November 7, 2025, 7:12 pm | Read time: 4 minutes
Building body strength through fitness training is just one of many parameters. Equally important are explosiveness and improved coordination, for example. Box jumps are particularly effective for this. How do you perform them? What risks are involved? And how can beginners get started? FITBOOK author Tony Poland has taken a closer look at the exercise.
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Box jumps are simply jumps onto a box or platform. So far, so good. But it’s not quite that simple. The jumps are a plyometric exercise where you jump onto an elevated platform from a standing position with both feet simultaneously. They are fundamentally part of jump training and are often included in CrossFit.
How to Perform Box Jumps
To train effectively and minimize the risk of injury, proper technique is crucial.
Warm-up
Beforehand, you should prepare your muscles and joints for the upcoming explosive movements. A ten-minute cardio workout, such as running or jumping rope, is recommended. With some dynamic stretching exercises like leg raises or lunges and exercises that involve rotating the upper body sideways, you’ll be ideally prepared.
And Jump!
In the starting position, stand in a slight squat with your feet shoulder-width apart, a few inches from the box. Both arms are stretched backward. Then, swing your arms forward vigorously and push off explosively with your legs to jump onto the box. To land as softly as possible, it’s important to bend your knees slightly to counteract and cushion the impact. Be sure to maintain a stable posture with straight hips and knees!
Finally, don’t underestimate the dismount. It’s best to step down carefully and controlled to protect your joints.1
Also interesting: Exercises to increase your jumping power
The Right Height for the Box
An interesting point is how high the box should be. There is no universal answer; the height should be determined individually. Ideally, it should be a height where you can perform the jumps safely and cleanly. Most boxes are up to 75 centimeters high. Beginners might start with 30 centimeters and gradually increase. Important: The box must be firmly on the ground and not slip!
How to Achieve Your First Box Jump
You can build up to box jumps with some preliminary exercises or by stepping up and down from low heights.
Recommended for beginners are step-ups, which involve controlled stepping up and down. Here, the boxes should not be much higher than 30 centimeters. This builds balance while also stretching the hips. You can also do box squats, where you sit down on the box with control and then stand back up. This helps you learn the correct movement of knees and hips. Mini jumps in place, which are part of low-impact plyometrics, can also help beginners. The ankle joints become more stable, allowing for soft and elastic landings.
Overall, you can ease into the landing phase. For this, step down from a low height, about 10 to 20 centimeters, and land gently. Focus on stable knees, “quiet” feet, and an upright chest. Light jumps in place with soft landings and knees over the toes will lead to success with an active core.2
Once the basics are in place, you can tackle the actual box jumps. The rule here is: Choose a low height first, and step down instead of jumping down!
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Explosiveness, Strength, and Coordination: What Box Jumps Offer
Since box jumps are part of plyometric training, they train many different aspects. First and foremost, jumping power, stability, explosiveness, speed, and reaction ability. Additionally, the fast, explosive, and intense jumps also strengthen strength, coordination or balance, and endurance. The entire body is engaged, causing the pulse to race, which also improves cardiovascular endurance.
Moreover, our lower body and core are worked. The focus is mainly on the gluteal muscles, quadriceps, and thigh muscles. Calves and thighs are also engaged and addressed during the exercise.
Warning! These Risks Exist
Due to the dynamic nature of box jumps, there are some pitfalls that can end painfully. If you overestimate the height of the box, you might catch your foot during the jump. The shin then hits the edge of the box, often resulting in scrapes. If the box height is chosen too optimistically, the timing of the jump is often off, leading to missteps or even falls.
The landing phase also poses a risk. Landing too hard or stiffly puts excessive strain on the knees, ankles, and lower back. If you’re not stable during landing, you can also tip sideways, which can lead to serious ankle injuries.
And: Too many jumps in succession are not advisable. First, you become sloppy, which impairs jumping power and coordination. Second, joints and tendons are unnecessarily stressed.