These muscles cooperate to bring your legs back together during the return phase of the jumping jack exercise. You can also time yourself for at least 30 seconds.. They also activate your core and shoulder muscles, says Ariel Belgrave, a Tone It Up trainer. Briana Bain, DPT, PT, is a physical therapist based in Virginia Beach. Land gently with your feet together, then return to the crouching position. To burn out your legs, Sims says to try squat jacks, which will recruit your glutes, quads, and hamstrings. Keeping your hands in place and core strong, jump your feet out just wider than shoulder-width while keeping your hips as low as possible. Sit tall on the edge of a chair with your knees bent. The gastrocnemius and soleus muscles make up the calves, spanning the back of your lower legs. You can swing your arms out to shoulder level instead of overhead if you have shoulder injuries or limited mobility. Start in a crouching position, with your feet together and knees bent. Simultaneously jump both feet apart and bring your arms out to the side until they're overhead. Return your right foot and arms to the starting position. Return the weight to your check as you jump your feet back in. Return your left foot and arms to the starting position. Individual fitness levels vary, and there is no magic number of jumping jacks you should do, so listen to your body. Hinton PS, Nigh P, Thyfault J. Theyre a full-body plyometric exercise that mainly works your glutes, quadriceps, hip flexors, and calves. She works as a Physical Therapist at Adler Therapy Group and a BodyPump Instructor at OneLife Fitness. Shoot the weight straight up with a pushing motion while jumping your feet out. The exercise, which involves spreading your arms and legs like a starfish then jumping them back together increases your heart rate, stimulating blood flow to a variety of muscle groups throughout your body. Jumping jacks are an awesome bodyweight exercise that works many of the main muscle groups at once, says Aliyah Sims, CPT, trainer at Rumble Boxing and Rumble TV in NYC. Bring your arms back down and place your hands on your knees. Grab the head of one dumbbell with both hands. The middle portion of the deltoid and the supraspinatus muscles work together to abduct your shoulder joint, moving your arm sideways away from your body. Keep your back flat and your arms by your sides.
2015;79:203-212. doi:10.1016/j.bone.2015.06.008, These 15 Workouts Are Essential If You Spend the Day Sitting, Be Active While You Work30 Exercises You Can Easily Do At Your Desk, 10-Minute Kayla Itsines Workout for Legs, Core, and Arms, This 10-Step HIIT Workout Will Tone Your Whole Body, 8 of the Absolute Best Bodyweight Glute Exercises, 14 Oblique Exercises That Help Build a Stronger Torso, 12 Yoga Poses to Strengthen and Tone Your Abs, IG Star Helen Owen Shares the Best 6-Minute Toning Workout, The 10 Best Resistant Band Moves, According to Personal Trainers, 14 HIIT Moves to Do When Youre Short on Time but Want Results, How Functional Fitness Can Help Make Everyday Tasks a Bit Easier, Lateral Squats Provide Major BenefitsHere's How to Do Them, Lateral Jumps Are an Explosive Addition to Your Workout. Read more: A 10-Minute Plyo Box Leg-Day Workout. Star jumps really plus up the jumping part of jumping jacks. Pop your butt while your left leg is in the air. These deceptively simple exercises pack a lot into a short amount of time. She has written for sites such as Brit + Co, Popsugar, Livestrong, and more. These muscles contract to arc your arms from your sides over your head during the initial phase of the jumping jack exercise at the same time that you're spreading your legs apart. Add a little extra weight to make the jacks more challenging, says Sims. Effectiveness of Resistance Training or Jumping-exercise to Increase Bone Mineral Density in Men With Low Bone Mass: A 12-month Randomized, Clinical Trial. Yvonne McGreevy is a researcher, fact-checker, video content creator, and writer with over 15 years of experience working with various publications. The former muscle attaches to the top of the acromion, just above your shoulder joint, on one end and to the top outside portion of the humerus bone of your upper arm on the other. These are two of the three muscles often referred to as the buttocks, or glutes. If you show up early enough to a sporting event, you might see the participants performing jumping jacks, either collectively or individually, as part of their pregame routine. Shift your weight to your right foot and tap your left foot out to the side, bringing your arms overhead at the same time. The shoulder adductors come into play as you lower your arms to your sides. Repeat jack and twerk with the weight on your left foot. 
Core muscles that assist you during jumping jacks include your abs the rectus and transversus abdominis, and the obliques hip flexors such as the psoas major and lower-back muscles such as the lower portion of the erector spinae.
Stand with your feet together, knees soft, and arms down by your sides. Shift your weight to your right foot, hinge at the hips, and lift the left leg. Start in a high plank position, with your hands under your shoulders, feet together, core engaged, and glutes strong. Simultaneously jump both feet apart and bring your arms out to the side until they're overhead. Byrdie takes every opportunity to use high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Obviously, your legs and arms are moving, but jumping jacks also work your whole body. You will form an X in the air. Says Sims, I would start with a goal of eight to 12 reps and then add on from there. A variety of muscles across your upper chest, back and arms act as shoulder adductors, including the latissimus dorsi and teres major in your back, both heads of the pectoralis major in your chest, the triceps in your upper arms and the coracobrachialis in your shoulders. Jump up into a star, with your arms and legs wide and out to the sides. As with most athletic activities, your core muscles help stabilize your movements throughout the jumping jack exercise, and also help maintain your balance. Theyre a great, quick way to get your body moving and your heart pumping, whether youre off to recess or preparing for a hard HIIT class. For beginners, Belgrave suggests doing just a few at a low to moderate intensity and then work your way up to doing two sets of 10 or more reps. If youre regularly active, you may do as many as 150 to 200 repetitions of jumping jacks in a session, she says. Shift your weight to your left foot and tap your right foot out to the side. Bring your arms overhead at the same time. Bone. Belgrave explains how to do them: Belgrave suggests trying plank jacks if you want to add more core.
Jumping jacks work muscles throughout your arms, legs and core. They cooperate to plantarflex your ankle, which is the movement that lifts your heel off the floor. Jumping jacks are one of those exercises that youve probably done your fair share of, starting back in elementary school PE class. Here are some of the benefits: Jumping jacks can take various forms, but here is how to do a basic one, says Belgrave: By making a few modifications, you can dial up or down the intensity of standard jumping jacks. Jump your feet out and lower back into a squat. As an added benefit, they also boost cardio health. The gluteus medius muscle is the primary hip abductor, allowing you to spread your legs apart when you perform jumping jacks, and the gluteus minimus assists. The muscles attach near the knee joint on top and combine at the Achilles tendon to attach to the heel on the bottom. By clicking Accept All Cookies, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Read our, The Right Way to Do Burpees For Maximum Results, LEARN ABOUT BYRDIE'S EDITORIAL GUIDELINES, Effectiveness of Resistance Training or Jumping-exercise to Increase Bone Mineral Density in Men With Low Bone Mass: A 12-month Randomized, Clinical Trial. Each of these muscles attaches to your pelvis and the inside of the femur, or thigh bone, on the bottom except the gracilis, which attaches to the inside of the tibia bone, just below your knee, instead of the inside of your thigh. The calf muscles contract every time you jump when performing jumping jacks and again each time you land to soften the impact between your feet and the floor. Belgrave created this move for her Hip Hop Booty class in the Tone It Up app, which throws in a dance move between jumping jacks. Heres what two trainers had to say about the benefits of jumping jacks, how to do them properly, and how to modify them to your needs. Step jacks eliminate the intensity by removing the jump and replacing it with an alternating step out, adds Sims. Plyometric exercises generally involve jumping or explosive movements, which can help improve your strength and speed. Hop both feet together and bring your arms back down to the starting position to complete your first jumping jack. The hip adductors include four muscles that that cross the inside of your hip joint: the adductor brevis, adductor longus, adductor magnus and gracilis. To change up your routine, try one of the following variations. Jumping jacks work your legs, arms, and core. Despite being seemingly simple, jumping jacks are an effective exercise for your whole body, and they dont require much, other than a little room to jump around. The latter muscle follows a similar path. Both of these muscles attach to the ilium located on the pelvis on one end and the greater trochanter, the bony protrusion on the outside of your hip on the other end. Learning these jumping jacks muscle groups will help you determine the activities for which the jumping jack may be an effective warm-up exercise. Step both legs out laterally from the chair and bring your arms overhead at the same time. Drop down to a squat position with your legs wider than your shoulders and toes turned out. Bring your legs back together and arms down toward the floor. Stand with your feet together, knees soft. Most people can safely do a basic jumping jack, but it is a high-intensity exercise that may be difficult or dangerous for certain types of people, including: Sims says you can find many other calisthenic exercises that target the same muscles if your joints or body dont allow you to do jumping jacks comfortably or safely. Lesley Chen is a freelance writer with over four years experience.
