Ready to jump your way to a longer, healthier life? Ahead, we’ll break down how box jumps can support your long-term health, improve balance, and even slow down the aging process.
- Grayson Wickham, DPT, CSCS, physical therapist and founder of Movement Vault
How to do a box jump with perfect form every time
- Stand about a foot in front of a box, bench, or other sturdy elevated surface with your feet hip-width apart.
- Bend your knees and drive your hips back as you swing your arms behind you.
- Launch through the balls of your feet, jumping up as you swing your arms up and forward.
- Land as softly as possible on the box in a mini-squat, letting your knees and hips bend slightly to help absorb the impact of the landing.
- Then carefully step—don't jump—off the box onto the floor. That’s one repetition.
Your fitness level and box height will dictate how many box jumps you can do with good form, says Grayson Wickham, DPT, CSCS, physical therapist and founder of Movement Vault. A solid start is 3 to 5 sets of 10 to 15 reps, Wickham says. Add them to leg day, a full-body workout, or even a HIIT session since they’re great for getting your heart racing.
5 ways box jumps support healthy aging
There’s no secret sauce to aging gracefully. It’s pretty straightforward, actually: healthy habits like eating nutritious foods, getting good sleep, managing your stress, and working out regularly are key. And while all kinds of exercise are good for long-term health, box jumps are near the top the list. Here’s how they can help you stay strong and spry as the years go by.
1. They build stronger bones
Time isn’t friendly to your bones. As you get older, you tend to lose bone mass and density (especially if you’re postmenopausal). If you lose too much, it’s called osteoporosis (a condition that affects 10 million Americans and makes bones more likely to break), according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Weight-bearing movements put stress on your body's connective tissues, including your bones, which adapt by becoming stronger and denser over time.
The good news: You can slow down (or even prevent) a lot of this bad stuff by doing weight-bearing exercises. Weight-bearing movements put stress on your body's connective tissues, including your bones, which adapt by becoming stronger and denser over time, Wickham says. You can increase this stress by lifting heavier weights or doing explosive movements like box jumps. During a box jump, your body absorbs a lot of force when you land, which strengthens your muscles and bones while improving control and stability in your lower body, he says.
2. They increase explosive power
Ever had to sprint to catch a bus or flight? That’s "relative" explosive power in action, Wickham says. Being able to move fast without getting hurt is something everyone should be able to do, no matter their age.
If you want to be able to put the pedal to the metal well into your golden years, start doing box jumps. Thanks to its plyometric component, the box jump conditions your muscles to accelerate (and decelerate) fast, so it can help increase your explosive power, Wickham says.
Training for explosive power not only boosts your skeletal muscles but also improves endurance and cardiovascular health, he adds. All the things you’ll need for a long, healthy life.
3. They support mitochondrial health
Feeling tired all the time? Your mitochondria might need a little help. Mitochondrial health determines your energy levels, Wickham says. Think of mitochondria like tiny little power plants in your cells. They’re the engines that keep you going.
Getting older (and many age-related disorders) can mess with your mitochondrial quality, according to UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine. But exercise, especially weightlifting and box jumps, is a great way to improve it. Box jumps trigger the creation of new mitochondria and help them produce ATP (your muscles' energy source) more efficiently, Wickham says. The result: better endurance and speedier recovery times between workouts.
4. They stimulate stem cell proliferation
Life is all about breakdown and repair. "If you’re not replacing damaged cells and tissues effectively, you’ll age faster and face health problems," Wickham says. Stem cells help with this repair process.
You can boost your body’s production of stem cells through certain kinds of exercises. Yep, you guessed it: box jumps. Weightlifting and plyometric exercises like box jumps cause microscopic muscle damage, triggering an inflammatory response that wakes up satellite cells—your body's muscle-repairing stem cells, Wickham says. These cells then fuse with damaged muscle or create new fibers.
Plus, exercises like these also stimulate the release of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), a hormone which plays a big role in muscle repair and cell activation, he adds.
5. They improve balance and coordination
If you want to stay steady on your feet (and independent) as you age, start prioritizing balance training now. Balance may seem like NBD when you’re young, but it can literally be a lifesaver down the line. Every year, one in four older folks stumbles and falls, and one-fifth of these falls will lead to a serious injury, such as broken bones or a head trauma, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"Box jumps build strength and stability in your core, hips, knees, and ankles, which is key for balance and coordination," Wickham says. Because box jumps involve both jumping and landing, they challenge your ability to control each joint throughout the movement. The more you control you have over your body, the better your balance will be (and the less likely you’ll take a terrible tumble).
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