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Start ShoppingPlyo boxes have become standard equipment in most gyms, and fitness enthusiasts are commonly incorporating them into workouts. Although they may look intimidating at first glance, if you’re serious about building muscle strength and power, plyo boxes are an essential option.
Look over our soft and wooden plyo box offerings and reach out with any questions. We can even customize a workout plan to help you achieve your goals.
Plyometrics Basics
Plyometrics training, most frequently called plyo, used to be called “jump training.” First used by Olympians in the 1950s, plyo became popular in the United States during the 1980s.
Plyometrics use speed and force of movement to build muscle power. The theory is that every time you jump and land, you stretch your muscles. That movement gives the next jump more power.
It’s this combination of contracting and stretching that gets your muscles into shape. Plyo training is all about building muscle power and adding intensity, variety, and depth to your existing workout.
Areas Targeted
Training with plyo exercises increases your strength, speed, and coordination. Common sense will tell you that you’re also targeting your legs. After all your kicking, jumping, and skipping, your glutes will get a tune-up, too.
Performing plyo exercises correctly means your arms, legs, hips, and shoulders should remain in sync with one another. Although you’ll feel the burn in your legs, plyo training requires a solid core to stay balanced.
Don’t count on plyo for core training; while plyo is not considered a cardio exercise, you will increase your heart rate.
The Plyo Box
Plyo boxes are a quick and easy way to refresh and retool your plyometric workout. Essentially, the plyo box is what its name suggests: a simple, sturdy box on which one jumps up and jumps down in calculated and measured distances.
Most use boxes of different sizes during their routines. Not only does this allow variation, but it also provides an opportunity for differences in elevation. Some exercises even require jumping to and from boxes of different heights.
No matter what box you choose, always look for a box with the ability to withstand multiple high-intensity impacts. Think about the comfort level on your feet, calves, and knees when you jump. Always make sure your plyo box has some sort of anti-slip guard on the bottom of the box.
Soft Plyo Box
The Basics
One of the best reasons to use a soft plyo box is for safety. Not only will you save your shins from scrapes and cuts, but soft plyo boxes reduce the impact on your joints.
Another soft plyo plus is that the instability provided when you land on a soft surface forces the tendons and ligaments that surround your knees and ankles to overcome that soft environment and stabilize.
The assurance that comes with the soft plyo box is that you can push your jumping strength limits without the fear of injury.
Our Product
The Archon Fitness Soft Plyo Box is ideal for everyone, from beginners who are still developing their technique to intermediate exercise enthusiasts looking for diversity in their workouts.
Our 3-in-1 with 20”, 24”, 30” jump options has a 350lbs weight limit. It’s the ultimate space saver!
Durable High Density PE Foam over a Wooden Box provides safety for all. Ideal for building explosive power, strength, improved cardio endurance, and improving vertical leaps, our box weighs 15.5lbs and stores easily.
Exercises to Try
- Low Box Step Up (Beginner)
- Stand in front of your box.
- Use even weight distribution across your whole foot.
- Step up onto the box with one foot. Keep your knees in line over your feet.
- Keep hips level over your feet.
- Step backward, slowly controlling your descent back to the ground.
- Box Squat (Intermediate)
- Prepare a barbell with a comfortable weight.
- Use a plyo box height that allows you to sit on the box with your legs at 90 degrees.
- Start standing with the bar on your shoulders. Place your feet outside your hip width in a squat stance with your toes pointed slightly out.
- Pull your belly in to help you stabilize, engage your glutes, sit down in a slow, controlled descent, and rock back into a natural spine position.
- To raise up, slowly lean forward and engage glutes to drive upwards into standing.
- Handstand Push Up (Advanced)
- Kneel on top of the plyo box and reach your hands to the ground.
- Raise knees away from the box to lock out straight legs.
- Feet and legs together, hips suspended over shoulders, bend arms to lower head to touch the ground lightly.
- Pushing back up through the arms, maintain your hips over your shoulders until your legs are 90 degrees to your hips.
Wooden Plyo Box
The Basics
When folks talk about plyo, the image that comes to mind is usually the wooden plyo box. Wooden plyo boxes have solid sides, which is a comfort to those who have been injured using plyo boxes that are platforms positioned on legs.
Sturdy and durable, the wooden plyo box is a classic at the gym and has certainly earned its place among favorite pieces of workout equipment.
Our Product
Our 3-in-1 Wooden Plyo Box builds power in your legs at a price everyone can appreciate. Three jump options of 20”, 24”, 30” are great for the beginner or the intense athlete.
Constructed from ¾” plywood, our box is textured to prevent slippage.
Exercises to Try
- Box Dip (Beginner)
- Facing away from the plyo box, place your hands on the box behind you at shoulders width.
- Straighten legs, heels on the floor, toes in the air, and legs at a 45-degree angle to your hips. Your arms will be supporting your weight.
- Dip your bottom toward the ground, but don’t shrug your shoulders. Keep them low.
- Slowly bend at the elbow and descend down the plyo box in a straight line. Do not drop away from the box towards your feet. Stay close to the box.
- Bend elbows 90 degrees, then drive arms back up following the same vertical line to straight elbow position.
- Repeat.
- Box Jump Up (Intermediate)
- Stand approximately 30 cm in front of the box, feet hip-width apart.
- Push your bottom back, bend your legs, and draw your arms behind your body.
- Quickly stand up by driving your legs away from the floor and swing your arms up in front of your chest.
- As you launch, tuck your legs up with wide feet and land level.
- Bend your knees as you land to absorb impact.
- Step backward 1 foot at a time off the box to the ground.
- Repeat.
- Barbell Hip Thrust (Advanced)
- Sit with your back against a low plyo box. Roll a loaded barbell over your legs up to your hips. (Start with light weight.)
- Setup with the bottom of shoulder blades pressing into the plyo box, barbell on hips, legs together, and get tucked up towards your bottom.
- Begin by squeezing your bottom, drive heels into the ground, and thrust your bottom up to the sky.
- Rotate shoulder up onto the box, so you are pressing shoulders down to the ground for stability.
- Slow and controlled, lower bottom and hips back to the ground.
- Repeat.
Areas of Caution
If you’re new to plyo, we highly recommend beginning your training with a professional. Using the proper form in both jumping and landing is critical to reducing injury risk. Make sure you start with the basics before moving on to more difficult exercises.
Don’t start plyo training if you are new to consistent exercise. To execute these exercises safely and without injury, you need to have a bit of training under your belt.
As with all exercise, it’s a good idea to talk with your doctor before beginning a plyo training schedule. We don’t recommend plyo as an exercise for those with neuropathy or any kind of nerve damage.
If you have heart disease, high blood pressure, or high cholesterol, your doctor may recommend a lower-intensity exercise that is more aerobic. We also don’t recommend plyo if you’re pregnant.
The Archon Difference
Archon is way more than an online retailer for workout equipment. We are a fitness company staffed by a team of passionate professionals dedicated to healthier bodies and healthy minds.
We provide a wide selection of only the highest-quality equipment and offer free shipping on almost all items. When you purchase a piece of workout equipment from us, our relationship is just beginning. Ideally, we start a dialogue.
We want you to know how to effectively and safely use the equipment so you see the results you’re expecting. Communicate with one of our trainers about the equipment you’ve purchased, and let us design a workout for you that will help you meet your fitness goals.
We are here for you. We want you to succeed. Whether you’re just beginning your journey toward fitness or you are well on your way to healthier living, you are important to us. Check out our website and start your relationship with Archon – TODAY.