By Elizabeth Towe
Whether you are enjoying the downtime of winter in the yearly training cycle, or jumping into the New Year, new you, you should always make time to integrate core stabilization into your program. The BOSU Jump Squat can give you a fun way to try an unstable surface with baby steps or a blast. This exercise will work from the ground up, starting with foot and ankle stability, moving up to quadriceps, hamstrings and gluteal strength endurance. You will see quality improvement in trail running, mountain and road cycling.
Exercise
Begin by standing with your feet shoulder-width apart on the round side of the BOSU. If you do not have access to a BOSU, you can do this on the ground with a folded blanket or something similar to give an unstable landing surface.
Squat by flexing at the hips, knees and ankles. Keep the knees behind the toes and the torso leaning slightly forward.
Pause at the bottom of the squat, gently brace the core, then jump straight up. Start by making your jump very small (1 inch off the surface) and increase your vertical as you gain more strength, stability and balance on the landing.
Land softly and absorb the landing into flexed hips, knees and ankles. Be sure to “stick” the landing by pausing at the bottom.
Repeat the jump-landing sequence 10 to 15 times.
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Elizabeth Towe is a runner and a cyclist and the owner of Balanced Movement Studio in Carrboro. She graduated from East Carolina with a degree in exercise and sports science and has been personal training for over 20 years. Her ultimate goal for all of her clients is to help them realize and achieve the optimal quality in their life – and to remember to have fun doing it.
