A drop landing starts on a low step or box. You step off, land on both feet, and bend your hips and knees to soak up the landing, then stand and go again. It trains the thighs, buttocks and calves to take your weight quickly while the knees stay steady. It tends to come late in knee and ankle rehab, or when you are getting back to sport.

How to do the drop landing

Set a low, sturdy step or box on a non-slip floor, with clear space in front of it and a wall or counter within reach. Wear supportive sports shoes that grip.
Stand tall at the front edge of the step with your feet about hip width apart and your arms by your sides.
Step forward off the edge with one foot. Do not jump up or out. Just let yourself drop.
Land on both feet at the same time, touching down on the balls of the feet first, then let the heels come down as your hips and knees bend to absorb the landing. Keep your knees in line with your toes.
Hold the landing still for a moment, then stand up, step back onto the step and repeat, leading with the other foot next time.

What you should feel

Your legs work hard to catch you, from the calves up to the buttocks. Each landing should feel soft and quiet, with the knees steady.

Common mistakes

Landing on straight, stiff legs with a loud thud.
Knees falling inward as you land.
Moving to a higher step before low landings feel easy.
Touching down on one foot first when both should land together.

How often

Many programs start with 1 to 3 sets of 5 to 8 landings from a low step, with a full rest between sets, once or twice a week. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

Pain in the knee, ankle, shin or foot that is sharp on landing or builds through the set.
The knee buckles or the ankle turns over on a landing.
You leak urine when you land, or feel heaviness or dragging low in your pelvis.
A sudden pop or snap at the back of your ankle or heel, a feeling that someone kicked you there, or sudden pain there after which you cannot push off or rise onto your toes on that leg. Stop, take the weight off that leg carefully and go to an urgent care center or emergency department the same day, even if you can still walk, as this can be a torn Achilles tendon.
Chest pain or pressure, dizziness or feeling faint, a racing or irregular heartbeat, or being far more out of breath than the effort should cause.

From the clinic

The app calls this a depth jump, but the voice guide and the video show only the landing: step off, land on both feet and absorb it. A depth jump adds a jump straight back up the moment you land. That is a harder, sport-level exercise, and your physio will tell you if and when to add it. The voice guide suggests a step about 30 cm (12 inches) high, and the step in the video looks lower. Start low, for example from the bottom stair with a hand near the rail, and go higher only while every landing stays quiet and steady.

This is not an early rehab exercise. It usually comes after you can squat and do small jumps on the spot on both feet without pain, and without swelling afterward. Jump squats and pogo hops build landing control on flat ground first. After a knee fracture or knee surgery, including a knee replacement, follow your surgeon's or physio's plan, and start this exercise only when they have cleared you. After an ankle fracture or ankle surgery, follow your surgeon's or physio's weight-bearing plan, and start this exercise only when they have cleared you.

Thin bones (osteoporosis), a fall in the past year or poor balance are all reasons to check with your doctor or physio before you start. If you leak urine or feel heaviness in your pelvis as you land, stop and ask your physio for pelvic floor advice before you carry on. If you are pregnant, check with your midwife or physio before you start. If you have recently given birth, including by cesarean section, or you have a gap down the middle of your stomach muscles (diastasis recti), ask your physio, midwife or doctor first.

If you have had a hip or knee replacement, get the go-ahead from your surgeon before you try drop landings. Many surgeons advise against jumping and hopping after a joint replacement for good, not just for the first months, because each landing sends high impact through the new joint.

With a heart condition or high blood pressure, check with your doctor before you start. If chest pain, pressure or tightness does not ease quickly when you rest, spreads to your arm, neck, jaw, stomach or back, or comes with sweating, feeling sick, feeling light-headed or being short of breath, call emergency services straight away, as this can be a heart attack. If it eases quickly and none of these happen, get medical advice the same day, and do not exercise again until you have been checked. If you faint while exercising, call emergency services, even if you feel fine again quickly.

Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-28.

This page is general education, not a diagnosis or a personal treatment plan. If you have pain, an injury or a health condition, see a physiotherapist or doctor before starting new exercises.

Drop landing