Pogo Hop

Small, stiff, repeated hops off the forefoot. Trains ankle stiffness and short ground contacts. Run it early in the session while fresh, not as a finisher.

DIFFICULTY
Beginner
EQUIPMENT
Bodyweight
PRIMARY MUSCLES
Calves · Feet & Arch
ALSO WORKS
Quads · Tibialis Anterior · Achilles Tendon
HOW TO DO IT
  1. 01Stand tall with feet hip-width, arms fixed at your sides or on your hips.
  2. 02Hop straight up off both forefeet without letting the heels touch down.
  3. 03Keep the knees nearly straight and let the ankle do the work.
  4. 04Land on the same spot on the forefoot and rebound immediately, aiming for contacts under a fifth of a second.
  5. 05Do 10 to 20 contacts, stop the set the moment contacts get loud or slow, and rest fully.
COACHING CUES
  1. 01Stiff ankles, quiet feet.
  2. 02Off the floor as fast as you hit it.
  3. 03Tall through the hips, do not sit down into it.
COMMON MISTAKES
  1. 01Heels slapping the floor — the tendon releases its stored energy and the hop becomes a slow squat off the ground.
  2. 02Bending the knees to jump higher — that turns an ankle drill into a squat jump and removes the stiffness training.
  3. 03Chasing high rep counts when tired — contact times lengthen and you are now training slow, not fast.

Note: Reference material, not a prescription. Load, volume and whether this movement suits you at all depends on your assessment — if something hurts, stop and get it looked at.

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