Looking to switch up your home workout routine? If you have some floor space available, definitely go for plyo boxes. You’ve probably seen these boxes in your local gym or CrossFit training studio as they are like bread and butter there for a variety of reasons.
In this article, we dive into all the details about the best plyo boxes for your home gym and discuss our top recommendations to help you with your fitness journey! Let’s get started.
Plyo boxes are platforms used for plyometric exercises. These exercises involve activities that enable your muscles to reach maximum force as quickly as you can. So unlike parts of a typical calisthenics routine which may involve slow and long movements, plyometric workouts make you do quick, explosive exercises to increase your power and speed. Examples of plyometric exercises include box jumps, step-ups, depth jumps, and more.
As mentioned above, plyometric exercises are combinations of quick and explosive movements. This type of workout trains your muscles to stretch and contract rapidly. And when the right amount of force is applied while stretching, your muscles will respond by contracting with more force. You can apply proper force by doing bursting movements like pushing and jumping. As a result, the higher rate of force development boosts your speed and muscular power.
Plyometric exercises teach your body to spend less energy while producing more force. As a result, you don’t get tired easily at the beginning of your routine. You have enough energy to sustain quality and execution throughout your routine.
Yes, aerobic exercises are the more well-renowned calorie-burning routine. But, plyometric workouts also provide excellent calorie burn (with even less time commitment). This is because as you increase your effort of endurance and strength, you enhance your performance which burns your calories at a faster rate. Plyometric workouts help increase your metabolism which burns calories even while your body is at rest.
New research shows that explosive movements are also good for maintaining bone structure (hence why a plyo box is such an excellent tool here). To maintain their density, our bones are being constantly rebuilt. And one of the best ways to start that process is to exert a healthy amount of stress on the bones through plyometric exercises.
For your home gym, all you need is a plyo box, your body weight, and a small amount of floor space to perform plyometric exercises. That’s why a plyo box is an excellent addition to your home or garage gym because of the variety of new workouts you can do on them and the benefits they bring to your overall fitness.
If you’re a beginner, you would want to start with a plyo box that is relatively lower in height. Or, go for plyo boxes that are either adjustable in height or those who have three size variations in one. This way, you can start with easy routines and level up as you get stronger without having to buy a new box.
Plyo boxes come in different materials as shown in our list of recommendations above. You can have foam, wood, plastic, or even steel plyo boxes. Some variations also have non-slip tops while others rely on the material for a more natural grip. If you want something durable, ditch the plastic (but perhaps don’t be scared of resin!). If you value portability you might choose wood.
Of course, it is very important to choose a plyo box that is safe to use. The safest one would be closed on all sides, have rounded corners, and have screws and bolts flushed with the surface to avoid scrapes and other injuries.