drtbear1967
Musclechemistry Board Certified Member
What they should be used for:
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Box jumps are a fantastic way to develop the body's ability to be explosive by recruiting fast-twitch muscle fibers. They teach you how to develop a lot of force in a short period of time, thus training you to become more powerful. Doing a few box jumps before your strength workout will fire up your central nervous system (CNS), priming the body to train. Another more advanced plyometric drill is the depth jump. The goal with a depth jump is to spend as little time on the ground as possible to facilitate the stretch-shortening cycle, which aids in power production. When you do these, you want to think of the ground as lava and hop right back up as soon as your feet hit.
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What they should NOT be used for:
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You shouldn't use box jumps as a conditioning/cardio tool. Doing high-rep box jumps when you're fatigued is a great way to get injured and seriously wreck the progress you're making in the gym. As a side note, make sure the box you're jumping on is sturdy enough to hold you when you land. Using group fitness risers (aerobic steps) as your box and seeing how high you can jump is a great way to end up in the hospital.
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Who should use box jumps:
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If you're an athlete who can squat about 1.5 times your bodyweight and you want to improve your explosive capability, by all means perform box jumps or depth jumps. If you don't know how to properly land and absorb force from your jump, lack appropriate relative body strength, or can't walk and chew gum at the same time, you're better off forgoing this exercise for now.
.
.
Box jumps are a fantastic way to develop the body's ability to be explosive by recruiting fast-twitch muscle fibers. They teach you how to develop a lot of force in a short period of time, thus training you to become more powerful. Doing a few box jumps before your strength workout will fire up your central nervous system (CNS), priming the body to train. Another more advanced plyometric drill is the depth jump. The goal with a depth jump is to spend as little time on the ground as possible to facilitate the stretch-shortening cycle, which aids in power production. When you do these, you want to think of the ground as lava and hop right back up as soon as your feet hit.
.
What they should NOT be used for:
.
You shouldn't use box jumps as a conditioning/cardio tool. Doing high-rep box jumps when you're fatigued is a great way to get injured and seriously wreck the progress you're making in the gym. As a side note, make sure the box you're jumping on is sturdy enough to hold you when you land. Using group fitness risers (aerobic steps) as your box and seeing how high you can jump is a great way to end up in the hospital.
.
Who should use box jumps:
.
If you're an athlete who can squat about 1.5 times your bodyweight and you want to improve your explosive capability, by all means perform box jumps or depth jumps. If you don't know how to properly land and absorb force from your jump, lack appropriate relative body strength, or can't walk and chew gum at the same time, you're better off forgoing this exercise for now.
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