Tip: The Proper Box Jump

It's not about how high the box is. It's about how explosive you are from the ground.

The box jump is a plyometric exercise that offers a benefit that not a lot of other plyometric exercises offer: it's an explosive jump without the impact of landing. Therefore it can be used early in your plyometric training progressions.

The box jump is an explosive jump. It's about how much force you can put into the ground in order to jump as high as you can. Unfortunately, people often make it about the height of the box.

The problem with this approach is that it can be misleading, because you can jump onto a higher box by tucking your knees in. The result is, you jump onto a higher box without actually jumping higher.

What's the Solution?

Instead of focusing on the height of the box, focus on an explosive jump, where you land in the same position on the box as you jumped onto the box. The hip angle and knee angle of the landing should be the same as the hip and knee angle of the deepest position of the dip before you explode up.

Christian Bosse is a strength-and-conditioning specialist who has developed some of the world's strongest athletes. He prepared competitors for medal success at the Olympic Games in London (2012) and Rio (2016). Christian is currently working with athletes in preparation for the Olympic Games in Tokyo (2020). Follow Christian Bosse on Facebook