Challenge your body with these short, explosive movements

CrossFit enthusiasts are required to do this standard box jump, i.e. jump and land on top of the box. — Photos: Pexels

Every once in a while, you need to give your body a challenge to make it work more efficiently.

Those from my generation would recall simple pleasures during the school holidays: we rolled down hills, jumped to see who could reach the highest tree branch, hopped over frogs and played skipping games with ropes fashioned from rubber bands.

As far as we knew, these were childhood games that were fun, healthy, sweaty and did wonders for our coordination.

It was either that or read books, play boardgames and watch boring television.

I didn’t know it then, but these games led to the foundation of plyometrics – the popular training routine now used by professional athletes to boost strength, power and agility.

Plyometrics, popularly called plyos, are explosive movements that require you to generate a large amount of force in a short period of time.

According to history, plyos were first used in the then Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc countries in the 1920s, although they weren’t widely recognised until the 1960s.

These exercises were originally referred to as “jump training”.

When these countries began to have success in Olympic track and field sports during the Cold War era, the world took notice of their methods.

However, only track and field athletes were utilising jump training methods until the 1970s.

It was then that plyos tipped over into other sports that required cat-like agility and quick acceleration.

After all, athletic success is all about speed, power and agility, and this is exactly what plyos help achieve.

But you don’t have to be an athlete to discover its benefits, you just have to be a carefree child again!

There are many kinds of plyo exercises and many of us would have seen people jumping on top of a box or step.

CrossFit enthusiasts are familiar with this standard move that requires them to land on top of a box and get full hip and knee extension so they don’t fall, before jumping down.

The height of the boxes is pretty high, and typically, women use a standard 51cm-tall box while men use 61cm.

It may seem daunting and the beginner is always intimidated.

Don’t be.

Your intention is to do a jump to the best of your ability, so start off with a small forward hop, like a bunny.

For some people, this is already an explosive move.

Basically, you start with your knees bent and hop forward as far as you can, landing again with knees bent and both feet flat on the floor.

The fitter ones can begin and end in a parallel squat position.

Doing 10 of these will tire you out.

It’s perfectly fine to take a few seconds break to catch your breath in between hops, as the intention is to shake your body up.

Do as many as you feel comfortable with, but don’t go overboard.

If five is the maximum you can muster, then stop at five.

Be sure to warm up your body before starting plyos so that your muscles have time to adjust to the “shock” that’s coming.

Like everything in life, you have to leave your comfort zone to grow and move forward.

So, incorporate some of these easy plyo moves into your routine (see photos below), even if it’s only once a month.

You may not notice any difference physically, but you will feel the effects eventually.

Revathi Murugappan is a certified fitness trainer who tries to battle gravity and continues to dance to express herself artistically and nourish her soul. For more information, email [e-mail]. The information contained in this column is for general educational purposes only. Neither The Star nor the author gives any warranty on accuracy, completeness, functionality, usefulness or other assurances as to such information. The Star and the author disclaim all responsibility for any losses, damage to property or personal injury suffered directly or indirectly from reliance on such information.