DIY Wooden Plyo Boxes

The only thing better than doing something you love is combining it with another thing you love! These DIY Plyo Boxes- (AKA Jump boxes/Plyometric boxes/Crossfit Boxes) are just that for me 🙂 Woodworking + fitness = double win! You know I love to build things, but I’m also pretty crazy about health and fitness.

Our family is one month in on the Mtn Ops 90-day Challenge, and with box jumps on the circuit, and a family of 6 working out together- I knew we needed multiple boxes in a variety of sizes!

*On a side note- I can’t tell you how rewarding our family workouts have been- I totally recommend them for a lot of reasons 🙂 And, I can’t say enough great things about Mtn Ops– not only as a company, but their products and workout programs are all fantastic!

I had a pretty hard time deciding what size and type of boxes to build, but finally settled on 3 different sized rectangle boxes. I love these because each one offers 3 different height options. They are super handy for plenty of other exercises too, so you can never have too many around.

I built all of these using 3/4″ plywood- I was able to make all 3 (plus a little desk organizer for Chase) using 2 sheets of plywood.

For the biggest one, I followed the concept from Simply Sadie Jane, cutting notches into the sides of every piece that “lock” together. This was kind of tedious, but creates a stronger box, and for the 20″x24″x30″ size I think it was necessary. You can check out the link for the how-to on their site, but I’ll include a drawing with which notches go on which pieces to make it easier 🙂 This box took up one whole 4’x8′ sheet of plywood.

For the 2 smaller boxes, I skipped the notches. I think with the weights of all of us, these should hold up just fine- but feel free to add notches if you’d like 🙂 These two boxes came from one sheet of plywood, with enough left over to make Chase’s organizer. You could possibly squeeze 3 plyo boxes out of one sheet if you refigured things.

I’ll give you the run down here on how I built the 2 smaller boxes. Assuming your plywood is 3/4″ thick, these are the pieces you’ll need to cut-

For the 12″x14″x16″ box, you’ll need-

2 @ 14″ x 10.5″ -End Pieces, cut out handles if desired
2 @ 14.5″ x 10.5″ -Side Pieces
2 @ 14″ x 16″ -Top/Bottom Pieces

And for the 16″x18″x20″ box, you’ll need-

2 @ 18″ x 14.5″ -End Pieces, cut out handles if desired
2 @ 18.5″ x 14.5″ -Side Pieces
2 @ 18″ x 20″ -Top/Bottom Pieces

This drawing shows how I cut pieces for both boxes from one 4′ x 8′ sheet of 3/4″ plywood-

Once you’ve got the pieces cut, I’d recommend cutting handles out now if you want them. I cut handles into both of the smallest (end) pieces from each box- so your 14″ x 10.5″ pieces, and your 18″ x 14.5″ pieces.

I used a 7/8″ Spade Bit, but you can use whatever you have-

Decide where you want your handles- totally up to you, but I did this-

On the 14″ x 10.5″ end piece, I marked an “X” 3.5″ down and 5.5″ in from the edges with the piece widthwise.

On the 18″ x 14.5″ end piece, I marked an “X” 4.5″ down and 7″ in from the edges with the piece widthwise.

Now, clamp one board down on a piece of scrap wood (this will prevent tear-out on the backside and protect your work surface), place the point of your bit on one of your marks and drill through, being careful not to go all the way through your scrap piece into the work surface. Go ahead and do both holes on each piece-

Now, take a straight edge and draw lines connecting the two holes from top to top and bottom to bottom-

Now, re-clamp one of the boards with the holes hanging over the edge of your work surface- and cut along those lines with a jigsaw to create a handle- then repeat on the other board.

You can sand the handle inside and out now and we’ll assemble the boxes!

Line one of your end pieces (with the handle) with one of the side pieces for whichever box you are working on- use wood glue and nail (I used 1 1/4″ nails with my 18 gauge nailer) and/or screw through the end piece into the side piece. *The nail gun is totally optional, but I’m short on clamps and the nails held everything together nicely for me to assemble, then pre-drill and screw everything together.

Attach one side, then the other.

Once both sides are on, attach the other end, making sure your handles line up 🙂

Now, grab your largest (top/bottom) pieces and attach those with wood glue and nails or screws. This is a good time to square everything up, too 🙂

Once I had things glued and nailed together, I went back and pre-drilled and screwed everything together. I used 1 5/8″ screws. (I was out of 2″ screws, but probably would have used those if I’d had them.) Taking the time to pre-drill is really important, because plywood loves to split out on you.

Now, you can go ahead and sand that baby! I like to kind of round out the edges and corners; just think about those shins on your 50th rep when you’re getting tired, and show them some love right now by smoothing things out real good 😉