down and repeat for five to eight reps. Note: If you\u2019re doing this move in a CrossFit WOD, standard technique is to straighten your legs at the top of the box, standing tall, before hopping or stepping back down.<\/p>\n

GIFs: Tiffany Ayuda \/ Life by Daily Burn<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Box jumps are badass. But nailing proper form is trickier than you\u2019d think. Your guide to these popular plyo jumps \u2014 and other plyometrics \u2014 is here. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":90,"featured_media":56625,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,24,6],"tags":[288,37,289,139,431,341,343],"class_list":["post-56232","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cardio","category-exercise","category-fitness","tag-cardio","tag-crossfit","tag-exercise","tag-hiit","tag-plyometrics","tag-tax1living-well","tag-tax2exercise"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56232","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/90"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56232"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56232\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56625"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56232"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56232"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56232"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}