Fast Fitness - Seventh Group Functional Training: Advancing Ankle and Knee Safety With Single Leg Jumps

Here is Fast Friday Fitness - seventh in the series of Functional Fitness Training (Bookspan Basics) to teach your group, teams, classes, students, kids, battalions, or self. In this Bookspan Basic Training, you advance lower leg stability from single leg vertical jumps to lateral movement:

Assemble your group in neat rows. Stand in front in view of all. Tell them this is a basic, functional physical skill to learn how to reduce lower body injuries during sideways jumps. Remind them they need to use the same principles from the Third, Fifth, and Sixth FFT of vertical jumps.

1. Have everyone crouch using good bending (knees do not sway inward or slide forward, taught in the first skill), then rise to toes with stable neutral ankle (not bowing outward at the side, taught in the second skill). Remind them that when they land from a jump they use the same neutral ankle.
2. Stand with good stance on one leg only. Have them leap side to side from one leg to the other
3. Then try it jumping side to side on the same leg. Switch and repeat.

Use this for improving ability and reducing injury potential from changing direction, cutting, lateral movement, landing to the side from jumps, slips and missteps, and more. It builds on the Third, Fifth, and Sixth Functional Training exercises where you learned to jump vertically (up and down), laterally (side to side) with good lower body mechanics, then advanced to vertical single leg jumps.

During actual real life walking around, practice this by hopping (from one foot to the same one foot only) from point to point. Use street cracks and lines as goal points.

Trainers, Drill Instructors, readers, send in your stories of how you use these in your program.

Good body mechanics are a powerful performance enhancing aid.

Functional Group Bookspan Basics:

• Info on this new Functional Training program - Back to School With Fitness Fixer
• First Group Functional Training Exercise, Good Bending for Back and Knees
• Second Group Functional Training Exercise: Ankle Stability and Ability
• Third Group Functional Training Exercise: Ankles and Knees in Jumps and Landings
• Fourth Group Functional Training Exercise, Functional Upper Back Stretch
• Fifth Group Functional Training: Ankle and Knee Safety With Lateral Movement
• Fast Fitness - Sixth Group Functional Training: Advancing Ankle and Knee Safety With Single Leg Movement
  

Related Fitness Fixer:

• Reader Stuart Wood has been using these and other of my work to start community wellness programs: StuartShip - How To Start Healthy Movement Programs
• Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans

Random Unrelated Fun:

• How Often Should You Be Healthy?

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Read success stories and send your own.
See if your answers are already here - on DrBookspan.com and the Fitness Fixer Index.
Limited Class space for personal feedback. Top students may earn certification through DrBookspan.com/Academy. More fun in Dr. Bookspan's Books.

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