The Jumping Squat Variation That Will Leave Your Legs on Fire

By Jenny Sugar

Published on 3/27/2016 at 11:35 AM

Do not expect to walk normally down the stairs. Not after this exercise. The first time I followed Autumn Calabrese doing this during one of the workouts on the 21 Day Fix Extreme program, my legs and butt were instantly burning, but I was not prepared for how my legs would feel the day after. They were so sore, I had to forgo my planned run that day and for the next couple days after. Now that's intense!

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See for yourself and throw this squat hop plyo move into your next workout. Want to make it even more intense? Hold a dumbbell in each hand.

  • Before you start this move, visualize a large square on the floor, and you're standing in the bottom right corner, feet hip-distance apart.
  • Keeping weight in the heels, bend the knees and squat down. Take a huge jump forward to the top right corner of that imaginary square, landing quietly back into a squat.
  • Keep going around the square, jumping to the left, jumping back behind you, and jumping to the right. Now you're back where you started.
  • Continue hopping around the square in this direction for 30 seconds, then reverse your jumps around the square in the opposite direction for another 30 seconds.