Jumping For Strength

It’s called plyometrics, or just “plyos” if you want people to think you do this kind of thing regularly, and it means using muscles in a way that they exert maximum force in minimum time. Jumping may be the best example. How good for you is jumping? The Wall Street Journal quotes Scott Caulfield, the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for the National Strength and Conditioning Association in Colorado Springs, who tells us that jumping engages the quads, hamstrings, calves and glutes and also teaches the body to absorb force. “Learning to jump properly can help reduce the risk of injury,” says Caulfield. “If you’re a weekend warrior playing softball or basketball or if you trip and need to recover from a fall.” How to do it: the Journal points out that while professional athletes routinely jump onto high boxes, the average person might start with jumping rope, then progress to jumping up on a small step or onto a small box. “Ideally,” says Caulfield, “your shoulders should be in line with you knees, which are in line with your toes. You want to land on the balls of your feet with a good bend in the knees and hips to absorb the landing.”